When should a OPT student start looking for a OPT job ?

Statutory Warning: Students in the first semester…Ignore this article and enjoy your school life

Jokes apart…after toiling hard through the GRE, TOEFL and various courses in the graduate courses in US universities, its critical for every student to plan well ahead before the time he graduates to be ready to take the Plunge.

Planning ahead is vital primarily due to the following reasons:

1. Obvious reason is to minimize one’s idle time when he comes out of school.
2. The H1 visa problem that’s always there.

So What’s the best way to plan…. How to Plan…and When to start planning?

As soon as one finishes his 1st semester…. its time to allot some time for serious thinking about their career. A OPT Student going for thesis option might take 2-3 yrs to graduate whereas a non-thesis graduate OPT Student can finish up in 2 years. So one needs to make sure that he /she starts to plan at least 2 semesters before he steps out into the real world.

Every one should start preparing their CV’s or Resumes once they end their 2nd semester and start looking out for internships. Internships are a powerful addition to one’s resume.
It’s a must to utilize the services of the career centers in the Universities that one studies and make the best use of Mock interviews in order to get a good feel about the real interview process. Everyone should also get their resume critiqued by the career centers.

Maintain a spreadsheet that lists the companies one has applied for and the follow up actions taken. This will give a clear view for one to assess what’s going with his /her trials.

Upload your resume in the job boards/websites and follows up the HRs. Follow up is a very vital weapon in one’s job hunt.

In these current times where the economy is in doldrums, having special skills is a great bonus. Possession of skills that are required by the niche sector companies keeps one in high demand even in the worst of times. One needs to think about learning these special skills and highlight them in their resumes. One always needs to be flexible when it comes to choosing a job especially when the economy is down. You should always be ready to change gears and shift your career paths even if its different from one’s major of study.

The best time to graduate is in December. There’s ample amount of time left till April where one needs to find an employer to file their H1. Please check the rules for H1 to know more about the best time to graduate.

So allot your time and plan your career well in prior to avoid the last minute tensions.