Latest news with #H-1B
Time of India
an hour ago
- Business
- Time of India
Indian tech entrepreneur Nagendra Dhanakeerthi recounts final hurdle before getting O-1A visa: 'Why do you think you are extraordinary?'
Indian tech entrepreneur Nagendra Dhanakeerthi has recently relocated to California on an O-1A visa which is reserved for "extraordinary" people in their fields. His relocation comes amid the Donald Trump administration's stricter rules for foreign nationals and a brewing discontent among the US tech workers over the H-1B visa, the program that allows US companies to hire foreign skills. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now But Nagendra is an O-1A and he recounted his last hurdle before getting the visa to the as being asked why he thinks he is extraordinary. The question is the visa's core requirement that the applicants have to be extraordinary in their field. "I was confident but at the same time you do hear a lot of rejections," Dhanakeerthi said. The Wall Street Journal report that detailed the the journey of the Indian techie from Bengaluru to California focuses on immigration in California and how it is necessary for California's growth. The reply that Nag gave that got him his extraordinary category visa was his ingenuity. "I shared how I've led teams across geographies and how the product I built got acquired by AI Squared,' he said. Dhanakeerthi was described as one of California's newest residents, whom his company paid a lot of money to get there. The Indian entrepreneur shifted to California from Bengaluru with his wife Sindhuja Ravichandran and their two daughters, as he found it difficult to work remotely. He was a co-founder of the AI startup and is now the chief technical officer after his company was acquired by a different venture. The WSJ report said that his company applied for a visa to relocate the CTO to California and the six-month process cost the company about $30,000. Darren Kimura, the CEO of the company AI Squared said he has a second visa applicant in India who is still navigating the O-1A application process. Kimura told WSJ that the second position is for chief customer officer, and it is a little difficult to define.
The Mainichi
6 hours ago
- Business
- The Mainichi
Career pathways in the US dim for international students as Trump cracks down on visas
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Since coming from China as a teenager for boarding school, Bob Zeng has imagined building a career in the United States. But as he prepared to graduate Thursday from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, it felt like the last chapter of his life in America. Zeng said he has been rethinking his plans because of the Trump administration's pledge to aggressively revoke the visas of Chinese students. Having completed a masters degree in science and management, he is thinking about moving to Europe. Or going home to China. "I am worried about working here," said Zeng, 30. "You never know what's going to happen." Many international students come to the U.S. with hopes of gaining work experience and returning to their home countries or pursuing a career in the U.S. But the administration's intensifying scrutiny of international students -- and signs that formal career pathways for them may be closed -- are leading some to reconsider their plans. Beyond the steps the administration already has taken -- expanding the grounds for terminating students' ability to study in the U.S., adding new vetting for student visas, moving to block foreign enrollment at Harvard -- a key nominee has raised the possibility of ending a program that encourages international students to stay and gain work experience. About 240,000 of the 1.1 million people on student visas in the U.S. are on Optional Practical Training -- a one-year post-graduation period where they are authorized to work in fields related to their degrees. It can last up to three years for graduates in science, math and technology fields. President Donald Trump's nominee for director of United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, Joseph Edlow, said during his confirmation hearing on May 21 that he would like to see an end to post-graduate work authorization for international students. "What I want to see would be essentially a regulatory and sub-regulatory program that would allow us to remove the ability for employment authorizations for F-1 students beyond the time that they are in school," said Edlow, referring to the F-1 visas on which most international students attend college in the U.S. A program offers international students a foothold for careers in the US The opportunity to gain career experience at U.S. companies, especially in technology and other fields where American companies dominate, has long been a draw of studying here. Many enter the H-1B visa lottery, hoping to be selected for one of the employer-sponsored visas that offer a pathway to permanent residency in the United States. Threatening practical training opportunities would have long-term consequences for the U.S. in attracting international students, said Fanta Aw, CEO of NAFSA, which represents international educators. "We turn global talent away at our own expense," Aw said. Like many international students, Marko, 29, finds himself glued to the news with a growing sense of alarm. His Optional Practical Training expires in a month, and he has applied for an extension but hasn't heard back, leaving him in limbo. Lawyers for the tech company where he works in New York City advised him to carry proof of his legal status in his wallet, which he finds "dehumanizing." "The message being sent now is that: You are not one of us, and we are going to get rid of you," said Marko, who asked that only his first name be used because he is worried about being targeted for removal from the country. He has lived in the U.S. for a decade spanning college and graduate school, but his family and friends back home have encouraged him to leave. His hope is that he gets the OPT extension and can then apply for an H-1B visa and continue his life in the U.S., but he also worries about anti-immigrant sentiment and who will be targeted next. Guy, an HIV researcher at Mount Sinai Hospital who declined to provide his last name for fear of retaliation, came to the United States in 2018 for a PhD program at New York University. He's now in his second year of OPT and would have to return to the United Kingdom if the program was terminated. Although he still feels welcome in New York City, he said it feels like there's a "war on immigrants in this country." "It's not a particularly attractive place to stay and do science right now," he said. Foreign students have been targeted on several fronts In his first administration, Trump floated the idea of curtailing OPT, but that did not materialize. During the campaign, he suggested he would give green cards to foreign students who graduate from U.S. colleges, a sentiment that students and educators hoped would signal more welcoming policies. But his administration has cracked down on international students in several ways. In April, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement began terminating the legal status of people with student visas who appeared in a database of police encounters. Many caught up in that effort were on OPT, and had to leave their jobs or risk violating laws about working without legal authorization. ICE eventually restored students' status after widespread legal challenges, but not before some chose to leave the country pre-emptively, fearing deportation. In mid-May, some recent graduates received letters threatening to terminate their status if they did not update their employment records. While the letters gave them an opportunity to fix any reporting issues, it sent another wave of uncertainty through international graduates. This week, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the government would move to revoke visas of Chinese students with connections to the Chinese Communist Party or studying in "critical" fields. Yurong "Luanna" Jiang, a Chinese student who graduated Thursday from Harvard University, said in an interview that she had hoped to stay in the U.S. for a few years but she has been unsettled by the Trump administration's crackdown on visas. "In terms of the plan going forward, I would say everything is up in the air at this point," said Jiang, who is now open to going anywhere in the world to work in international development. "At this point, it's difficult to say what will happen." ___ Gecker reported from San Francisco, Toness and Michael Casey contributed from Cambridge, Massachusetts, and Collin Binkley contributed from Washington.
New Indian Express
9 hours ago
- Politics
- New Indian Express
Career pathways in US dim for international students as Trump cracks down on visas
'The message being sent now is that: You are not one of us, and we are going to get rid of you,' said Marko, who asked that only his first name be used because he is worried about being targeted for removal from the country. He has lived in the U.S. for a decade spanning college and graduate school, but his family and friends back home have encouraged him to leave. His hope is that he gets the OPT extension and can then apply for an H-1B visa and continue his life in the U.S., but he also worries about anti-immigrant sentiment and who will be targeted next. Guy, an HIV researcher at Mount Sinai Hospital who declined to provide his last name for fear of retaliation, came to the United States in 2018 for a PhD program at New York University. He's now in his second year of OPT and would have to return to the United Kingdom if the program was terminated. Although he still feels welcome in New York City, he said it feels like there's a 'war on immigrants in this country.' 'It's not a particularly attractive place to stay and do science right now,' he said.
Time of India
10 hours ago
- Business
- Time of India
Career pathways in US dim for international students as Trump cracks down on visas
Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Since coming from China as a teenager for boarding school, Bob Zeng has imagined building a career in the United as he prepared to graduate Thursday from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, it felt like the last chapter of his life in said he has been rethinking his plans because of the Trump administration's pledge to aggressively revoke the visas of Chinese completed a masters degree in science and management, he is thinking about moving to Europe. Or going home to China."I am worried about working here," said Zeng, 30. "You never know what's going to happen."Many international students come to the US with hopes of gaining work experience and returning to their home countries or pursuing a career in the US. But the administration's intensifying scrutiny of international students - and signs that formal career pathways for them may be closed - are leading some to reconsider their the steps the administration already has taken - expanding the grounds for terminating students' ability to study in the US, adding new vetting for student visas, moving to block foreign enrolment at Harvard - a key nominee has raised the possibility of ending a programme that encourages international students to stay and gain work 240,000 of the 1.1 million people on student visas in the US are on Optional Practical Training - a one-year post-graduation period where they are authorized to work in fields related to their degrees. It can last up to three years for graduates in science, math and technology Donald Trump's nominee for director of United States Citizenship and Immigration Services , Joseph Edlow, said during his confirmation hearing on May 21 that he would like to see an end to post-graduate work authorization for international students."What I want to see would be essentially a regulatory and sub-regulatory program that would allow us to remove the ability for employment authorizations for F-1 students beyond the time that they are in school," said Edlow, referring to the F-1 visas on which most international students attend college in the US.A programme offers international students a foothold for careers in the USThe opportunity to gain career experience at US companies, especially in technology and other fields where American companies dominate, has long been a draw of studying here. Many enter the H-1B visa lottery, hoping to be selected for one of the employer-sponsored visas that offer a pathway to permanent residency in the United practical training opportunities would have long-term consequences for the US in attracting international students, said Fanta Aw, CEO of NAFSA, which represents international educators."We turn global talent away at our own expense," Aw many international students, Marko, 29, finds himself glued to the news with a growing sense of alarm. His Optional Practical Training expires in a month, and he has applied for an extension but hasn't heard back, leaving him in limbo. Lawyers for the tech company where he works in New York City advised him to carry proof of his legal status in his wallet, which he finds "dehumanising.""The message being sent now is that: You are not one of us, and we are going to get rid of you," said Marko, who asked that only his first name be used because he is worried about being targeted for removal from the has lived in the US for a decade spanning college and graduate school, but his family and friends back home have encouraged him to leave. His hope is that he gets the OPT extension and can then apply for an H-1B visa and continue his life in the US, but he also worries about anti-immigrant sentiment and who will be targeted an HIV researcher at Mount Sinai Hospital who declined to provide his last name for fear of retaliation, came to the United States in 2018 for a PhD program at New York University . He's now in his second year of OPT and would have to return to the United Kingdom if the program was terminated. Although he still feels welcome in New York City, he said it feels like there's a "war on immigrants in this country.""It's not a particularly attractive place to stay and do science right now," he students have been targeted on several frontsIn his first administration, Trump floated the idea of curtailing OPT, but that did not materialize. During the campaign, he suggested he would give green cards to foreign students who graduate from U.S. colleges, a sentiment that students and educators hoped would signal more welcoming his administration has cracked down on international students in several April, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement began terminating the legal status of people with student visas who appeared in a database of police encounters. Many caught up in that effort were on OPT, and had to leave their jobs or risk violating laws about working without legal authorization. ICE eventually restored students' status after widespread legal challenges, but not before some chose to leave the country pre-emptively, fearing mid-May, some recent graduates received letters threatening to terminate their status if they did not update their employment records. While the letters gave them an opportunity to fix any reporting issues, it sent another wave of uncertainty through international week, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the government would move to revoke visas of Chinese students with connections to the Chinese Communist Party or studying in "critical" "Luanna" Jiang, a Chinese student who graduated Thursday from Harvard University , said in an interview that she had hoped to stay in the US for a few years but she has been unsettled by the Trump administration's crackdown on visas."In terms of the plan going forward, I would say everything is up in the air at this point," said Jiang, who is now open to going anywhere in the world to work in international development. "At this point, it's difficult to say what will happen."
Hindustan Times
12 hours ago
- Business
- Hindustan Times
‘Hardly any savings left': Indian IT professional torn between US stability and job offer in India
The H-1B visa programme, long regarded as a pathway for skilled professionals to establish careers in the United States, is facing increasing scrutiny, with Indian nationals—who constitute over 70% of recipients—being the most affected. Also read: Amazon hire unable to start job due to this H-1B visa hurdle, Reddit weighs in Recent developments, including a controversial executive order by US President Donald Trump, have intensified concerns. The order revokes birthright citizenship for children born in the US to parents on temporary visas like the H-1B—'unless at least one parent is a US citizen or holds a green card.' This major policy change has left many immigrant families uneasy about their future, already strained by employment uncertainty, challenges in renewing visas, and long green card backlogs. Amid this atmosphere of insecurity, a Reddit post by an Indian engineer has shed light on the emotional and practical struggles shared by many. The anonymous user revealed that after spending most of his professional life in the US, he was recently offered a job in India with decent pay and the added comfort of being based in his home state. He currently resides in the US with his wife and two young children, 'one of whom is in kindergarten.' Although his current salary just meets household expenses, he values the work-life balance and family time that living in the US affords. However, the idea of moving back to India brings its own concerns. 'I like the family time and weekend joys with my family,' he wrote. 'I may not get that in India where the work demands more additional work time.' The post sparked a wide range of reactions. One user commented, 'It's a hard choice, and honestly, no one can really help you decide. You just have to commit to one option, not look back, and accept that you can't have the best of both worlds.' Others raised concerns about children's future adjustments. 'Move back before the kids grow up. Getting adjusted will be difficult as they get older,' one person advised. Also read: Indian-American Megha Vemuri faces vicious trolling after pro-Palestine MIT speech, deactivates LinkedIn profile Some viewed it from a financial standpoint, stating, 'If you can't increase your salary in the U.S. and can live comfortably in India with additional savings, then it makes sense to move back,' adding, 'Your expenses will only rise once both kids start school.' Several voices in the thread spoke of the emotional and cultural benefits of returning home. 'India is the happening place. I'd want to connect with my dear ones and let my kids enjoy family affection. I would think long term and switch back,' one comment read.
