The Other Side of the Desk: POVs from the lens of USCIS and Department of State

​Most people in the immigration process never hear how it looks from the other side of the desk. Applicants read delays and questions as hostility. Officers see a case file and a caseload. Employers and lawyers each see a different slice again.

​Marta Maya Nickols is an immigrant and a former USCIS Field Office Director with more than 17 years at the agency. She adjudicated and supervised thousands of family-based and employment-based cases, and as Field Office Director she oversaw adjudications, interviews, and quality assurance, which means she knows firsthand how officers weigh evidence, assess credibility, and reach decisions.

​Düden Freeman is an immigrant and a former U.S. diplomat who spent almost nine years with the Department of State, including as a visa officer deciding visa cases at the consular window. She's interviewed tens of thousands of applicants, and went through the process herself too, from international student to naturalized citizen. She's the founder of Visas 101.

​What we will cover:

• ​What a standard day looks like for an officer reviewing petitions and for a consular officer conducting interviews

• ​Practical advice for filing a self-petitioned case with USCIS and for showing up to a consular interview

• ​What happens behind the scenes at USCIS and the consulates when large policy changes land

​This is a conversation designed for foreign nationals, people leaders, HR and global mobility leaders, immigration lawyers, and anyone navigating the U.S. immigration system.

​Moderated by Ashlee Drake Berry, Head of Legal at Casium.