Perseverance is key for international students

For the more than 3,000 international students on campus, finding an internship in the United States is often fraught with additional difficulties and frustration. But it is not impossible. \nInternational students just have to be more aggressive and willing to go the extra mile.\n"Most employers haven't the foggiest idea what's involved," said Kenneth Rogers, associate dean and director of international services. He explained that employers think hiring international students is a time-consuming, expensive process.\nIn fact, getting authorization for a summer internship only takes about a week. Authorizations for a post-graduation internship can take several months because they have to be processed by the Immigration and Naturalization Service. But students can beat the time lag by applying early.\nMany employers also see interns as potential long-term employees and are reluctant to hire international students as interns, said Melissa Ritter, an assistant director at the Career Development Center. To work after graduation, international students require an H-1 visa that entails a $500 fee from the employer. Lawyer's fees can bring the cost to as much as several thousand dollars.\nBut Lorenda Schrader, career center liaison at the Office of International Services, argued that this can be seen as an advantage. Because the visa ties employees to the company for three years, companies are ensured a dedicated and loyal employee for that period.\nPlacement offices are also sometimes unable to provide the level of service international students deserve, Rogers said, because of their limited capacity to serve a very small percentage of their clientele. International students can instead turn to the Office of International Services, the Career Development Center, which serves the entire University or Rogers for help.\nBut first, international students must rethink their approach, Schrader said. They have to get over the mental barrier that, for most of them, English is not their native language.\n"International students aren't a burden to employees. In fact, they are the cream of the crop," she said.\nInternational students generally possess an excellent work ethic, better communication skills and have lived and worked independently for a long time, Schrader explained. Many also tout previous work experience and higher GPAs. In the 1998-1999 academic year, GPAs of international students averaged 3.32 for males and 3.44 for females, according to the Office of International Services. Being bilingual and having connections back home are added benefits. \nThe key is to take the initiative. \n"You have to be very active. You cannot sit back and wait for an internship to fall on your lap," Ritter said. \nWhen senior Wey Yean Tan, a senior from Singapore, tried to look for an internship last year by bidding for interviews with companies on the Business Placement Office Web site, she faced what she called "a dead end."\nMost of the companies listed only wanted to recruit American citizens or permanent residents. \nBut Tan was unfazed. She networked at company presentations and career fairs; she sent out many cover letters and resumes. She sent e-mails, left voice mails and followed up relentlessly. \nHer efforts culminated this summer with an internship in New York with Deloitte & Touche.\nNetworking is an important way international students can get their foot in the door. Randall Powell, assistant dean and director of placement at the business school, explained that individual managers handle recruitment for their own departments. So, while the official company policy might be to only hire citizens and permanent residents, some managers might still be willing to recruit international students.\nFor instance, a search of Allegiance's offerings from August 1999 to May 2000 on the BPO Web site showed that none of the internship or career positions were open to international students.\nBut Yulia Endriyani, a senior from Indonesia, still managed to intern this summer with Allegiance in Chicago.\nWhat made the difference for her was attending CIS Day and distributing her resume. She was later contacted, interviewed and hired.\nInternational students should also look beyond big companies, Schrader said. Sometimes, smaller companies or nonprofit organizations are more willing to hire and offer more responsibility and a better learning experience.\nMost importantly, they must also be determined. Schrader said many cultures have problems with rejection: "You're going to get told 'no' a lot. You got to keep going"