7 replies to this topic

[kasmokia]

Hey guys, 

My girlfriend is about halfway through her undergrad chemE degree at a solid program (3 semesters remaining, top 10 school, this is her second degree, she also has a math BS) and will be finishing up classes with around a 3.55 GPA this summer. The problem is she is an international student studying in the US on student visa....

From what she tells me, it is very difficult to secure a co-op, let alone a job after graduation. She seems to be stuck in a catch-22 where she needs real-world experience to convince a manager to hire her in spite of her alien status...but her alien status is preventing her from accumulating any co-op experience...She told me some companies straight up tell you that you don't have a shot with them, despite doing relatively well, as they do not sponsor H1B visas...All she wants is a 9-5 job, making about 60K and a 50/50 split between field work and office work...

Is there anyone here who has gone through the same sort of situation and has any tips or advice from personal experiences? My gf is working extremely hard to maintain her solid GPA and she is also doing research with a big-wig professor in order to try to get published and a letter of rec as well. However, she still feels an immense pressure to secure an employment opportunity.

Should she join student groups/chemE groups in the fall semester? Does participating on sports teams have any appreciable impact in the job hunt? Should she focus on networking? I suggested volunteering/doing an unpaid internship type gig where she could at least sacrifice the pay in order to have a letter of recommendation/slot on her resume with work experience, but I dont know how feasible that is....I personally have no experience with engineering and the preparation that goes into landing a job is foreign to me.

I appreciate any and all help!

Best wishes.

[latexman]

Her best shot after graduation is with one of the MegaCorp's in oil, gas, or chemicals, but she will have to have skills/knowledge they need.

 

Another route is get a job with one of the MegaCorp's in her home country, become indispensable or a "high flyer", and transfer.  This could take 5-15 years though.

 

I've seen both ways work.

[shan]

If you love her, please marry her so that she will have a green card.

[Zauberberg]

That was a non-technical advice

[kasmokia]

Her best shot after graduation is with one of the MegaCorp's in oil, gas, or chemicals, but she will have to have skills/knowledge they need.

 

Another route is get a job with one of the MegaCorp's in her home country, become indispensable or a "high flyer", and transfer.  This could take 5-15 years though.

 

I've seen both ways work.

 

Thank you for taking the time to respond. Unfortunately, she is a child of the world and her home country most probably will not employ her as she does not speak their language well enough to pass their initial employment language examinations. However, I can ask to see how feasible it would be to prepare for this route. 

She attended high school at an international school in a different country but never got work authorization from there either.

 

How feasible is it to suggest volunteering for an unpaid internship and using that experience as in place of a co-op?

[kasmokia]

If you love her, please marry her so that she will have a green card.

Thanks for taking the time to reply. 

My gf is very staunch in the idea that her success must come from herself and she would like to have peace of mine when finding a job and knowing that it was her hard work and dedication that came to fruition, not simply her bf marrying her.

 

However, I do understand the unfortunate realities of how difficult her circumstances are. I agree that marriage would be a way to help her situation but I also understand the type of strain it could potentially place on a relationship.... When we talked about this idea before, she was worried that it might prove to be a fracture point in our relationship later on.

[shan]

Love should eliminates all the phase boundaries between you and her.  Her success is yours and yours is her for now, future, and forever.  The surface tension = 0 dyn/cm in all conditions,(no mater how high the pressure and how low the temperature). 

Sound "technical", right?

Edited by shan, 23 July 2015 - 02:47 PM.

[oscarsender]

The oil and gas EPC company Im working now (in Texas) used to hire fresh graduates some of which are green card holders. But there are some who are foreign students who graduated their masteral degree, secured H-1B then are able to secure a job as a contractor in my company. But this hiring happened three years ago when oil prices are high. With the current situation in oil and gas industry hiring people may seem slow, (other companies are actually laying off) also they dont want to shoulder the expense of sponsoring H-1B for now. But what I am saying is that being fresh from college does not hinder her chance of landing a job. When oil and gas market backs to normal or profitable stage her chance will be good as well, though we don not know when it will be.