Outdated U.S. Immigration Policies Spell Tough Times for International Students After Graduation

Ohio State International Students face an uphill battle to remain in the U.S. after graduation to find work. PHOTO CREDIT: Juliana Gray

If you attend a collegiate university in the United States, chances are extremely high that you or someone you know is friends with an international student. Over 6,000 international students enrolled at The Ohio State University for the 2012-13 school year, a tally that makes one out of every ten Ohio State Buckeye a foreign student looking to get a higher education in the United States.

In order to study at a university in the United States, foreign students must obtain an F-1 student visa that grants them legal residency in the U.S. as long as they are a full-time student. While these visas provide fantastic opportunities to prospective students all across the world, international students looking to remain in the United States to work face an uphill battle to gain permanent residency upon graduation.

Student visas require graduates to depart the U.S. within 60 days once their status as a full-time student expires, but in facing an overburdened and aging U.S. immigration policy, many students struggle to find a job or otherwise gain permanent status within the two-month period. The unfortunate reality of the immigration system in the United States means that many foreign students graduating with a degree are sent back to their home countries before they can find a job in the United States.

Companies looking to hire are able to pay a fee to “sponsor” a prospective foreign worker for permanent residency, but workers are first categorized based on priority and nationality. Persons with extraordinary ability or an advanced degree have first priority, followed by skilled workers and professionals with at least a two-year degree. Workers emigrating from countries with a larger amount of immigrants already in the U.S. population are given a lower priority as well. The time this process takes sometimes means graduates are deported before they can gain employment in the United States.

One Canadian student at Ohio State spoke about the role that the current immigration policies play in her career planning process, saying “Needing a sponsor (company) sets me back a lot. The cost of the sponsorship means I’ll most likely have to go to grad school to gain an advantage in getting a job in the U.S.” The student also explained how the cost charged to prospective employers to hire an immigrant worker means that companies demand higher-qualified candidates to fill their positions.

The Canadian student also discussed the downsides of a student visa, specifically how foreign students are unable to get a job or internship unless it is on campus or affiliated with their field of study. This student chose to remain anonymous out of fear that publicity might hinder or delay her obtainment of a green card in the future.

Foreign students might yet have some hope in 2013, however. The national debate over immigration reform has been reignited by President Obama’s reelection and mandate to get reform accomplished quickly. 2013 has already seen bipartisan discussions to draft new immigration laws, and President Obama pressed the issue further in his State of the Union address in February, saying “Real reform means establishing a responsible pathway to earned citizenship, a path that includes passing a background check, paying taxes, learning English, and going to the back of the line behind the folks trying to come here legally.”

Many who debate the issue of immigration focus solely on illegal immigration, but the President also acknowledged the importance of fixing legal immigration in the United States. “Real reform means fixing the legal immigration system to cut waiting periods, reduce bureaucracy, and attract the highly-skilled entrepreneurs and engineers that will help create jobs and grow our economy,” he said in his address.

President Obama urged Congress to send him “a comprehensive immigration reform bill in the next few months,” telling them he will sign it. The President’s acknowledgement of both legal and illegal immigration in such an important speech bodes well for present and future foreign students in the United States.

Ohio State also offers assistance to international students through the Office of International Affairs. OIA is responsible for helping foreign students acclimate to life on campus and in a new country. They also keep track of the grades and visa statuses of all international students at Ohio State to make sure each student maintains the proper requirements to remain in the country legally. In addition to the office’s regular duties, OIA provides workshops, events, and meetings to help these students advance their skills academically to better prepare them for the workplace after graduation.

The pace and pressure on Washington’s political elite to fix the U.S. immigration policy means universities and their international student body could see big improvements as early as summertime. Although what improvements will be made are still largely unknown, international students can be optimistic about their chances of finding jobs in the United States in their post-collegiate futures.