Changes of the H1B Visas Affecting International Students in the U.S.

In the United States, getting a job is not easy for international students – especially after President Trump’s recent changes to the H-1B visa policy.

Alex Chou, who graduated with a master’s degree in computer science from San Francisco State University in 2016, is now working at SuperMicro Inc. in the Silicon Valley under Optional Practical Training (OPT), which allows international students to work one year after graduation.

Chou is applying for an H-1B visa so he can stay in the United States, but changes under President Trump will make the requirement of applying for H-1B very difficult., which allows students to work one year after graduation.

“I thought I would have no problem with getting my H-1B visa with my master degree in computer science, but the President Trump is taking this away from us now.”

Chou is among 300 international students at SF State who are seeking longer stays with an H-1B visa. The problem is that only a small percentage of these students successfully received their H-1B visa because the selection of the visa is random, according to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service.

Silicon Valley companies long depend on foreign workers to fuel tech growth. It is known as the nation’s tech capital. About two-thirds of the workforce were born outside the U.S. according to the Silicon alley Institute for Regional Studies, said Chou.

Mei-Ling Wang, coordinator of the International Student Advising and DSO at SF State, says that the university has 1,500 international students from more than 100 countries who studies at San Francisco State University, and many of the international students struggle to get an H-1B visa in their first attempt.

“Each year in the month of March and May is when the OPT application opens, around 30 to 40 students apply for it to seek for job opportunities in the U.S. and sadly, most of them returns to their home country after a year of graduation.” said Wang.

Hsiang, also an international student from Taipei, Taiwan, has recently transferred from San Francisco State University to University of San Francisco, and has been living in the Ingleside district for three years. Getting a green card as an international student under President Trump’s new immigration presidency law has also been a challenge through the procedure of applying for citizenship.

“I have applied for the diversity bias lottery for more than five years and failed every year.”said Hsiang. “Getting a green card isn’t an easy thing now.”

International students interviewed for this story said, due to their visa status, there are a lot of disadvantages for them in many aspects.

“With OPT, international students can legally work and live in the U.S. for one year. Many of them intend to apply for a H-1B working visa, which prolongs their visa to three years,”said Wang.

“However, the H-1B visa is randomly selects a certain percentage each year to decided who receives the visa.”

Although there are challenges in applying to America’s citizenship, there are still many immigration support groups that help immigration families and international students like Hsiang and Cheng.

“Thankfully there are many cultural and ethnic student organizations on campus so I get to meet people who shares the same culture or share the same difficulties in America,” said Hsiang.

This is Hsiang’s second year living in the United States, and he said he is so glad that he chose San Francisco as his first place to live abroad because he likes to learn about new cultures and explore the city, and San Francisco is the perfect place.

“Although I was born in Taipei, Taiwan, I actually grew up in Shanghai, China. My parents moved to Shanghai for work and took the whole family there. I lived in Shanghai until I moved to San Francisco,” said Hsiang. He is used to being a foreigner living in another country, but he enjoys living in America more.

“I have been moving around to different countries and many cities throughout my childhood, so being an foreigner is nothing new to me. I really wish that the president will let more international students work in the States ,” said Hsiang.

With more than 1,500 international students from 100 countries amongst the total of 30,256 students (SF State Facts) studying in San Francisco State University, the percentage of international students is only 2 percent of the whole student population; however, the 2 percent international students are experiencing a life-changing school year that is so drastically different from their own country.

“Studying abroad is one of the best decisions I have made in my life so far, and I will cherish the time and opportunity I have here,” said Hsiang.