Senior Immigration Specialist

Overview

Senior Immigration Specialist

Job Group:
Professional & Scientific

Required

Minimum Qualifications:

Bachelor’s degree and 5 years of related experience

Preferred Qualifications:

Master’s degree. Experience as a Principal/Designated School Official (P/DSO) or Alternate/Responsible Officer (A/RO). Experience using SEVIS, Sunapsis, Workday, or similar case‑management/HR software. Experience filing Labor Certifications, H‑1B petitions, and employment‑based immigrant petitions, and managing related caseloads. Experience interpreting and implementing federal regulations and institutional policies, such as those in human resources and/or related to sponsoring and hosting international employees and scholars.

Experience providing guidance or advising to international populations (students, scholars, or employees) in a university or similar organizational setting.

• Manage and coordinate employment‑based immigration strategy for international faculty, staff, postdocs, and visiting scholars, ensuring compliance with U.S. immigration regulations and university policy.
• Serve as a senior‑level immigration subject matter expert, advising departments and leadership on complex employment scenarios (hiring, compensation, leave, remote work, job changes, and separations).
• Independently prepare and file complex nonimmigrant and immigrant petitions (e.g., H‑1B, TN, E‑3, Labor Certifications, and permanent residence cases).
• Analyze and respond to government inquiries, requests for evidence, and compliance challenges from DHS, DOL, and DOS.
• Partner with hiring departments, Talent Acquisition, and HR teams to develop customized, time‑sensitive immigration solutions.
• Serve as an Alternate Responsible Officer of Iowa State University’s Department of State Exchange Visitor Program for nonstudent J-1 Exchange Visitors in the SEVIS system. Report health, safety, and welfare issues directly to the Department of State as required for J-1 scholars.
• Advise international employees and scholars on immigration, employment, and cross‑cultural matters, coordinating with campus and external resources as needed.
• Develop and deliver training for campus stakeholders on immigration regulations, timelines, and systems (e.g., Sunapsis/Cystart).
• Contribute to regulatory interpretation, policy development and continuous improvement of immigration practices, serving as a mentor and resource to junior staff.
• Support onboarding and compliance processes, including check‑ins, scholar orientations, and employment eligibility verification, as needed.

Candidates must be legally authorized to work in the U.S. on an ongoing basis without sponsorship. Immigration sponsorship is not available for this position. U.S. citizenship or permanent resident status required for access to the SEVIS system.

The International Students and Scholars Office (ISSO) employs staff with many years of experience in the U.S. and abroad. Staff members provide courteous and timely service, apply a broad range of immigration expertise, and deliver informative programming for international students, faculty, staff, postdocs, visiting scholars, and their families. To learn more, please visit ISSO.

• Senior-level position possessing high-level professional and/or technical skills working independently under minimal supervision to support ISU’s mission and department or work unit goals
• Applies senior-level professional knowledge and expertise to work requiring greater latitude
• Solves moderately complex problems and regularly exercises judgment to determine appropriate action
• Regularly exercises judgment to resolve problems and determine appropriate action on a broad set of issue and problems. May provide recommendations regarding problems/issues outside the bounds of defined procedures and practices
• Responds to complicated inquiries, provides training, and provides direction to lower-level staff
• May provide supervision for one to two other staff (i.e., leads a small work team)
• May lead projects for which well-defined practices and procedures may not exist
• Provides guidance to scholars

Regular