Wednesday, July 29, 2009

Finding Work

I met this headache the first week I was in the United States, leave alone the stress I had to go through about the school work, the professors and the American accent. The bills are frighteningly high, and the rent I was paying for my one room apartment was enough to pay for a three bedroom self contained house back home.

So the issue of money came into play. I had to do my groceries, pay my bills, and my tuition and books just to stay afloat and since I did not have a never ending supply of money available, I had to find a way.

I should mention beforehand that my family prepared me for the first semester alone and I had to find my way of paying through school. One thing that I did in the beginning was to look for scholarship opportunities that did not consider citizenship and /or residency. And the few that were there had less money and were much more competitive. But I knew that I was worth my salt and so I had to look I was able to get a few that greatly subsidized the amount of tuition that I was required to pay. So if I could come up with a job, I would just about make it and the keyword being 'just'. I will leave that for now. And will talk about scholarships later.

There are very few options available for international students to be allowed to work. I knew there were other methods to work that are not considered legal, but I did not want to lose my status in the U.S. At least, I wasn't that desperate yet. But honestly speaking? I did not cross that option off my list.

By illegal work, I do not mean anything that would be against the law. Some students participate in odd jobs (excuse my English) like: Babysitting, lawn mowing ... you get my drift. But according to the law, international students are really not required to do that. Now, having said that, there is really not much of an enforcement of this act going on. The rule of the thumb is, stay out of trouble - Do not get a record with the police especially regarding 'misdemeanors'. It maybe low risk for U.S. citizens, but very risky for an international students. It gives the U.S. government an excuse - and a good one to deport you back to your country. And with the number of people scrambling to enter the United States; trust me, no one would mourn for you.

Anyways, I had started to deviate from the main idea. But, I managed to get work at school working no more than 20 hours a week and earning minimum wage. It wasn't much, but it was something and I honestly could not complain.

I should mention here that there is a fine print that not many people look at regarding international work-study program - An international student is not allowed to work more than 20 hours a week EXCEPT during non school days and holidays IF AND ONLY IF the schools allows the student to work over the stipulated time. So, even though most students don't know this, it is there. And believe me, the school and the international advisor would not say a word, if you are not serious or diligent enough to find it on your own. Then its your funeral.

After one ACADEMIC year (two semesters {spring and fall or vice versa}), your options for work increase. An international student is now eligible for CPT(Curriculum Practical Training). This program depends on the school you are in. It is basically an internship or Co-op training of sorts. You are allowed to work either part time or full time. However, if you elect to work full time, you can do so for a maximum period of one year - While at the same time maintaining your academic obligation of taking at least 12 credit hours except for the summer semester. And you also will forfeit the OPT (Optional Practical Training)- I'll talk about that later.

So, a deducive (I shy away from saying intelligent) person, would take the option of working part time. Because this way, you can work indefinitely of course taking the class repeatedly (Oh, did I forget to mention that CPT is considered a 'class'?). That way, you can accumulate the hours at the same time keeping your work in school. And thereby getting more money. :)

The advantage of being in a two year college is that, after I graduate with my associates, I can decide to work for a year before I continue with my bachelors. This is the OPT (Optional Practical training). Basically, a student is required to pay an amount to get a permit to work for that time . It is also a requirement that the work of choice should be withing the student's major. The advantages of the OPT comes with the fact that it is not a requirement to be in school during this period and you can take classes with leisure. Another thing I should mention is that, OPT can be done after every degree stage (Associates, Bachelors (a year each) and Masters (17 months)) I am yet to hear anything about the Doctorate level.

It is not very easy to secure a job using CPT and OPT. Hey, getting a job is hard regardless. And narrowing the option down to your academic field makes it even harder. But there is always a way to look for jobs and making yourself be above the rest as far as job placement is concerned.

In closing I would say that it takes a courageous, resourceful and patient person to make it here in the United States and be actually successful and I sincerely hope that one day I would make it in that category.

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