yep lots of ppl in my class already have PR while those who didn't always do a phd after their masters. in my dept, there are 120 masters per year and about 50 phd students. i do not see more than 10 opportunities through our job search system this semester. its getting tougher to get a job in us now because there are masters grad everywhere.
being singaporean in usa is just like being a mainland chinese or taiwanese or malaysian chinese. u r chinese to them and many of my friends thought singapore is part of china actually. singaporeans are not known to be strong in engineering jobs too. we can get really high gpa but ask urself, when it comes to research + high tech jobs, very few ppl are doing it.
every job interview i had will start/end with "do u have permanent work authorization in usa?" that means are u a pr or us citizen? if they want to hire the best, they wont ask that question at all. just be frank with urself. in very very specific areas where they lack talent, they will welcome anyone especially in research (phd and above) and IT (where india is evidently very strong in com sci)
but in my area (mech engine), they are definitely not short of americans to do it. if i compare myself against them, i am not much different either. they also have good grades and some experience as well.
joe i will ask u to at very least, get an american internship before u start looking for jobs. that is the very bare minimum when it comes to getting jobs. i never heard of anyone getting a job without serving at least 1 internship somewhere. my gf has served one in a fortune 500 company and yet she have not even secured a interview for full time job this semester yet. she is doing EE and her dept ranks in top 5. same goes for me (except i dont even have an internship chance)
Originally posted by 8cidity:yep lots of ppl in my class already have PR while those who didn't always do a phd after their masters. in my dept, there are 120 masters per year and about 50 phd students. i do not see more than 10 opportunities through our job search system this semester. its getting tougher to get a job in us now because there are masters grad everywhere.
being singaporean in usa is just like being a mainland chinese or taiwanese or malaysian chinese. u r chinese to them and many of my friends thought singapore is part of china actually. singaporeans are not known to be strong in engineering jobs too. we can get really high gpa but ask urself, when it comes to research + high tech jobs, very few ppl are doing it.
every job interview i had will start/end with "do u have permanent work authorization in usa?" that means are u a pr or us citizen? if they want to hire the best, they wont ask that question at all. just be frank with urself. in very very specific areas where they lack talent, they will welcome anyone especially in research (phd and above) and IT (where india is evidently very strong in com sci)
but in my area (mech engine), they are definitely not short of americans to do it. if i compare myself against them, i am not much different either. they also have good grades and some experience as well.
joe i will ask u to at very least, get an american internship before u start looking for jobs. that is the very bare minimum when it comes to getting jobs. i never heard of anyone getting a job without serving at least 1 internship somewhere. my gf has served one in a fortune 500 company and yet she have not even secured a interview for full time job this semester yet. she is doing EE and her dept ranks in top 5. same goes for me (except i dont even have an internship chance)
The job search system for my college also had very few opportunities for foreign students. I could probably count them on one hand. You're right that this recession has caused an inflation of master's students too. Hmm... on the flip side, the latest manufacturing and job figures that were released show alot positives.
Well, managers in MNCs tend to be more knowledgeable about Singapore. It usually makes a good conversation topic even at an interview. Students are however not too aware of Singapore unfortunately. I've of course done my part to introduce them to our "culture" lol. I honestly don't think we're "weaker" at engineering jobs. Its more a matter of interest and renumeration, and perhaps in your case, belief.
The research group I was working with in college had a diverse set of nationalities - Serbian, Chinese, Eygptian, Singaporean (me), American, Korean, German, Indian... etc etc. But this is also possible due to the more relaxed work permit authorisations for foreign nationalities in university positions. If anything, I've never felt that my upbringing in Sg limited my capability to contribute to the group. I think I could do just as well an engineering job as any other American, German or Japanese, etc.. I don't think you need to feel inferior either, just believe in what you've learnt.
Lol, my first question to recruitors (even before my application) is usually along the lines of "Are you willing to hire foreign students on F1 visa?" If the answer is "no", I just say "Nice meeting you and good day" and leave. This is so that you don't waste time setting up an interview before both of you realise it won't work due to strict company employment policies. It also means ruling out GM, GE, Shell, Toyota, etc etc unfortunately. Phd and above... I think it depends. I feel there is a market of "boutique" firms, usually consulting ones, that want Phds. You have to know specifically where to look. If you are down that route, I would recommend Exponent if you are looking for a job after Phd.
I think maybe you are being humble lol. Your grades are probably alot better than theirs but you just lack enough relevant internship experience like me. I know I know, sigh, I would love to have a proper US internship with a fort 500 but its just not possible any more. I empathize with your gf and your own position. Its another confirmation that my own predicament isn't out of touch from reality. Sadly, time is not on my side and I'll be done in Dec. I pray that all the experiences I've had would be sufficient to impress an employer and that things would be alot better when you guys are done with school too.
All the best.
"The job market is showing signs of life, though its slow recovery suggests unemployment will remain high for years to come. Employers added 162,000 jobs in March, the biggest monthly gain in three years, with one-third of the growth coming from the government's hiring of 48,000 temporary workers for the 2010 Census"
you made me happy for a while but doesnt look so bright :( hope things become better soon..