The graduation ceremony for IU this spring is less than a month away. Are you ready to graduate?
For many students, graduation is exciting and anticipated. But for some students, it can be daunting.
Students who will seek work after graduation are faced with many challenges entering society. They need to complete their transformation from student identity to working identity, and at the same time, they need to make preparations for the work in advance.
During the pandemic, it seems that it is not easy for everyone to find a job, especially international students.
International students need to consider their visa status and transition from student to work, which makes it even more difficult to find a job.
Full Interview with IU Senior Yiting Zhang
IU Senior Yiting Zhang will graduate at the end of this semester. She spent the spring looking for a job and worrying.
“I think the current epidemic is very difficult for international students to find jobs, both in America and in China,” Yiting said.
Yiting hoped that she could stay in the US to work after graduation, but after attending many career fairs and sending out resumes, she found it harder than she thought.
“Some US companies cannot provide the work visas for international students, they tend to recruit some native students,” Yiting said.
Most companies don’t want to spend too much money on visas for international employees because it is very expensive.
So often, American companies prefer to hire local workers or international workers who can solve their visa problems.
Evelyn Sun, an IU international alumna who has been working in New York City for a year, said, “Companies can view visas for international employees as an investment, and even if they are willing to spend money, they will not spend it on new employees unless you are valuable or will stay and keep to contribute to the company.”
Yiting has also considered returning to her home country, but she always has interviewed in the early hours of the morning or misses some interview calls because of the time difference. Still, that’s not the biggest problem.
“I can’t confirm the time of return to my country, so some Chinese companies also tend to recruit some local graduates,” Yiting said.
In addition to being rejected by the company because she could not confirm the entry time, even Yiting herself was not sure whether she could return to her own country.
Alumna Evelyn Sun Gives Her Advice
For international students like Yiting who are facing the anxiety and confusion of finding a job after graduation, Evelyn has some advice of her own.
“Your OPT application is very important before you start your job search, so make sure you applied your OPT right now this month in April, I think it is really a good time to submit your OPT application,” Evelyn said.
Evelyn also recommended some job search platforms for international graduate students, such as LinkedIn and Handshake.
Rendy Schrader from OIS Gives Some Advice
In addition, Rendy Schrader, Senior Director, International Student and Scholar Programs and Initiatives from OIS(Office of International Services), says they are trying to help international students, but there is a lot of information that makes it difficult for students to find out their needs.
If you are a graduating international student, you can seek help from OIS if you have difficulties or problems about find a job.
