The United States is a major hub of the world, and when an election is held in the world’s second largest democracy, it is scrutinized by the rest of the world. I, by nature, am a critical analyst, and I did follow the rallies and speeches of the current president. One thing was clear: one of the major reforms that would take place pertained to H1-B visas, which directly concern STEM students, including myself.

And the president did live up to his promises. For instance, the bill proposed by Zoe Lofgren in the US Senate, proposed to increase the minimum salary to be paid to H1-B visa holders be increased from $60,000 to $130,000. This increment is more than double of the earlier value and is sufficient to incentivize the industries, including the technical giants, to relieve their international workers  rather than pay this big an amount. The premium processing for H1-B visas have been suspended too.

A good essay regarding this paradigm shift can be found online.

The effects of even the proposal of these reforms is immediate. I am pursuing a masters in electrical and computer engineering, and I have observed it first-hand that the ability of companies, even technical giants, to hire students for even internships has dropped significantly as compared to the approach earlier.

Take a simple example: my friends and I have started applying for internships in the hope of gaining some industrial exposure over the summer of 2018. The application for internship includes one question: “Will you need sponsorship to work in United States now or in future?” I, being F1 visa holder, must answer positively.

And for over half of the companies that I have applied to, I have received rejections within 24 hours. Indeed, it could be because of my own follies. However, when most of the people around me are getting such frequent rejections and the frequency as well as the number of rejections is significantly higher than the past years, it does point to a definite shift in approach.

As it is with any other major decision, this too has short term and long-term implications. The short term implications is mainly the change in the approach of companies, and possible reduction in the influx of international students (particularly STEM), there are other possible scenarios which must be taken into account before predicting any long term effects.

First consider this: In any fiscal year a maximum of 65,000 H1b visas may be issued, and a maximum of 20000 visas may be issued to students who have pursued master’s degree from a university in United states. The foreign-born STEM workforce in 2015 was 3,945,759.

Even in the long run, replacing this kind of skilled workforce is highly challenging, if not entirely impossible a task. It may appear to be a great approach from the point of view of a natural-born American in this field, but there is another catch. This number is humongous, and removing it from the country’s overall population is bound to affect the economy adversely, especially if another equally potent substitute is not available. 

The United States is one of the most diverse countries in the world, in terms of nationalities, religions and languages, which is also a potent factor in making it so desirable for people across the globe. Any step harmful to the diversity of the country will not only harm the economy of the country but also the global culture of the country.

In the long run, it seems improbable to me that some drastic measure may be taken to entirely shake up the H1-B visa program. Added to that is the fact that any such change requires at least 1.5-2 decades to be implemented fully, and elections are held every five years, so the administration may change.

I would advise my fellow-mates to stay cautious and work hard, but not to get frightened. There is no need to panic yet. The market may be dynamic, but it is not drastic. The visa reforms are no doubt averse to immigrants, but they are not so draconian that they will entirely sabotage the American Dream of an immigrant, neither are they so stable or supported that they may sustain themselves in the long run.