Mohammed Alayuni
Noah Brady
Erika Ruiz Hillembrand
Derek Stayoch
Sean Wilkerson
Difficulties of Job – Hunting for International Students
To: International Student Office, USF (University of South Florida) (University of South Florida) Office of Diversity, Inclusion and Equal Opportunities
From: USF Students of Communication for Engineering ENC3246.005F21.82043
Dear International Student Office and University of South Florida (USF) Office of Diversity, Inclusion and Equal Opportunities, we are writing to you to express our concerns about the difficulty that international students have when searching for a full-time job after graduation. When they search for a full-time job once they graduate, it has been noticed that they are not helped as much as they should be. Therefore, we are addressing this report to you to express the problem and offer some solutions that may help them.
Executive Summary
International students face many difficulties in their school and work career when coming to the United States. One of the most difficult events in their working career that they must go through is acquiring a job after they graduate in a certain amount of time, or they must leave the country. This places a large amount of stress on the students which they do not need. This report consists of explaining and introducing the problem at hand and offering some valid solutions to implement into society to ease international students’ transition into the work force.
Introduction – Sean
One thing that the University of South Florida prides itself in is how diverse its students and staff are and how much they care for them. Although this is true, there are some ways in which USF can improve upon how they take care of their international students. The minority group we will be focused on is international students. According to the 2020-2021 USF facts report, there are 4,350 international students. The overall goal for any institution is to prepare its students for the next level, whether it be a higher level of education, or a successful career. Compared to their US born or naturalized peers, international students face more difficulty after graduation when looking for a job, and we believe there could be more done by USF to help their international students as they pride themselves in looking out for their diverse students and staff. Not only would this help international students, but it would help USF become more informed on the topic and add to the work being done by us students.
Problem/Need – Sean, Mohammed
Finding a job after college can be difficult for all students, however, as an international student there are more obstacles in your way. The main obstacle any student faces when it comes to securing a job after graduation is competition with other applicants. For an international student to obtain a job not only do they have to face the competition of other applicants, but they must get a US work visa sponsorship. According to VisaGuide.world, a work visa is an employer saying that they are formally employing a non-US citizen, or in our case, an international student. Although it sounds simple, it is not as easy as writing a letter from your employer. The employer is required to fill out many other forms and to send them in to the US Department of Labor. This creates a problem where employers must choose between US and non-US applicants. From the employer’s perspective, many times their deciding factor between two applicants with differing citizenship sati is the principle of why spend more time and money on one individual when another one can do the same job with less work on myself.
Job seeking process is most of the times tough for students. This is majorly because of the high competition in the employment sector, little or no work experience and networking among other factors. Nevertheless, for international students the job-hunting process is harder and more challenging. For international students to work in USF or Tampa and the United States in general, they require an approval and authorization from the government and the relevant authorities. Some of the frequently used work approval programs for international students include the Optimal Practical Training (OPT) program. After the application for authorization, students must get the Employment Authorization Document from the US Citizenship and Immigration Service which takes about ninety days to be processed. However, to get the approval document the student must be enrolled for about a year. Though international students get work authorization through the OPT program, many employers are still hesitant in hiring them (Khanal, & Gaulee, 2019).
The demand and call for work visas by employers also make it difficult for international students to search for search for jobs in the United States. Visa application for international students is done by employers willing to pay for their employee since international students are unable to directly apply for the H-1b visa after OPT. As a result of the high expenses for the visa application, many employers are reluctant to employ international students. Similarly, in many instances where employers appeal for the H-1B visa for international students there is no assurance of its approval. Based on statistics from Fragomen, a New York based international immigration firm, the chances for the approval of H-1B for international students stand at about 38% -42% (Lee & Rice, 2007).
About 75% of jobs are obtained through networking. Many international students lack professional job networks. Little or no professional networks connections is disadvantageous to many since many employers prefer employing people they well know. Being new in the US and majorly to pursue further education, many international students have inadequate professional networks This is limiting especially when it comes to job seeking since they have little or no information about potential employers. Equally, in cases where the students are aware of the potential employer it is hard to get the employment as they always prefer and favour US citizens (Akanwa 2015).
Inadequate and insufficient US work experience is also another barrier to many international students in the job searching process. Unfamiliarity with the US working conditions and atmosphere prevents many international students from getting jobs. Since work experience is one of the essential requirements by many employers it limits the chances for foreign students to get jobs in the United States. Lastly, many international students find it challenging to get employment in the US because of the challenge of discrimination based on their nationality. Some of the US employers view foreign students based on stereotypes on their nationalities and cultures. For instance, some employers might find it difficult to hire foreign students because of language since they are not sure whether such students are able to communicate efficiently in English (Altbach, Gumport, et al, 2011).
Solution – Derek, Noah
Some would say the solution does not seem that difficult to conjure. And in hindsight they are correct. The problem is mostly the laws and regulations put in for aspiring workers. There are solutions today to help our international students which include but are not limited to OPT, H-1B visas, and EBPR. OPT is Optional Practical Training. This program allows undergraduate or graduate students to remain in the United States and work for up to twelve months. If they are a STEM major, they may be able to receive twelve-month extension. If the employer of the international student wants them to stay then the employer can apply them for a H-1B visa. This type of visa allows for the student to stay in the United States for another six years. There is a lot more paperwork for this visa unfortunately. Once those six years are up though, then the employer can apply them for employment-based permanent residency. If the student does change their job, then they will have to apply for renewed visas. There are a lot of requirements that go into obtaining any kind of visa. If the requirements were eased up a little for international students to find jobs, then they the problem that we are expressing would not be as severe. Not only is it difficult to obtain a visa through the requirements but it is also extremely time consuming. If our familiar OPT program gives a limit of twelve months to get a job and stay in the United States, the average working visa takes roughly two to seven months to acquire. As soon as international students graduate, they are on a time limit thanks to some bills being passed by our lawmakers. A time limit and a required yearly salary to remain in the United States. These are difficult requirements to meet when you’ve paid to stay here and obtain a degree here and are simply just trying to find a great career to have a blissful life. If the length of time and requirements to obtain a working visa could be shortened and or lightened, then most of our international students could hopefully live wonderful lives with a well-paying job in our country.
A lot of the decision work goes into the employer whether they want to hire a US citizen or an international student. Apart from the possible chance that the employer is racist when hiring an international student, a lot more paperwork goes into the employer’s workload. Along with the solutions the United States already has in place, those solutions have strict requirements the students must follow or else they could lose their hard-earned visa. Some of the requirements include working a certain number of hours per week and making a certain amount of money per year. Not only do they have to never be late for work or miss a day, but they also cannot find a minimum wage job. Our solution is to lift the regulations put on these visas and give an extended grace period for international students of a year minimum. These students should not have to make a certain amount of money to stay in the country. Just from them being here they are fueling our economy and benefiting our growth as a diverse nation. The ease of completion will reduce stress on the international students knowing they can aim for high paying jobs and lesser paying jobs as well in case the higher paying jobs do not work out. Another solution to implement is more help for international students. Giving international students more advisors or more diverse advisors who seek jobs with them and are trained to search for job openings that would suit the student. That would benefit the students vastly since they may not know where to start or what they should be looking for.
Along with helping these international students find a job these advisors could help prepare them for the work force. Certain job necessities that every employee must go through and accomplish to be job ready. The advisors could do in-person training and give them hands-on experience, or they could create a website and give them instructional videos to better prepare them for what they may encounter at their job. This will give the students a better understanding of how they will go about their job in a daily routine and will give them a higher chance of learning how they can become better at their job quicker. They will not need to worry about figuring out how the routine goes; they can focus on becoming a better employee.
Implementation – Derek, Noah
To put a networking site into effect or a networking system there are a few key points that need to be considered when making one. Who will be the main target or audience? What platform will this work the best on? How will the users be updated? How can the functionality of the website help the overall experience for the user? With these questions in mind, we were able to pinpoint and plan our implementation of a networking system (Rampton).
Our first item to focus on would be the creation of a website which usually takes anywhere from six months to a year (Michaels). While creating the website, we would make sure our focus is hitting on the previous questions. Since the website itself will be used the most in our networking plan, most of our efforts will be put into it. We would all contribute to the creation and the publishing of the website. With our criteria for the project functions being quality, efficiency, and reliability, it is important to have all hands-on deck to accomplish these goals.
Since we need this website to be perfect, hiring a professional to complete the website seems like the best option. They have the capability of creating the website and keeping it up and running with updates as needed. According to an article by Lucy Carney, this would cost $6,000 dollars up front, and then an ongoing cost of $1,000 per year. Also, for this to be as perfect as possible, it would be important to have designated workers that could talk to the international students about their problems. These workers would also manage the website to make sure that it is up to date, and everything is running smoothly. This would make for a better experience for the students because they would be able to have one-on-one conversations that are specific to their needs. It would also be important for these workers to help the students connect with companies that are known for hiring international students and help them obtain a job that way.
With all these efforts, we should see a strong increase in student success. We would need the website to be up and running if possible so that international students can be a part of the website for years to come. Another topic that we will heavily focus on during the creation of our website would be the ability for international alumni to be able to connect with their students in a situation where the students need guidance in their field of study. Hearing someone else’s perspective when trying to accomplish something they have already been through is extremely helpful. They have specific knowledge that can leverage them to success, and this is important for success because this is knowledge that can only be obtained through those who have multiple years of experience in a niche task.
Our team would be able to accomplish all this in no more than a year. The creation of the website will be the least of our worries since it will be created by a professional. The main concern is how the website will be used and the efforts to create the exposure needed for the website to be useful.
Once the website is created, the university would have a few simple tasks that would allow the students to connect. Every student receives emails from the university on a daily basis in forms such as newsletters, upcoming dates, or any information that would be useful to students. In a recent study from Bowling Green State University, out of 315 students about 85% of respondents check their email daily (Eab). So, getting this network information to students through email would be an effective way for it to grow. Not only would this help the students, but it would also help USF create a positive impact.
Project Ideas
Cost
Timeframe
Creation of Website
$6,000 initial cost
1-6 Months or after completion
Implementation to USF
$1,000 in the month it was completed
Yearly
Figure 1: Shows the cost and timeline of each operation that would take place in the project.
Conclusion – Mohammed
This research entails the challenges and difficulties that foreign students face while trying to secure jobs at USF or in Tampa. In our analysis, we have established that the key challenges that inhibit their ability to secure jobs within the said institutions include First, inadequate professional networks through which the students can seek and gain job opportunities, which negatively inhibits them from getting jobs, since the citizen students are placed at an advantageous position. In addition, we have established that international students do not possess adequate professional experience working within the United States mainstream employment system. This adversely affects their chances of getting jobs within the institutions as well as the United States in general, since most if not all organizations require prior work experience. This work experience is not just as a measure of the students’ abilities and technical knowledge in undertaking a given mandate, but also in relation to their work ethic, their professionalism and competency, which makes it difficult have someone attest on their behalf, hence inability to secure the job opportunities.
To ensure that the students can get job opportunities within the discussed institutions, this paper has proffered solutions in terms of recommendations, which if implemented, they will contribute to the increased capacities for these students to get employment. For instance, the United States government ought to extend the visa validity period of the students, to grant them an opportunity post their school to undertake experience-gaining activities such as internships, volunteering, wage employment just to mention but a few.
Our solution provides a budget-minded project that ensures the quality of the student’s job search. Compared to many other solutions, ours is very practical considering that something like this has been done in the past. Creating this networking system is a good start for international students to be introduced to
In summary, from the findings of this study it is evident that international students face many challenges and problems in the job searching process in the US. However, all is not lost, since for every arising challenge, there are consequent solutions, which can be easily put into consideration and have a positive outcome at the end of the day.
Works Cited – LAST for everyone
“How to Write a Sponsorship Letter for US Visa?” VisaGuide.World, 13 Aug. 2020, https://visaguide.world/tips/us-visa-sponsorship/.
USF System Facts – University of South Florida. https://www.usf.edu/ods/documents/system-facts/usf-system-facts-2019-20.pdf.
“Working in the USA” International Student, April, 2020 https://www.internationalstudent.com/study_usa/way-of-life/working-in-the-usa/
“Seven Ways An International Student Can Extend Their Stay in the US After Graduation” usvisagroup, https://usvisagroup.com/ways-international-student-extend-stay/
Akanwa, E. E. (2015). International students in western developed countries: History, challenges, and prospects. Journal of International Students, 5(3), 271-284.
Altbach, P. G., Gumport, P. J., & Berdahl, R. O. (Eds.). (2011). American higher education in the twenty-first century: Social, political, and economic challenges. JHU Press.
Khanal, J., & Gaulee, U. (2019). Challenges of international students from pre-departure to post-study: A literature review. Journal of International Students, 9(2), 560-581.
Lee, J. J., & Rice, C. (2007). Welcome to America? International student perceptions of discrimination. Higher education, 53(3), 381-409
Rampton, J. (2017, August 25). How to create a powerful social network platform in 8 steps. Inc.com. Retrieved November 20, 2021, from https://www.inc.com/john-rampton/how-to-create-powerful-social-network-platform-in-.html.
Michaels, V. (2020, September 15). How to create a social network platform in five steps. Social Media Week. Retrieved November 20, 2021, from https://socialmediaweek.org/blog/2017/11/create-social-network-platform-5-steps/.
Eab. (2019, July 22). Which emails students read-and which ones they ignore: Eab Daily Briefing. EAB. Retrieved November 20, 2021, from https://eab.com/insights/daily-briefing/student-success/which-emails-students-read-and-which-ones-they-ignore/.
Carney, L. (2021, October 4). How much does a website cost in 2021? (full breakdown). Website Builder Expert. Retrieved November 21, 2021, from https://www.websitebuilderexpert.com/building-websites/how-much-should-a-website-cost/.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Working in the United States. Retrieved November 21, 2021 from https://www.uscis.gov/working-in-the-united-states