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Y! MyWebBegin With The End in Mind - What happens after Your Studies in the US?
An international student typically has one of two broad motives for study in the United States. This is not to suggest that you will fall into one of these two categories, but generally most students do.
The first motive is to obtain your university degree from the United States and return home to a better circumstance and better opportunities. Often, that opens employment with foreign firms who might place a greater value on an American degree or your having lived in the United States.
The second motive is to use the student visa as a point of entry to a life in the United States. So in reality, you are either going for an American education, or an opportunity to be part of the America dream.
Still, there are grey areas. You might leave home with every intention of returning home immediately upon completion of your degree. But in actuality, you can become an accidental immigrant. The reasons are varied. There is always the real possibility that a strong culture such as the United States can impose itself on you. You will eventually assimilate.
Given the two broad motives and the grey area, it is best for you as a prospective international student to be clear on your plans and intentions before you start the process. Here is one key reason. Intent to remain in the USA, if detected, could cost you the opportunity to get a student visa. We will discuss this topic in much more detail in other sections.
So as you select a school, privately incorporate your known intent. Are you preparing for the job, business or career market in your country or do you plan to remain in the United States?
The choice of careers also is critical if one plans to seek opportunities in the United States because the market needs are likely to be different. In the science and technology areas, the allied health professions, and in some aspects of business, the United States has a seemingly permanent labor need, and that need is what the government uses to determine the number of available employment-based visas.
Knowing that information and studying in one of these “need” areas can pay dividends if you plan to remain in the United States. So if you fit into one of the two broad categories or even a grey area, the options for success, assistance, and even a new life opportunity are many and varied. Intelligent and strategic planning and research can make the experience much more rewarding and much less expensive, frustrating and stressful.