Sushil Chintala, an international student from India plans to finish his masters in electrical engineering at Cal State Long Beach this fall, after which he will decide between three options: apply for more school, apply for one-year work experience or go home.
After he graduates, Chintala will have 60 days to make his decision, and even though he’s leaning toward work experience, he said he wouldn’t be allotted as much time as he would like to work.
“I think that would be helpful to have practical experience,” he said. “… Twelve months is not enough time. I need at least a couple of years. There are a lot of issues to explore in engineering.”
More than 120 university presidents agree with Chintala, as shown through their signing of a letter to President Barack Obama on July 12. The letter called for an extension on student visas to give new graduates enough time to go out and find a job.
Current student visa policy allows international students who are on an F-1 student visa to stay in the United States as long as they are full time students, according to senior director of the CSULB Center for International Education Nathan Jensen.
“A student could go from [an] associate [degree] to a doctorate and be in status that entire time,” Jensen said via email. “The time a student can be in the U.S. on a student visa varies.”
After international students graduate with their desired degrees, they are automatically given a 60 day “grace period,” during which they have time to apply for more school or Optional Practical Training, CSULB Director of International Students, Melissa Lyon, said. During the 60 days, they are not allowed to work unless they are a part of OPT.
According to Lyon, the student involved in OPT is given one year to work in a field complimentary to the subjects they studied. Students who are qualified under STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) have the option to extend their OPT by 17 months.
Students can then change their statuses to a working visa, or an H1-B, to work full time. An employer has to sponsor the student in order for the student to start the application process.
“There are many fees involved for the employer and the visa applicant,” Jensen said.
CSULB President F. King Alexander’s signature is not on the letter to Obama; however, he endorses the proposal 100 percent, he said.
“To me this is a no-brainer,” Alexander said. “The more we discourage higher education … the more we lose economic battles.”
The U.S. is kicking out international graduates too quickly, Alexander said.
“Half of delegations in Korea and China are from U.S. universities,” he said. “We are essentially creating our own competition.”
As for Chintala, he plans on returning to his home country of India to reunite with his family.
“I want to gain experience and go back,” he said.
Other international students, who also plan on returning to their native countries after they graduate, said that Americans should have a chance at employment rather than immigrants taking job offerings.
“[Americans] have to have their chance,” freshman Saudi Arabian nutrition major Nouf Shulaywi said.
“With the immigration problems, there is no chance for jobs,” she said.