Tech IndustryOct 20, 2019
Newusrname 🖲

H1B - Work 3 years vs. going back for Master's

Recently received a SWE New Grad offer from Microsoft. I am graduating with a Bachelor's from an American school in May & want to eventually stay in the US. I know getting an H1B is based on a lottery & while I have 3 years of OPT, I am considering the case where I would fail to be selected all three times. I know that having a Master's gives more chances at the lottery & am considering what I should do. Would love feedback! TC ~ 135k (I am not exactly sure how this gets calculated, my b)

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spartan90 Oct 20, 2019

Stay. The chances of not getting h1b in three tries is negligible.

Google Sylow Oct 20, 2019

Chance of getting visa within 3 years: 1 - (1-p)^3, where p is chance of getting it in one year fairly high for p around 30%

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spartan90 Oct 20, 2019

Depends on P and how one defines fairly high. But I guess the failure rate comes out to be less than 5% which is pretty safe imo

IBM bbWI22 Oct 20, 2019

You could apply for grad school after a second h1B failure to have it as an option in case you don’t get it the next year. Is this a possibility?

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usrname 🖲 OP Oct 20, 2019

Yes, it is doable. However, it will mean that I will have one extra attempt after getting my MS to get H1B. I'll def consider that.

IBM bbWI22 Oct 20, 2019

Is that the case? can you not get an additional OPT 3 years after MS?

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sbcarw009 Oct 20, 2019

Stay for 3 years, but plan for grad school in your second year and give GRE. If you don't make it in your second attempt, go all out on MS applications. You can always postpone the acceptance to a later year/turn down the offer should you make the cut in your final attempt. The monetary impact of the above is nominal, but the additional workload is not. Plan ahead, plan well and you should be fine. P.S. I did my bachelor's outside US but planned for my MS while working long hours at a start-up. I just had to start early and stay focused and disciplined over the course of a year or 15 months.

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usrname 🖲 OP Oct 20, 2019

Thanks for the tips, I'll definitely consider this option.

Microsoft othadei Oct 20, 2019

Dude chill tf out. MSFT will send you to Vancouver and haul your ass back.

Microsoft GTFO++; Oct 20, 2019

What othadei said. You could also, in parallel get some masters level credits while working with Msft and get the $10k/year tution reimbursement. This makes your final MS a bit easier and cheaper because you'll be doing less credits when full time. Just do the math about how many credits are needed to be considered for opt/cpt. I suggest you do it in second year, first year concentrate on nailing and exceeding the tasks assigned to you. Of course, Vancouver and return after 1.5/2 years is always a possibility. But I had a hard time convincing my MGMT for my reports' promo since they were remote. thsts one drawback no one knows until they go through it. MS stamp on resume is great to get into big league colleges. UW/Stanford are respected and a possibility. Stan is an expensive school so the few $$ tution reimbursement helps.

Cisco BlackGirl❤ Oct 20, 2019

As as international student, you can't study and work on OPT at the same time. The minute you apply for a Masters degree, your OPT gets cancelled.

Microsoft GTFO++; Oct 20, 2019

Sorry, I wasn't clear. I meant the OPT/CPT that op will be eligible for once they join MS course full time and becomes an F1 student. I momentarily forgot that one can get opt after undergrad too Dunno if undergrad opt time eats into opt time after grad studies.

Zynga parott Oct 20, 2019

Msft will send you to Vancouver and get you back most likely -why Do you care ?Dont waste money on a masters just to stay in the country

Google Sylow Oct 20, 2019

Vancouver TC as % of Seattle or Bay Area?

Zynga parott Oct 20, 2019

Will be lower -you can’t have the cake and eat it too.For one year it will be a very small hit .