Wage Level Determination
Here is the verified full worksheet structure from the official 2009 DOL guidance.
The five-factor framework comes from the DOL document, specifically the section titled "Process for Determining Wage Level" and the step-by-step worksheet (Appendices A, B, and C). USCIS applies this DOL methodology; it isn't itself a USCIS regulation. The DOL guidance frames the relevant factors as experience, education, training, and special skills compared to those generally required for an occupation as described in O*NET. The worksheet operationalizes those factors into five scored steps.
The Five-Step Worksheet
Every determination starts at Level I with a "1" already entered in the Wage Level column. Points are then added across the steps and summed; if the total exceeds 4, the level is capped at Level IV.
Step 1: O*NET Requirements
You identify the correct ONET-SOC occupation from the job title and record what ONET says the occupation generally requires in terms of education, experience, tasks, knowledge, and work activities. This step establishes the baseline; no points are added here.
Step 2: Experience
This is the step your RFE quoted. You compare the employer's required experience to the O*NET Job Zone range. For Job Zones 2–5: at or below the range adds nothing, low end adds 1, high end adds 2, and greater than the range adds 3. (Your Marketing Manager case landed here—3+ years read as exceeding the over-2-to-4-year range, triggering +2.)
Step 3: Education
You compare the employer's required education to what the occupation usually requires. For professional occupations (using the Appendix D education/training categories), if the required education exceeds the usual education by one category, enter a 1; if it exceeds by more than one category, enter a 2. The guidance's example: if the occupation generally requires a Bachelor's and the employer requires a Master's, enter a 1; if it requires a Ph.D., enter a 2.
Step 4: Special Skills and Other Requirements
You review the job duties and special requirements (licenses, certifications, software, tools) and judge whether they indicate skills beyond an entry-level worker. Notably, a foreign-language requirement other than English is generally treated as a special skill warranting a point (with limited exceptions like interpreters or specialty cooks). A license or certification does not automatically earn a point—the analyst must assess whether it signals an experienced worker.
Step 5: Supervisory Duties
If the number of people supervised is greater than 0, enter a 1—unless supervision is a customary duty of the O*NET occupation (e.g., first-line supervisor or manager titles), in which case no point is added because those wages already account for supervision.
How This Confirms the Earlier Explanation
My recollection was essentially correct but slightly mislabeled. The five factors are experience, education, special skills/other requirements, and supervisory duties—with Step 1 being the baseline setup rather than a fifth scored factor. The "training" I mentioned isn't a separate step; it's folded into the experience and education/skills analysis. One important caveat the guidance stresses: a point should not be added in every step for the same underlying requirement—if work experience needed to obtain a license already pushed you up in Step 2, you don't also count it in Steps 3 or 4.