Sometimes I feel like I worry about H1-B visas too much. I am incredibly passionate about computer science. But I just can't help with the anxiety I feel every single day since graduating with an undergraduate degree in CS. My GPA took a hit because of the anxiety. I graduated from Santa Clara University and I know that it is not a top school and perhaps I feel like I don't find success (I interned as a Software Engineer at dinosaur companies like CISCO and IBM and used up all my CPTs as well as PRe-opts and risked my grades just in hopes for full time employment or at least, have enough experience to get full-time employment as that decides my future and fate in this country). The work that I have been doing for the past three years is general full stack engineering & unit tests tbh, nothing too exciting. Most CS graduates from my school who graduated with 4.0 / Summa cum laude with no experience/internships didn't find employment after graduation, so I didn't see the point in graduating with stellar grades tbh. I graduated with a 3.4 GPA. Held GPA>3.6 for 3 years. Putting academics first did not seem like a smart decision for me at the time. The only satisfaction I got this year is winning the h1-b lottery and just received a request for evidence that my company seems less interested in dealing with. I care about it more than the company does tbh. This immigration anxiety has been going on for the last 2.5 years since Trump became president. I acknowledge that I am not the only one going through this and there are thousands of students in worser situation than I am. It's just that things are getting harder and harder every year. How do foreigners / F1-Visa holders from Berkeley/Stanford/UofMichigan/UofViriginia/UiUc or other top CS schools deal with this situation? Were u guys/gals in the same boat as I am ? Or do u guys put academics first ? I am aware that USCIS don't care about your background and that's not my worry here. I feel like that companies will tend to hire or give more attention to top school graduates regardless of the experience you possess. That is why I resorted to caring about internships more than my academics. After this whole immigration grind is done, I plan on getting a graduate degree in CS, and would like to do it in a top school. Let me know your thoughts on this, thanks ! π P.S. I am not from India or China
I went to a top school you mentioned. H1bs are dealt with regardless of background, so weβre all in the same boat here. I started worrying alot less once my student loans were repaid. However I do advise you to think about life holistically. If it induces this much anxiety in you, your priorities are all messed up. Life is short, feel alive every day. Itβs possible for a person to both live a unhappy life in US or to live a happy life in Canada at 50% the pay.
Try to stop worrying on visas. I understand it's easy to say but these things can't really be 100% controlled on our own. One thing you have control over is how valuable you are as an individual. Be good at whatever you do. Or learn something which brings in the value. That's the best insurance you can have either if you stay here or end up going back. Beside, for me, with all this learnt skill and India's higher growth rate, I can ride the growth wave easily.
+1 the worrying is endless. Have a backup plan and forget worrying. Easy to say I know, but you will start doing it when you grow and there are 20 more important things to worry about like family etc
If you are from India or China , consider this anxiety to follow you for the next few decades . I have been on a H1-B visa for 12 years now and each renewal still scares me . Once you start a family and your kids become accustomed to a US lifestyle , it will become ever harder and scarier for you to go back due to a visa rejection or some other issue .
@amazon not entirely true. H1b is something called a "dual intent" visa. It's just the backlog due to place of birth makes it seem temporary.
Go with the flow like other .2-.3 million ppl
I had these issues too. Being an anxious person in general I can understand what you feel. But from my experience it helped when I focused on doing the right thing for my career and being successful at my job. Everything in life is actual unpredictable. We sometimes feel that we are able to predict things but that is a lie. Say you did not have to worry about VISA and in general the job market becomes tough. So I would say focus on what you think is right, be truthful to your passion and be confident that whatever place you land up be it USA or India or any other country you will be successful because you have proven to yourself already that you can deal with situations by already leaving your home country and following your dreams.
Also I feel it not about where you graduate from it is the company. Given that you have so much experience just change your job to more stable company which deals with H1B better.
Set you expectations realistically and make realistic outcomes your plan for your life. Expect that your stay in the US is temporary and that you're just getting some extra savings and experience, before your long term plan to return to India. If that's what your expect and plan for then there's no anxiety. If you get to stay a little longer it's a bonus. H1b is a temporary visa and the anxiety comes from believing it's permanent or thinking that success requires it to be. Reality is at some point you're leaving.
Isn't the h1 a dual intent visa? It's temporary in the sense in demand qualified workers were supposed to easily transition to permanent residency. But thanks to a broken immigration system and a helping hand from crap consulting firms that isn't happening today.
You will get GC in 1-3 years. If it helps you imagine India born has to wait for tens of years in the same anxiety and fear you are going through with family responsibilities!
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