Goldenboy007:

The new prospects for US foreign students

I have decided to write this topic as different from the topic I wrote on new immigrants. Why I separated the topics is because technically; Educational visas were not intended to be Immigrant visas but we all know that it has been an avenue for people to work and live in US.
Now this is an issue I did not want to talk about because it is not really an exciting news but I will rather tell you the truth of the situation.
The intention of most people that wants to study in the US is to get employed in the US through the H1B visa program. However under the new dispensation - there has been various silent amendments going on with the H1B visa program. My recent study of the job vacancies in the US now, 99% of companies now require you to fill the question about your visa requirement status. In the recent past , only a very few companies included that clause in their application process but now from my sample survey, almost all the companies now require you to state your work status. Some are bold enough to state in their application form that the company will not sponsor any visa now or in the future.
The current government had stated that it is changing the dynamics of the H1B visa program, no more lottery model, it has proposed that H1B visa would only be issued to highly technical foreign workers, also any company filing H1B should be for a worker earning $130,000 and above annual salary.( a safety net for Facebook, Google and others).
The truth is that the culprits are the Indian IT workers, they colonized the H1B program. They bring in so many people either highly skilled or not. You can count how many Nigerians on H1B compared to the total population on work visa programs. The implied notion of the US Government is to ensure that foreign workers do not compete with the US domestic working population for the low profile jobs.

Facts coming from inside the companies- especially the telecom industry that has the 2nd highest demands for H1B visas, there has been an indefinite halt in further processing of H1B visas for their intended foreign employees. I cannot say much for those already on H1B but there has been some internal business restructuring to remove the H1B holders from critical job positions.

The trend for most Nigerian students is to finish their education, get into an internship program and get hired as a full employee under the H1B program. US companies have been doing these in the past but recently they may allow you to complete your internship but will not hire you or some internship program now clearly state that the company will not file for visa now or in the future for the prospective interns. If you do not get an internship after your program then your prospects of getting a job becomes slimmer.
Based on this emerging fact, I will advise most of us planning to spend thousands of dollars on US education to re-evaluate because you will not want to spend that much and end up jobless in the US market.
For those of you on F1 visa already, my intention is not to discourage you but start being proactive on getting a job after school. However for those of you still planning, look for alternatives, Canada is still a good prospect.

I always welcome contributions and questions.

Thank you.

glucklichewelt:


How authentic is this write up?

Goldenboy007:

The new prospects for US foreign students

I have decided to write this topic as different from the topic I wrote on new immigrants. Why I separated the topics is because technically; Educational visas were not intended to be Immigrant visas but we all know that it has been an avenue for people to work and live in US.
Now this is an issue I did not want to talk about because it is not really an exciting news but I will rather tell you the truth of the situation.
The intention of most people that wants to study in the US is to get employed in the US through the H1B visa program. However under the new dispensation - there has been various silent amendments going on with the H1B visa program. My recent study of the job vacancies in the US now, 99% of companies now require you to fill the question about your visa requirement status. In the recent past , only a very few companies included that clause in their application process but now from my sample survey, almost all the companies now require you to state your work status. Some are bold enough to state in their application form that the company will not sponsor any visa now or in the future.
The current government had stated that it is changing the dynamics of the H1B visa program, no more lottery model, it has proposed that H1B visa would only be issued to highly technical foreign workers, also any company filing H1B should be for a worker earning $130,000 and above annual salary.( a safety net for Facebook, Google and others).
The truth is that the culprits are the Indian IT workers, they colonized the H1B program. They bring in so many people either highly skilled or not. You can count how many Nigerians on H1B compared to the total population on work visa programs. The implied notion of the US Government is to ensure that foreign workers do not compete with the US domestic working population for the low profile jobs.

Facts coming from inside the companies- especially the telecom industry that has the 2nd highest demands for H1B visas, there has been an indefinite halt in further processing of H1B visas for their intended foreign employees. I cannot say much for those already on H1B but there has been some internal business restructuring to remove the H1B holders from critical job positions.

The trend for most Nigerian students is to finish their education, get into an internship program and get hired as a full employee under the H1B program. US companies have been doing these in the past but recently they may allow you to complete your internship but will not hire you or some internship program now clearly state that the company will not file for visa now or in the future for the prospective interns. If you do not get an internship after your program then your prospects of getting a job becomes slimmer.
Based on this emerging fact, I will advise most of us planning to spend thousands of dollars on US education to re-evaluate because you will not want to spend that much and end up jobless in the US market.
For those of you on F1 visa already, my intention is not to discourage you but start being proactive on getting a job after school. However for those of you still planning, look for alternatives, Canada is still a good prospect.

I always welcome contributions and questions.

Thank you.

Goldenboy007:


The truth is that the culprits are the Indian IT workers, they colonized the H1B program. They bring in so many people either highly skilled or not.

tensazangetsu20:

So does getting sufficient work experience before going for a masters help. What of going to a high ranked school? Canada is good but the good schools there are few and in between.

Laird:


The GoldenBoy and Twoods always making Brilliant Posts. I learnt so much from You guys, Nairaland and Quora website Forum. Thank You so much Bosses

TWoods:


This is really the biggest problem. A situation where >80% of H1B visas go to Indians means there is very little hope for anyone else as long as the lottery process stays.

Goldenboy007:


Sufficient work experience is good but make sure it's US work experience. Most Americans do not believe another world existed outside US. Lol. They believe their education is the best and their work experience is the best.
Highly ranked school - Ivy league schools are good. However let me ask you some questions-
How much are you ready to invest in tuition fee
How long do you have to recoup your investment

Ranked schools have different categories - nevertheless any good school will cost you nothing less than $100k in tuition, although your job prospect increases.

How do you want to pay for tuition? Out of pocket or student loan ? If it's student loan then you will be in hot soup when you finish - for Graduate course you will definitely get an unsubsidized federal loan - a fast program may be from 12 months to 36 months. At the end, your loan and interest would be humongous. You have an average of 10 years to pay principal and interest - although you can extend it but the longer the more interest you pay. Interest rate can be around 6.6%
If your father is rich then you can do out of pocket - Highly ranked school improves your chances and hopefully you get a job that starts with between $70k to $90k per year. Then you spend the next 10 years or more paying student loan, but if you do not get a job - you will have $100k+ loan haunting your dreams.

And if you want to go to Ivy league - Make sure it's either Finance, IT or Health career. They are the most lucrative.

I can't say much about Canada.

tensazangetsu20:

When I mean highly ranked I don't mean ivy league. There are other good schools which aren't ivy league and aren't as expensive. As for tuition, aren't the ivy leagues need blind to all applicants.

joeluv:
$100k tution is that not too much. Explain how u came about the $100k figure. Thanks

Goldenboy007:


These information are available online. Most schools require you to pay every session or per semester - For a graduate course that cost $52000 per session and you have 2 sessions? or $20000 per semester and you have 4 semesters. US schools mostly have Spring and Fall Semesters except those that added Summer and Winter Intersession. (Graduate course). Depends if you are in-state or out of state.


This is a breakdown for Rutgers in NJ - 24 months MBA - Probably 4 semesters

Rutgers Ranking

#30 in Public Colleges
#67 in Research Universities
#65 in the region

Tuition

Below is a breakdown of fees and tuition charges for both full-time (Traditional MBA) and part-time (Flex MBA) students.

Full-time:

Tuition – New Jersey Residents – $11,815 (per semester)
Tuition – Out of State Residents – $20,314 (per semester)
Campus Fee – $758.50
Computer Fee – $153.50
NJPIRG Fee (optional) – $11.20
School Fee – $349.25
International Student SEVIS Fee – $125

Part-time:

Tuition – New Jersey Residents – $985 (per credit)
Tuition – Out of State Residents – $1,693 (per credit)
Campus Fee (per semester) – $255
Computer Fee – $71 – $146
NJPIRG Fee (optional) – $5.50
School Fee – $164.25

I had my MBA in US (my tuition was lower as a US citizen resident) so I am familiar with this information.

Goldenboy007:



Ok I get you, good ranked school without it being the top school. However schools with good ranking are equally expensive, except I don't know how rich you are because "expensive" is a relative term. I know people who went to Rutgers or NYU who are still jobless till today, so ranked school is not a guarantee. What I am saying is that it is more difficult these days to get jobs on H-1B than how it used to be.


"As for tuition, aren't the ivy leagues need blind to all applicants" - Can you explain please?

http://insights.dice.com/2017/02/01/new-h-1b-reform-punishes-companies/

tensazangetsu20:


Need blind meaning they dont hold your financial level against you when giving admissions and that they provide generous financial aid irrespective of applicants.

joeluv:
So your generalization of $100k is based on MBA tuition. Well for Msc, a two year course usually ranges from 30-50k.

Goldenboy007:


For highly ranked school you can hardly get a graduate course worth the career - for $50,000, MSc or MBA. Please take note of what I said " Highly Ranked Schools" Except you are In-State student. There are very few exceptions. Rutgers has its MSc for $17k per semester excluding fees...multiplied by 4 semesters. When you add the fees then you are looking at almost $19k per semester.

joeluv:
What do you categorize as highly ranked? I Wld be attending GWU and my tuition for first year is $29k and second year roughly 20k and I understand I can get schools that are way cheaper. Your $100k estimation is still too much in my opinion. Besides a lot of Nigerians get one form of scholarship like I did. Anyway thanks for the HI-B info.

Goldenboy007:


You are welcome. By GWU you mean - George Washington University?

At a Glance

Student Population: 25,613
Undergraduate Population: 10,740
Student to Faculty Ratioa: 12
Total Annual Costc: $65,260
In-State Tuitionc: $48,760
Out-of-State Tuitionc: $48,760
Percent on Financial Aidd: 69%
Average Grant Aid Received (FT/First-Time): $27,561
Percent Admittede: 44%
SAT Composite Rangef: 1200-1390
ACT Composite Rangef: 27-31
Forbes Lists

#136 America's Best Value Colleges
#103 Top Colleges
#86 in Private Colleges
#47 in Research Universities
#51 in the region
#226 in Grateful Grads
Forbes Financial Grade: A-

That's the average annual cost $65k - then 2 year graduate course ..mulitply that by 2.

This is a ranked school not even one of the highly ranked.

What course were you admitted for, please share. Your perculiar low tuition is very interesting ..others may benefit from that information.

Thanks

joeluv:
What u are coating is undergrad fee. Ave told u my tuition as its standard cos it's calculated per credit hour. $1665 per credit hour I belive. My course is 30 credit hour.

joeluv:
So your generalization of $100k is based on MBA tuition. Well for Msc, a two year course usually ranges from 30-50k.

tensazangetsu20:

MBAS are run with the conception that you need money to make money. An MBA at Harvard cost 200000 dollars. There is hardly any funding for MBAs because they are professional degrees. Congratulations on the admission to George Washington University, it's a very good university and way better than what most Nigerians go to. I was wondering if I could know your profile. Am looking at postgraduate education in a few years time and I just graduated with a 2.92 on a 4.0 I know my grades will be a huge albatross around my neck and am looking for ways to overcome them.

joeluv:
Economics. $1665 per credit hour and my total hours is 30. So 1665 * 30= 49850. Most Nigerians are not oblivious to the fact that H1-B is getting increasingly difficult.

Goldenboy007:


$49,850 excluding fees for GWU, and thats just a ranked school.another ranked school NYU, M.A in economics would cost roughly $60k for 32. Credit points without fees. This budget excludes all other cost like boarding , textbooks, transport , feeding etc. NYU estimated all that at $34,304 - now let me be modest ...i will cut that to $25000, add that to $50k tuition- You are looking at a cost $75k for your program.

Most foreign student under estimate the cost of coming to US to study. It goes back to my explanation - You need to be sure that after spending all that money, you would be able to secure a job without Visa discrimination.

The visa policy is changing fast - so before jumping into the expenses - Make sure you have adequate planning.

Some people will tell themselves...all I need is to get into the US then I will find my way - this notion has accounted for so many stranded students in US who ended up becoming illegal - US you cannot stay, Nigeria you cannot go back to. Hustling used to be fine but under this new dispensation - laws are becoming vsry strict.

So before you jump into the plane with your family - Do your calculation well.

Hint - there is a popular believe here that if you do Masters in Science and not MBA - you are gearing up in the educational career - so also evaluate your career prospect.

Thanks

Goldenboy007:



Most foreign student under estimate the cost of coming to US to study. It goes back to my explanation - You need to be sure that after spending all that money, you would be able to secure a job without Visa discrimination.

The visa policy is changing fast - so before jumping into the expenses - Make sure you have adequate planning.

Some people will tell themselves...all I need is to get into the US then I will find my way - this notion has accounted for so many stranded students in US who ended up becoming illegal - US you cannot stay, Nigeria you cannot go back to. Hustling used to be fine but under this new dispensation - laws are becoming vsry strict.

So before you jump into the plane with your family - Do your calculation well.







Hello sir, my name is Dayo. I read through your threads and i’m really motivated. È jhoor sir, I need your advice/guidance on my current situation in this America.