International Students and the Job Search

Finding Opportunities and Applying to Jobs

Looking for a job while working hard to finish a degree can be rather overwhelming. The best way to approach this dilemma is to start organizing and utilizing your resources the year before you graduate. Your job search strategy should include:

• Exploring Resources
• Gaining Experience
• Networking Your Way to a Job
• Preparing Country-Specific Resumes and Cover Letters

Exploring Resources

University Career Services is a great place to start your research. UCS has a large number of resources online to assist you in researching various industries, generating a list of prospective employers and finding actual job listings. Come to UCS during walk-in hours; Monday-Friday 12:30 pm - 3:15 pm or make an appointment with a counselor for an orientation to any of the following:

CAVLink - Service which includes externship, internship, part-time and full-time job postings and provides access to On Grounds Interviewing (OGI). Use the advanced search option under the Jobs/Internships/Externships tab to identify positions for which you are eligible to apply based on your work authorization.

H1base·com - Tool which allows one to search databases of “international student friendly” organizations. Identify the names and contact information for hiring managers with companies that have a history of sponsoring employees on a H-1B visa. (Contact Saskia Campbell at scampbell(at)virginia·edu for log-in information).

My UCS - Portal from UCS homepage (www.career.virginia.edu) to the following protected resources:
• Vault- Includes an internship database which lists opportunities open to international students. Also a great resource for industry overviews, profiles of top career paths and tips on resumes/cover letters and interviewing.
• Going Global- Provides information on domestic as well as international employment opportunities, to include guides for working in over 25 countries and 40 major U.S. cities. Also provides list of top H-1B employers by U.S state.

Career Search - Comprehensive directory of 1.7 million potential employers, which provides a description, the history, size, major competitors and contact information for each company. Narrow your search to find companies that meet your criteria.

UCAN (University Career Assistance Network) - Searchable database of 25,000 U.Va. alumni available for advice, networking and informational interviewing. The alumni contacts represent various career fields and are searchable by location, major while at U.Va., industry and company name.

Gaining Experience

Gaining relevant work experience, in addition to your degree, will make you a more competitive job candidate. Internships during the summer are a great way to build skills and augment your classroom experience. Your internship should be related to your declared major or your principal field of study. If you plan to work in the U.S. after graduating and decide to use some of your OPT to do an internship in the U.S. while still a student, you should seek out internship opportunities with companies that have a history of sponsoring employees who are on a work visa. That way, you will be building a relationship with an organization that is more likely to hire you for a full-time position upon graduating. Many employers favor applicants for their entry-level positions who went through their internship programs.

UCS has extensive resources for researching internship opportunities. Internship opportunities vary tremendously depending on your area of interest, and may be paid or unpaid. For more information on obtaining an internship, see the UCS handout called “Internships, Externships, Summer Jobs and Other Ways of Gaining Experience.” Please note that Ferguson’s Career Resource Guide to Internships and Summer Jobs is extremely helpful and Princeton’s Internship Bible, which is also available in the UCS library, includes an index of internships open to international students.

Externships are short-term job shadowing experiences (one day to three weeks in length) which enable students to clarify their career goals, gain “real world” experience and get their foot in the door for competitive internships and jobs. Students participating in externships are not paid by the employer and must supply their own housing, food and transportation; however, the networking opportunities provided by this kind of experience make them highly valuable. More information on the Jefferson Extern Program is available on the UCS website, www·career·virginia·edu.

Faculty may be in a position to provide work opportunities during the academic year and summer months through grants or their departmental budgets. Check with your faculty advisor to see if there are any opportunities in your department.

NOTE: In exploring any of the opportunities mentioned above, always check with the International Student Advisor to confirm your eligibility for work authorization. Unlawful employment can also include engaging in unpaid work.