Many students who are interested in going abroad have to first think of the options they have to work in the country where they completed their higher education.
Focusing on what the end result of studying in a specific country is important for most who are just not going abroad for education, but want it culminate in a job. That’s where immigration policies come in to the picture, especially important for the ones not joining one of the World’s Top 100 Schools and Universities.
Here’s a pretty simple understanding of what to anticipate after finishing their courses at popular study destinations
Contents
USA:
America allows you a one year optional practical training (OPT) (after completion of your program) where in you must find your job and post that year convert your F1 (student) visa in to an H1B visa (for a maximum duration of 3 years)
UK:
United Kingdom allows you an additional 4 months visa (in general) over your course duration. eg. you are going for your one year Masters or MBA, you will get a Tier 4 (student) visa duration of 16 months. After your programme, should you find a job (with over GBP 20000 salary) and successfully obtain a Tier 2 visa, you can extend your working stay up to a period of 3 years.
Until last year (2011), UK allowed students to apply for a Post Study Work visa (PSW), of 2 years duration, after finishing a programme successfully, even without a job offer. This rule has now been abolished
Ireland:
Students can stay back for 6 months under the Third Level Graduate Scheme, Ireland on declaration of results for seeking employment (can work up to 40 hours per week). Once students gain employment, they can apply for Green Card or Work Permit
Australia:
Students successfully finishing their Bachelors or Masters (taught or by coursework) in Australia can apply for 2 years work permit. Students successfully completing Masters (by research) in Australia can apply for 3 years work permit. Students successfully completing a PhD in Australia can apply for 4 years work permit
New Zealand:
After the completion of the studies, if student has studied a course which is level 7 or above then he/she will be eligible for 1 year of job search Visa. If the course is less then Level 7 then he/she has to study for minimum 2 years to obtain 1 year of job search Visa. Later when student gets permanent job offer (an offer that qualifies the visa requirement) in the related filed of study, he/she may apply for PR.
Singapore:
Students can apply for 6 months Job Search visa, making them eligible to work in any field until a proper job offer is available. Once the job offer is received, students must apply for Employment Pass (e-pass) allowing working full-time in any field. Singapore Permanent Residence can be applied for only after one begins earning at least SGD 3000 per month (and the process time is around 75 days).
Employment Pass Eligibility Certificate (EPEC): If students have selected University qualifications, students can be considered for EPEC by Ministry of Manpower Singapore (MOM). EPEC allows international students to stay up to 1 year in Singapore to find jobs. Successful EPEC applicants are required to apply for 1 year Visit Pass from the Immigration and Checkpoint Authority (ICA) which only allows to stay back in Singapore to search for a job and not work. Once a job offer is received, the employer is required to submit an Employment Pass application to the Work Pass Division for consideration. EPEC is issued only one time and is non-renewable
Canada:
If you study in Canada, under the Post-Graduate Work Permit Program, you can gain a maximum work permit of up to 3 years or equivalent to the number of months of your course duration. In general, if you study a program of 2 years or higher, you can gain an employment permit of 3 years, after which you can apply for a Permanent Residency (PR). If your program is of 16 months duration, then you can gain work permit of 16 months. The course should however be 8 months or higher.
In all the countries, all work permits post your studies, are available only on successfully finishing your program. Hence, remember, its important to study, and study well.
We also believe that great education should be the priority. If you have studied hard enough and which is in lines with your long-term goals, most industry employers would be happy to have you in their company.
Lastly, if you have not performed well in your program, employers in spite having offered you a job, are smart enough to understand your utility in their organization.
Kindly note that the information is compiled and presented simply to facilitate your decision-making about studying in a particular country. Detailed understanding of the country’s policies is strongly recommended.
[About the Author: Vishal Badani, one of the leading overseas education counselors in Mumbai and co-founder of International Learning Warehouse has counseled 1000s of students]