Last Updated on 2020-11-20 by ppcguybklyn
Most people who choose to study abroad in the United States will try to find a job before graduation and continue to live in this country. So if there is no way to find the ideal job before graduation, or even get an offer, you must enter the unemployed period after graduation. How to plan and do a good job of mentally prepared during this period? I was unemployed in the United States for about five months before I found my current job, and this article will give some advice on the unemployed period for international students who want to find a job in the United States based on my experience.
Things to pay attention to during the unemployed period
Is the visa and status valid and when will it expire?
The most important thing for the unemployed period after graduation is to know whether the visa you are using or your current status is valid. If you use OPT to find a job after graduation with a general F1 visa, you can have a grace period of 90 days. Plus the effective date of OPT can be placed 60 days after graduation, which means that for F1 international students, there are a total of 150 days to find a job.
It is very important to know how long your unemployed period can be, so that you can know how much time you have to find a job. According to this length of time, you can plan the frequency of sending out your resume and the progress of preparing for a future job.
Location to live and search for job
After graduating from school, if the location of your school is a relatively small college town, you could consider whether to move to a city with a larger job market and find a job. The advantage of this is that many employers are only willing to consider hiring people who live in the local area. Not everyone is willing to find people who live in other counties and cities. Therefore, if you move to a city with a larger job market, you will get more interview opportunities. But when you move to a big city, you must also consider the cost of living. You must assess whether you can pay for the more expensive living cost in the big city while you are unemployed before making a decision. Of course, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, there are more remote job opportunities. This will also be a factor to consider. If there is a way to find a remote job, it is not necessary to move to a big city.
How to plan
During the unemployed period, because the studies have ended, there will be a lot of free time. At this time, how to plan the extra time is very important. I personally think that it can be planned like this:
Daily routines
Knowing what to do every day after waking up and maintaining a regular daily schedule is the key to maintaining motivation for job hunting. Because you do fixed things at every point in time, you will develop a habit after a while, and you won't feel discouraged because of the unfavorable job search. If possible, it is best to arrange daily routines into a schedule, and use this to remind yourself what time to do.
Weekly routines
In addition to the daily routines, you should also set a schedule for yourself that you should achieve each week. How much time you spend each week looking for a job, how many resumes you should send, how many hours you spend practicing skills related to job search, etc. You can set clear goals for yourself, so that when you complete these goals each week, the sense of accomplishment can also become a motivation to continue looking for work.
Take a break
When arranging daily and weekly schedules, it is also very important to give yourself proper rest time. Finding a job during the unemployed period after graduation is a long-lasting fight. You must be prepared to be able to live for several months and the focus is only to find a job. Therefore, you must arrange a space for yourself to rest so that you will not lose your fighting spirit after waiting for a few weeks .
Mentally preparations
As mentioned earlier, the period of unemployment in the United States is a long-lasting fight, and I think mental preparation is as important as improving resumes and improving job-seeking skills. Many times some people may already have the qualifications to find a job, but cannot continue because they were unable to withstand the pressure of job hunting. Therefore, we must do a good job of mentally preparations before entering the unemployed period, and I think we can start from the following aspects:
The pressure will be extremely high
Before entering the unemployed period, we must recognize one thing: Unless you are very lucky or have amazing experiences and background, it is very difficult for foreigners to find a job in the United States. It is not something that can be easily accomplished in one or two months with little research. So when you start looking for a job, the pressure you face will be very high. You must prepare yourself to withstand this pressure and know how to relieve your pressure so that you can stay mentally healthy during these months of unemployment.
Get used to being constantly rejected
Most of the pressure in the unemployed period comes from the constant rejection of recruiters, which is very frustrating for many people who are just starting to find a job, and it takes a little time to get used to it. In the absence of personal connections, it is very common that dozens of resumes we sent out have not received any response. You cannot doubt your ability just because no one responds to the application or the interview is rejected. You must persist and continue to try.
Develop extra hobbies
In addition to being prepared for stress, I think it’s also important to have a hobby that can relieve stress. Whether it’s watching movies, listening to music, playing video games, etc., as long as it can achieve the effect of rest, I think it is a hobby worth cultivating. The ability to do some things during free time is very helpful to the mental state of finding a job.
Conclusion
It is definitely not a simple matter for international students to find a job in the United States after graduation. It is not only a test of one’’s experience and professional ability, but also a test of stress resistance and patience. Understand the challenges faced in the unemployed period, and make all kinds of preparations before entering the unemployed period to be able to win the long-term job search.
