TN Category: Graphic design?

Hello! Thank you immensely in advance for your help!

Background: I graduated from a U.S. liberal arts school a year ago, and spent my OPT as an intern in the communications department of a research non-profit in NY. My OPT ended in June, so I had to leave the country... I'm currently in Asia, where my parents live.

I've now been offered a full time job by my OPT employer as a "Communications Associate (Graphic Designer)." The only problem is that I majored in Geography... and only one of the courses I took even remotely relates to graphic design (it was a cartography class). The upside is that my resume is composed almost entirely of graphic design jobs/gigs, and it pretty clearly matches the work in my new job description. Questions:

1. Does it matter that I didn't major in graphic design? Most of the NAFTA sites say that all I need is a bachelor's degree, without specifying in what.

2. Is the job title ("Communications Associate (Graphic Designer)") too vague? Should it simply be "Graphic Designer"?

3. Would it help if I brought a portfolio of my work?

4. I haven't actually lived in Canada in about five years. Will this hurt my chances? Obviously I'd be coming into the U.S. either at the border or the Toronto airport... (I get the sense that it doesn't matter but I just wanted to double check.)

I feel a little apprehensive right now, mostly because I'm currently 8000 miles from Toronto so it's a long and costly trek to get back out there, and then it's another mini-trek to drive to Buffalo or to go to the airport... and then it would all be in vain if I got denied.

Thanks again for your patience and help!

(Also, FYI... I read the post about another geography major trying to get a part time TN in graphic design but I thought this question maybe merited its own thread because it's a bit different because of my work experience, etc... anyway, just letting you know that I've explored the boards!)

You don't necessarily need to leave, your employer can apply for a change of status on I-129.

The regs say:

Graphic Designer -- Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree; or Post-Secondary Diploma or Post-Secondary Certificate and three years experience.

They use the OOH guide as a reference as well: http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos090.htm

Hi Steve - Thanks for your quick response! I forgot to add that my OPT ended in June, so I'm not employed by them any more... also, I had to leave the country when my OPT ended, so I'm very far away from North America. Anyway, in this case, can they still file an I-129? (I'll update my post with the info about my OPT ending right now).

Thanks again!!!

Your degree should be somewhat in the same feild.

Once you've left you've got to apply at a POE for TN-1. TN-1 is a bit weird as far as that goes, because only Canadians can get it and Canadians don't need a visa for non-immigrant categories there's no other way to do it from outside the US, at least as far as I'm aware. (Actual TN-1 visas were abolished in 2003 when the US decided to stop issuing them to Canadian LPRs).

The degree should be in a related field; it might be hard to justify the relevance of a geography degree to the graphic design field. The fact that your work experience has been mostly in graphic design should help to make the case that you are qualified.

Sigh! It almost sounds like it isn't worth the gamble, especially since I'm so far away right now. If I'd known about the TN list in college, I probably would have majored in something more relevant to the job positions!

Also, I'm a TN noob, so if any justification of my degree were to be made, would that be made in the letter from my employer? Like could they say something like her geography degree is crucial to her work here for so and so reasons? Or would I have to make my case the official verbally and in person?

Thanks again.

There's a TN Visa kit that you can buy from this site that has some sample (successful) TN job letters, it might be worth looking into getting that to get some ideas on how to frame the text of your letter.

As for the degree, you technically do not need to have a degree in the field for which you are applying (the regs say "bachelor's degree" for most of the TN professions -- the only one that specifically requires a degree in the field is the hotel management category). But CBP generally looks to see that the degree is somewhat related. (For example, a person with a degree in English probably wouldn't qualify for a computer systems analyst TN.)

You could make the case that with your bachelor's degree and your work experience you already meet the requirements for the TN.