Post MBA Visa sponsorship - US or UK
Hey all, I'm an international applicant to the Fall '18 MBA program of Columbia and LBS and I intend to remain and work in the country where I study. I was curious what the Visa sponsorship situation is like for international folks getting recruited into consulting firms (top three and otherwise) in each country. So if you guys have any inputs or can point me to a thread discussing this topic, it'd be a great help. Thanks again.
The 2 systems are very different. In the US, the firm sponsoring you has to get your an H1B Visa and those are allocated through a lottery so it's completely random as to whether you get it or not. Graduating from a Masters program, there's a separate cap for Visa (there's 20,000 available) so competition is a little less fierce than for the main cap, but in recent years, it's definitely not a guarantee that you will "win" the lottery. I know quite a few people who were unsuccessful in landing a Visa and had to be transferred out of the country.
The UK system (as it currently stands, no one really knows how brexit is going to affect) is much better. You can switch over your Visa status from a student to a long-term working Visa as long as you get a job offer, it's a pain free, easy and cheap process and there's no quota or labour test to be done. I would note though that it's practically impossible to get a consulting job in London unless you are a native english speaker (don't know if that's the case or not).
Is it possible for an US MBA to find a job in UK upon graduation? Will there be a Visa issue too?
It's possible, but much harder as you only get the easy Visa if you study in the UK (again with the current rules, there's hope that with brexit, a new and better system will be put in place). A firm sponsoring you has to go through a lot of hoops and perform a labour test, it's both expensive and difficult so firms will only do those for exceptional candidates. Also, if you have never lived in Europe, it's going to be an uphill battle to convince any employer to hire you ahead of a UK / EU national.
Just heads up with a program UK. You need to get a job offer before you graduate. Unless you are from the EU you are required to leave the country once you graduate, the US gives you one year legal status after graduation until you find a job.
Thanks for the input. This really helps. Also, though I do speak english as my primary language (and can speak French and German fluently), apparently I'm not considered a native speaker because I'm not from the commonwealth or the US. Would this genuinely be a concern in terms of recruiting? On a side note, in your opinion, shouldn't the prospect of Brexit open up more opportunities in consulting?
Thanks again.
Basically, London is well-known for having top MBA colleges. The MBA programs are designed in a unique way. Moreover, many international students from all over the world enroll themselves in different Colleges in London. The international students get some more benefits from the University. There are many leading business schools that provide MBA courses to the students.
Just to add to the previous posts: After obtaining a US degree you would have 12 months of OPT (link goes to a government website). An employer who can see how you perform and whether you are good fit over 1 year is most likely more willing to sponsor you for a visa and subsequently a green card. There is still the issue that work visa with caps are oversubscribed though.
Thanks for the information. In case of oversubscription, are you aware of any instances where the employee, who was deemed a good fit, got transferred to another geography?
Apologies for the 21 questions all, just trying to cover all bases before making a call. Thanks again.
Yes - I have witnessed multiple instances where an otherwise good employee got transferred to UK/Asia when he/she didn't get picked in the H1-B lottery. The company can then bring them back after 1 year on the L-1 Visa.
Note that the STEM extension on OPT gives you 36 months of work authorization as opposed to 12 months for other degrees, which would give you three chances to be picked in the lottery instead of just one.
It is true because now the companies have to pay international students on par with the Americans. Earlier, they were getting the same work done by paying less. Another problem for the companies is to get H1B Visa which is more restrictive. Permanent Residency to foreigners can take anywhere between 10 to 15 years. These are the main disincentives why companies in USA are not eager to hire international students.
It depends on where are applying sponsorship from.
Are you already in the country where you require sponsorship. In this case, I presume you are a visitor / dependent / student etc.
If you are a student in F1-visa, you could apply for a job and get sponsorship from the company. Not every company does. So, you have to apply for every organization to find out. Some firms, explicitly say they require citizens and some ask if you would require sponsorship.
Internship could be an excellent way to land sponsorship provided you do well during your internship. But, again it doesn’t guarantee sponsorship. But, still it would look good on your resume for future opportunities.
I would say it is decent because in the end it matters how competitive of a MBA job applicant you are.
There is no shortage of MBAs in the USA but there is always a shortage of highly competent highly productive MBAs in the USA and globally.
It is up to your future employer(s) to make this case on your behalf.
In USA there are lots of companies are available which hire MBA Graduates. You just need to search and apply for the jobs to get hired in USA.
You can start working as an following profiles:
Director, Manager, Financial Analyst, Branch Manager, Supply Chain Consultant, Sales Manager, Purchase Manager etc.
I suggest you to register your profile with updated resume at USA’s Best job portal which provides jobs for international students and keep searching and applying for jobs.
You can find list of jobs for MBA Related jobs for international students in USA at:
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