International students often sell themselves short when looking for jobs in the USA. They focus on the costs of having to get sponsored, the language barrier, and other reasons that ultimately have a negative impact on their job search.
However, in my experience, the positives that the right international students can bring to the table are way greater than these costs. So, following up on my last article, here are four ways that International Students can stand out in their job search:
- Leverage Your Background
- Do Your Research
- Do Interview Projects
- Do Informational Interviews
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Leverage Your Background
This is pretty obvious but most of you forget about it! The fact that you chose to travel to a completely new country to pursue your studies say great things about you. It tells employers that you’re brave, that you’re willing to get out of your comfort zone, and that you’re determined. These are all attributes that any workplace would love to have.
Often times, though, these attributes won’t just magically appear in the hiring manager’s head when they look at your resume or even when they speak to you. It is your job to present your global perspective as an advantage.
Consider the following situation: you’re a hiring manager and you have to choose between two perfectly qualified candidates for an entry level sales role. Both these candidates have the same GPA, extracurricular activities, and answered your questions adequately. The only difference between the two candidates is that the first one has lived on 2 continents and speaks 3 languages, whilst the second candidate grew up in Orange County for their whole life. Who would you pick?
Whilst this is obviously very simplified, it does demonstrate that when properly framed, your international background can be a huge advantage.
Do Your Research
As I outlined in my last article, there are a few categories that a company can fit into when it comes to visa sponsorship. Best case scenario: the company definitely sponsors. Worst case scenario: they definitely don’t sponsor. Most likely scenario: they’re willing to budge, but only if you can demonstrate that you’re a great candidate.
You can use tools like this to figure out if a company sponsors. If a company job description clearly states that visa sponsorship is not available, then you’re likely out of luck.
I want to focus on the most likely scenario, where sponsorship could go either way. This is likely the case at many startups. In these situations, you should focus on knowing exactly how to explain the sponsorship process and to educate your (future) employer. Truth be told, sponsoring someone really isn’t a big deal – and that’s how you want to communicate it. Be assertive, calm, and know your stuff. How long does it take to sponsor someone? How long can you work on OPT? Are you eligible for the STEM extension? These are all questions you should have answers to.
Finally, I also recommend learning about the L1 Visa. It’s an interesting option and if it makes sense for you and your employer, one you should definitely consider.
Do Interview Projects
I am a big advocate of adding tons of value during the interview process. You want to make it a no brainer to hire you. Sure, this requires more work than usual, but the payoff is well worth it.
I talk about this at length in my last article, so I’ll be brief here: there are so many awesome projects you could undertake based on whatever role you’re applying for. Examples:
- If you’re applying for a content marketing role, write up a blog post for their company website and do some keyword research.
- If you’re applying for a design role, redesign the company’s home website and write a few paragraphs on how you’d improve their conversion funnel.
- If you’re applying for a finance position, do a stock pitch or write up an investment thesis.
- If you’re applying for a data science role, find a dataset relevant to the company’s industry and try to draw some relevant insights.
Next, once you’ve completed your project, send over a short, succinct email describing what you’ve done to the hiring manager. This is important – do not send this to the recruiter. The hiring manager is the one in charge of the decision making and he or she is obviously the one who possesses all industry knowledge. Send her your kickass work – this never fails to impress, trust me. Most people are lazy 🙂
Side note: here’s another fantastic article on interview projects and great job advice in general.
Informational Interviews
Reach out to alumni of your university (or anyone working in your field). Seriously, do this! There are two main benefits to doing this.
First, you will actually find out whether the field you’re trying to go into is one that interests you. You’ll be able to gauge whether the tasks, activities, and routines that underlie this job position are ones that you can actually see yourself doing or not. For example, I thought I wanted to go into finance until I once spoke with an entry level banking analyst. I like to sleep.
Second, these relationships will come in handy later down the line. You’ll be able to ask for referrals, get insider info on the interview process, and, well, you’ll most likely have made a new friend!
Conclusion
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