More and more international students are looking to the U.S. as a source of top-notch education, as Valerie Harris states in the next posting -- but they often want to stay and work in the country, as well. Valerie writes for a website where readers can find more info on master level education. Today, she hones in on the visa debate that might allow American high-tech companies to hire and retain foreign students, adding to previous conversations about visas and work privileges that have happened here at ESL Teachers Board.

As Numbers of Foreign Masters Students Continue to Rise, Opportunities for Graduates Limited by Visas

As the borders between countries begin to blur, more international students are attending graduate school in the US. Yet, at the same time, fewer American students are attending graduate school. While these international graduate students can be a great asset in our global economy, many lack labor mobility due to their need for a sponsored H1B visa. In a struggling economic recovery that has lacked substantial hiring, many wonder if the current visa system may be in need of an overhaul.

While international applications have risen in each of the past six years, a survey by the Council of Graduate Schools found that in 2011, applications to US graduate schools from international students surged by a dramatic 11%, the largest increase since 2006. Recently, China has sent the most students, with a 21% increase in Chinese applicants in 2011, followed by an 8% increase from India and 2% from South Korea. Most of these foreign students come from prosperous families and pay full fare, which has made them attractive candidates at many public and private schools. Several top public universities in America have even come to depend on their growing population of international students to supply revenue they no longer get from the states. Out-of-state students now pay two times as much as residents to attend public institutions.

Many of these highly educated foreign students are coming to the US on H1B visas, a non-immigrant visa that allows US companies to employ foreign workers in occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise in specialized fields. Under the visa a US company can employ a foreign worker for up to six years in fields like architecture, engineering, mathematics or medicine, among others.

While the visa has allowed many students to achieve their goals, the H1B includes a rule that greatly restricts certain types of companies from hiring and sponsoring H1B workers and filing H1B visas. The rule essentially restricts agencies that hire and file H1B visa petitions for their employees, and then sub-contract their employees out on projects where the work is performed off-site at their clients offices. For example, a technology specialist would be unable to subcontract as an IT consultant, as the USCIS does not consider that there is a valid employer-employee relationship if the H1B employer contracts with other companies and subcontracts the employee to the client. Considering that many of these workers are highly ambitious and entrepreneurial individuals working to provide for their families, some have criticized these rules as being stifling and frustrating.

Yet, even with these concerns, demand for skilled tech workers in the US has become so strong that the annual limit on allocated visas is reached earlier every year. Tech firms like Sun Microsystems, Microsoft, 3com and Motorola have lobbied for more generous and less bureaucratic policies to allow foreign workers to work for US companies on US soil. In 2008 and 2009, Texas Republican Lamar Smith proposed laws rising the annual H1B limits from 65,000 to 195,000.

While changes are unlikely in the near future since immigration has remained such a controversial issue in the US, director of Chicago-based organization VISANOW Paul Colman has led a group that looks to loosen strict H1B regulations. Colman's group has suggested different categories for different types of workers. For example, O category visas would be used for business and science professionals that exhibit extraordinary abilities in their fields, with initial visas valid for up to three years and a potential for indefinite renewal, while L category visas would allow companies to hire foreign employees on a temporary basis with the ability to provide permanent residency.

Stephanie Moore, Vice President at Forrester Research, recommends vendors simply hire locally for local positions, while only using foreign workers in foreign countries when possible. “While every offshore development team requires an onsite component, that onsite component could be provided by American citizens,” says Moore. While unemployment numbers remain high and hiring is still only seeing slight increases, Moore's sentiment is not rare, though many companies would argue that foreign workers are hired simply because their skills are so rare among US citizens. A more streamlined and less regulated visa process, allowing for more freedom among immigrants and companies, could prove helpful for both enterprising immigrants and companies who require the specialized skill set and training that many foreign workers are bringing to the American marketplace.