How to Find Peer Review Opportunities and Recommenders for an EB-1A Green Card Application

How to Obtain Peer Review Opportunities

Asking Acquaintances for Review Opportunities

For example, your advisor, friends, or senior labmates. The email invitation to review for a journal, often titled “Invitation to Review for xxx,” frequently contains wording like this:

If you do not wish to review this paper, please click this link: xxxxxx. I would be very grateful for suggestions for alternative reviewers; however, please do not approach anyone directly, as the manuscript should be kept confidential.

Or:

If you are unable to review at this time, I would be grateful if you could recommend another expert reviewer.

This means that if they cannot review, they can recommend you to the editor. The editor may then turn to you.

Emailing Journal Editors

This includes the editor-in-chief and associate editors. For some journals, the editor-in-chief does not handle manuscript assignments; instead, associate editors or even full-time editors do. Below is the template I use for request emails. Since editors may not have time to look at attachments, I did not attach my CV; instead, I provided my Google Scholar link clearly in the email. When sending the email, remember to register your information on the journal's website using the same email address. This is because the editor may not reply to your email but will directly invite you to review when a manuscript similar to your research area comes in.

Dear Editors, My name is xxx, I’m a postdoc at xxx University. I am writing to get your recommendation so I can be selected as a reviewer for xxx journal. My research field are as follows: xxx. I have published original research papers in several peer-reviewed journals such as xxx, xxx, and xxx. I have strong background, expertise and experiences in xxx. You can check my Google Scholar profile at: xxx. I’m trying to further expand my knowledge and ability in the fields that your journal covers, and I would appreciate the opportunity to serve as a referee to review papers for you. Yours Sincerely, Name Date

When sending emails, be targeted and try to contact editors whose research areas are close to yours, because the manuscripts assigned to editors are often related to their fields, which increases your chances of reviewing. Sending emails to open access journals may improve your hit rate, as open access journals tend to have high publication volumes and thus more review opportunities.

Cherish Your Review Opportunities

Respond Promptly to Editor Invitations

Upon receiving a review invitation from the editor, promptly click the “Agreed” link to confirm; you will receive a reply “Thank you for agreeing to review for xxx,” which is one of the two emails required for the green card application. Due to time differences with Asia and Europe, emails often arrive at night; it is advisable to check your email first thing in the morning or upon arriving at the office and complete the review confirmation. These invitations may be sent to multiple people at once; for example, an editor may invite 5 people but only need 3 reviewers. You might receive a cancellation email from the editor before you even reply, because 3 people have already confirmed.

Complete Reviews on Time

Different journals offer different review timelines, ranging from one week to four weeks; it is important to complete the review carefully and promptly. For example, if an editor gives four weeks to review a manuscript and you procrastinate until the last week, when you log in to the website to review, you may find the manuscript is no longer there and you have not received any reminder email from the editor, leaving you confused. The reason is simple: the editor has already received comments from multiple reviewers, and these comments are sufficient for the editor to make a decision (often “Rejected”), so the editor no longer needs to wait for other reviewers' opinions. Thus, your review opportunity is ruthlessly “deprived” again.

Provide Careful and Constructive Review Comments

As a researcher, it would be a serious mistake to simply assume that reviewing is only for the purpose of applying for a green card.

Through peer review, you can learn about the latest research progress in your field as soon as possible, and you can also build your global academic network through this scholarly activity, which is beneficial for establishing future collaborations [Reference]. Read the manuscript carefully and provide positive and negative evaluations from two aspects: importance (what is the significance of the results to the field?) and novelty (are the claims novel enough to warrant publication? Does the research advance beyond existing published work?). After submitting your review comments online, you will receive a thank-you email confirming completion of the review: “Thank you for the review of xxx,” which is the second of the two emails required for the green card application.

Finding Recommenders and Recommendation Letters

Recommenders fall into two types: first, non-independent recommenders, often one's PhD advisor, postdoc supervisor, etc. Second, independent recommenders, i.e., researchers with no conflict of interest with you: no joint project applications, no co-authored publications, etc. How to find such independent recommenders? My suggestion is to choose from those who have cited your articles, and specifically those who have given extensive positive evaluations of your work. The email template I use is as follows:

Subject: Request for Supporting Letter for xxx's Immigration Petition. Dear Dr. XXX, My name is xxx, and I am currently working at xxx (work unit). I am writing this letter to inquire about the possibility of receiving a supporting letter from you toward my application for permanent residency in the United States of America (purpose of the email). My research has been focusing on xxx, xxx, and xxx (summarize your research in one or two sentences). I read your great papers titled "xxx," which was published in xxx journal in 2016, and "xxx," which was published in xxx in 2016. They are very inspiring. It is also my honor to notice that you cited one of my papers "xxx," which was published when I was working in xxx's group at xxx. I would like to express my appreciation for your great papers and also for your citation of my work (I have read your published articles and benefited greatly; and these articles have cited my work. I personally feel that this immediately brings me closer to the recommender). As I have started my career here in the U.S., I plan to apply for permanent residency under the "Alien of Extraordinary Ability" category, for which I need to submit evidence to the U.S. government of my qualification as an outstanding researcher. Such evidence includes a number of supporting letters signed by independent experts who do not know me personally and have never worked with me on any projects. Since you are a prominent figure in my research area, I wonder if you could help me out with such a letter, which will only be used for immigration purposes and will never be used as an academic recommendation (further explain why a recommendation letter is needed to alleviate the recommender's concerns). I understand that you are extremely busy. Therefore, I have attached a well-written draft, along with my CV, for you to review and evaluate. You can modify it in whatever way you feel comfortable based on the draft, or you are more than welcome to write your own. I also understand that you may decline, and I will thank you for your time nevertheless (considering that the recommender may be too busy, further explain that you can draft the recommendation letter for their reference). Thank you in advance for your help. I am looking forward to your reply! Sincerely Yours, Name Date

As for recommendation letter template drafts, many can be found on the Weiming Forum. In the evaluation of you, words like "he may xxx" should be avoided as much as possible. Think about it: if even the recommendation letter is so hesitant and uncertain, how can the adjudicator be convinced?

Is it necessary to obtain recommendation letters to demonstrate your peer review ability? My view is that it is worth pursuing, as it can provide an additional boost. Some university professors also serve as journal editors-in-chief or associate editors (professor & journal editor); if you ask them for an independent recommendation letter, they can mention your review work in the letter, achieving two goals at once. In addition, as mentioned earlier, take every review opportunity seriously; if your reviewing is outstanding and earns the favor of staff editors, they will be more likely to write you a recommendation letter.

After the recommender completes and signs the letter, they can scan it and send it to you. Upon receiving the letter, you should read it carefully to ensure there are no errors or obvious issues, and then remember to send the recommender a thank-you email. One should always be grateful, and it is also good to send greetings and wishes during holidays.

• Further reading: {https://gonglue.us/4991}.

About the Author

This article was contributed by Eric Huang. The author is a post-80s generation scientific researcher who loves thinking and cooking.