Experiences of and strategies for finding a visa-sponsoring job

[caiti92 23]

Thanks for all the answers already.

@Gosia & Tito I already got the impression that Florida might not be the easiest location; there is however little flexibility there for at least a couple years.

@2ndMessiah That would make things easier. ideally we would wait a little though, and first have the chance to live together for a while.

You probably already know all about this, but if you are a recent graduate then you can apply for a J-1, where an agency can act as your sponsor. My fiance was able secure a J-1 and used USIT as his sponsor agency. We were already engaged before he came over, but it gave us the opportunity to live together for an entire year before we applied for his fiance visa. Initially, we had hoped that he would be able to apply for and secure another work visa and remain in the country when his J-1 expired. However, after months of receiving virtually no responses/callbacks and being blatantly told by most companies that they just don't sponsor foreign employees at all, we gave up on it.

A family member of mine works for a company that used to sponsor many of their employees. However, they stopped doing so because it was costing so much money to sponsor and many of them were just leaving the company after receiving their green cards. At least, this is what I've been told. So I just don't think it's very common in many parts of the country anymore because it can be such a risky investment and it's so much more cost effective to just hire a USC.

If there's a chance you currently work for a company with branches/offices in the U.S. or Miami, that might be a good start, too. Then again, I'm sure you would have already considered that. Haha.

[caiti92 23]

I tried to edit, but I was too late. Sorry for re-posting ideas that have already been suggested! I didn't mean to be redundant.

Also, LOL at him "taking jobs from deserving Americans". There are far more PhD level careers available in this country than USCs that are educated/qualified enough to fill them, meaning many positions are open and available to foreign applicants at no detriment to American job-seekers. That is an American education system issue that is an entirely different subject all together. Hahaha.

[SimonQ 0]

Hey thanks again.

@angelboo31: The visa-cap is indeed an issue. I have already applied for jobs at academic institutions (both academic and non-academic jobs) but haven't been lucky yet. I will keep trying though, hoping to get at least some response :-)

@caiti92: The j-1 visa is interesting. I have read a little bit about it, but must admit I haven't really looked into that possibility yet. Did your fiance and internship or training for one year? Or could he use the J-1 visa for some kinds of jobs? Until now the transatlantic jobsearch is a little discouraging and I believe you when you say that lots of companies don't want to go through the trouble of visa-sponsorships. I work for a University right now, so there are some possibilities for exchanges, but it would be great to be in Miami more permanently :-)

[caiti92 23]

@caiti92: The j-1 visa is interesting. I have read a little bit about it, but must admit I haven't really looked into that possibility yet. Did your fiance and internship or training for one year? Or could he use the J-1 visa for some kinds of jobs? Until now the transatlantic jobsearch is a little discouraging and I believe you when you say that lots of companies don't want to go through the trouble of visa-sponsorships. I work for a University right now, so there are some possibilities for exchanges, but it would be great to be in Miami more permanently :-)

My fiance was technically working as a "trainee" I believe. It was essentially a job, but the J-1 is just a temporary visa, so it wasn't considered permanent by any means. That's why I believe they refer to it as training or internship. If he had liked his job more and was actually working in his field (like he was supposed to be doing), he could have potentially stayed and been sponsored OR we could've gotten married and had him continue working there. I know the two-year home-country rule only applies to particular countries. For example, Ireland is exempt and it states so on the I-94 they attached to his passport. It says: "Bearer is not subject to 212(e). Two year rule does not apply." Even so, there was a guy he worked with who was from a country that was subject to the two year rule and got married whilst on the J-1 and didn't have any problems. He did hire a lawyer, though, to be safe. We had the option of marrying on the J-1, ourselves, but decided against it in the end and went for the K-1 (I don't think we realized how complicated it all was at the time haha).

I think that for the J-1 my fiance used the requirement was to have graduated no longer than 6 months previous, but there are different rules for the different types, so there may be an option somewhere for you. Here is some more info about the J-1 program types from the Brussels consulate: http://belgium.usembassy.gov/exchange_visitors2.html

You do have to have a sponsor for the J-1, but it doesn't have to be the employer you are working for. Instead, you can pay a third party organization to sponsor you. He used an organization called USIT, but I believe they are specifically for Irish citizens. My fiance said they had an office on his campus while he was in school. A couple of his friends came over as well and worked in a Pub for the year and the pub itself was actually able to sponsor them, instead, which saved a bit of money. You can find a list of designated sponsors here: http://j1visa.state.gov/participants/how-to-apply/sponsor-search/

[RhettVoe 282]

I have two friends who BOTH have PhDs and who were both given pink slips because their university decided to take on two foreign types for less money....I am sure that these two friends fully understand....(not)....again, this is not personal, but if we keep selling ourselves out, well, think about the long term results. Everyone who is so supportive of giving away jobs to non-Americans would be far less supportive if it was their job being given away....yes, there are also 11 million (or so) illegal aliens working under the table, who need to be given the boot rather than rewarded.....but I believe that no one from another country should be given a job ahead of the millions of unemployed Americans...our unemployment rate is still too high...Americans first, everyone else, take a number (and that is the way I run my business as well).

[caiti92 23]

I think you may just want to pick your battles on this one and perhaps consider the context of the forum and thread where you are currently arguing your (largely irrelevant) political opinions. Either the individuals posting on these forums themselves or their very close loved ones are or have been these "foreign types" you speak of who apparently don't deserve their jobs. Also, because a non-citizen is offered a job, at any education or experience level, it does NOT mean they "stole" it from an American. It means they were the most qualified candidate who applied. It's not implicitly about paying them less, as with illegal immigrants -- as previously stated, it often requires a serious investment to sponsor a foreign employee. And if all of the other Americans who applied for the position were not qualified enough and these "foreign types" are being hired before them, then maybe its time we take a look at the education system in this country and how we can better equip our own citizens to secure these jobs.

If anything, all opinions aside, the last thing you should be doing is taking your frustration out on the immigrants (especially the legal ones!!!) or scolding an individual who simply posted requesting help. Nobody is selling themselves out. This is an ADVICE forum and if you don't want to provide advice regarding a questions someone has asked, then don't provide anything at all. People don't come here to be preached at.

Edited August 27, 2014 by caiti92

[2ndMessiah 184]

I have two friends who BOTH have PhDs and who were both given pink slips because their university decided to take on two foreign types for less money....I am sure that these two friends fully understand....(not)....again, this is not personal, but if we keep selling ourselves out, well, think about the long term results. Everyone who is so supportive of giving away jobs to non-Americans would be far less supportive if it was their job being given away....yes, there are also 11 million (or so) illegal aliens working under the table, who need to be given the boot rather than rewarded.....but I believe that no one from another country should be given a job ahead of the millions of unemployed Americans...our unemployment rate is still too high...Americans first, everyone else, take a number (and that is the way I run my business as well).

Welcome to the market economy. A corner stone of American culture and society.

As an employer I am sure you would agree that if you can get a better resource for less money, legally, is a shrewd move.

Edited August 27, 2014 by 2ndMessiah

[Mollie09 1,543]

I never see this kind of thinking directed at sports teams, for example. You want the best team, you get the best players - no matter where they're from.

Have you looked at NBA teams? What about all those American kids who grew up dreaming about being professional players but never made the cut, while all those foreigners were selected for being "better"? We should boycott sports teams until they put Americans first!

[Mollie09 1,543]

I got a job on H1B after my current company interviewed 45 Americans and decided not to hire a single one of them. They went through all the applicants and then moved on to recruiting - I was poached from my previous position to take this one, and they paid me handsomely for it and sponsored my H1B transfer. This was clearly not because I was cheaper, but because I was the best qualified candidate. And I don't have a PhD.

So tone down the rhetoric, work visas are used by people who are the best qualified candidates for the open positions that American companies have, and America - being a free market economy - has provided these employers legal means to hire these best qualified candidates. Period. Is it abused? Yes, sometimes. Does it need reform? Absolutely. But lets not throw the baby out with the bathwater here, work visas exist for a reason and they serve an important purpose for the US economy. And it's not for "those damn immigrants taking all mah jawbs fo' cheap".

So OP, my thoughts to you would be to either go the J-1 route (and be wary of 2 year HRRs) or use VWP to come physically talk to people in the US and make connections. It's not illegal to apply for jobs on VWP, and American employers much prefer hiring people they can connect with in real life rather than online. Then see if you can work something out with them for an H1B when those become available. Good luck!

Edit: I just saw what kind of jobs you're looking for and I've been interviewing people for a similar position for a couple of months with no luck. Too bad you're set on Miami!

Edited August 27, 2014 by F1H1I130

[Ontarkie 14,227]

~~Several post removed and those quoted - Stick to answering the question asked or do not post~~

[umeranyth 0]

Hey thanks again.

@angelboo31: The visa-cap is indeed an issue. I have already applied for jobs at academic institutions (both academic and non-academic jobs) but haven't been lucky yet. I will keep trying though, hoping to get at least some response :-)

@caiti92: The j-1 visa is interesting. I have read a little bit about it, but must admit I haven't really looked into that possibility yet. Did your fiance and internship or training for one year? Or could he use the J-1 visa for some kinds of jobs? Until now the transatlantic jobsearch is a little discouraging and I believe you when you say that lots of companies don't want to go through the trouble of visa-sponsorships. I work for a University right now, so there are some possibilities for exchanges, but it would be great to be in Miami more permanently :-)

Hi SimonQ,

Just my two cents on getting an academic job (My H1B was a cap-exempt H1B and I worked in psychiatric research); academia in the US is a huge who-do-you-know game. People applying for jobs already have connections to the people behind the job posting because that's how close-knitted academic circles are. My suggestion to you is find out who within your academic circle of connections knows of someone with a position in Miami. That's the safest bet for a cap-exempt H1B.

I think with a PhD, there are a lot of non-academic industry positions which you could be qualified for. And if anything, the H1B is a sure thing considering your function as a PhD is specialized. I'm not an attorney or anything, but I definitely think a J1 is a good step into getting your foot into the US, and once you're in, there's a lot more options for you (such as applying for permanent residency through EB-2 NIW). Definitely start contacting institutions in Miami about J1 positions even if they aren't actively posting anything on their websites .... you never know right??

Best of luck to you!

[RhettVoe 282]

caiti92: and yet, you are preaching to me.....

[SimonQ 0]

Hey everyone,

Thanks so much for all the information. I will definitely talk to an attorney and other sources about possibilities with the J-1 visa.

I also am looking out for academic positions, but its indeed a small world with not a lot of supply (in this particular location). But I will definitely look out for making contacts.

@F1H1130: Thanks for the information. I do hope that my skills give me a competitive edge somewhere.

@caiti92: Thanks for looking this up. I am looking into that and hope I can figure something out :-)