India | B1/B2 Visa Refused under 214(b) after F1/OPT/STEM OPT/Cumberland History – Looking for Opinions Before Reapplying
Hi everyone,
Looking for some opinions on what may have led to my recent B1/B2 refusal and whether I should apply again for another business trip.
Background:
- Indian citizen
- Applied from Delhi, India
- B1/B2 Visa
- Went to the U.S. in 2018 for my Master’s, Completed my Master’s and Worked on OPT and STEM OPT and moved back in Feb 2024
- Never applied for H1B (I know it is weird)
- Enrolled in a PhD program at the University of the Cumberlands and worked under CPT while enrolled
After about a year, I decided not to continue the PhD and voluntarily returned to India in 2024
- I informed my university that I wasn’t planning to return, requested my SEVIS to be terminated, and moved back because I genuinely wanted to continue my career in India
I’ve been working in India ever since and currently work as a Senior Product Manager for a U.S.-based company
Purpose of travel:
My company sponsored me to attend the AI4 Conference in Las Vegas, where I was also scheduled to speak about the technical aspects of one of our products.
The visa officer never looked at my employer letter or conference invitation.
These were almost all the questions asked:
Officer: Why are you going to the USA?
Me: To attend the AI4 Conference in Las Vegas sponsored by my company.
Officer: What is this conference?
Me: I started explaining that it’s an enterprise AI conference, but he stopped me midway.
Officer: Why are you being sent by your company?
Me: I’m the only technical Product Manager on my team, and I have a speaker session where I need to talk about the technical aspects of our product.
Officer: Have you ever traveled abroad?
Me: Yes, I have stayed in the U.S. before.
Officer: You did a PhD?
Me: Yes.
Officer: From the University of the Cumberlands? Because of Day 1 CPT?
Me: No, because of the coursework flexibility.
Officer: Why are you being sent by your company?
Me: I repeated the same answer.
He then asked for my old passport, looked at my previous U.S. visa, typed for a while, took my fingerprints, and finally said:
“Sorry, I can’t approve your visa.”
I received a 214(b) refusal.
After thinking about it, I realized my answer to “You did a PhD?” may not have been clear. What I meant was that I had enrolled in a PhD program but did not complete it. I dropped out after about a year and voluntarily returned to India. Since the officer didn’t ask any follow-up question, I simply answered “Yes,” and now I’m wondering whether he interpreted that as me saying I had completed the PhD.
I genuinely returned to India of my own choice, withdrew from the program, and have been working here since 2024.
Now my company has another team offsite coming up in Portland, and they’re asking me to apply for a B1/B2 visa again.
I’d really appreciate thoughts from people who’ve been through something similar.
- If you were in my situation, would you apply again for the Portland offsite, or wait longer before reapplying?
- Has anyone with a similar background eventually been approved for a B1/B2 visa?
Looking for constructive feedback and similar experiences. Thanks!