I was relatively surpised at how quickly my papers were processed since I applied at the end of Oct 2008 and my interview was scheduled for middle of Feb, 2009.
The officer had a huge file and first started by validating my name. He even had my birth certificate, which I never submitted, and asked me to verify all the information on that. After verifying the name, he went through all questions from the N400.
Under the various employment based categories, Category I based permanent residency is the most difficult to obtain. Initially, the foreign national must determine if he/she is eligible for lawful permanent residency according to the USCIS guidelines.
An applicant filing an EB1 alien of extraordinary ability application may self-petition, but an applicant filing under outstanding researcher and/or professor and multinational manager must have a sponsoring employer.
One of the ways a foreign national (alien) can become a permanent resident is through a permanent employment opportunity in the United States. There are five employment-based preference categories.
Please contact the International Student Office in your local university for F-1 visa fee information.
Also, see this link.
A temporary worker visa is a nonimmigrant visa for individuals who wish to work temporarily in the United States. There are several categories ("classifications") of temporary worker visas. Some of these classifications have annual limits. The applicant’s qualifications, type of work to be performed, and other factors determine what type of visa is required under U.S. immigration law.
Below is a summary of these visas. For more information on any of them, click on the visa title or on the menu to the left.