Aww, come on guys, no one has anything to say about this? Well then, do you have any suggestions on how to improve the questions?

hey, i'm an international student, currently on OPT and looking for work.
as far as summer internships go, you're not at a disadvantage because your work permit has nothing to do with the employer. you apply and pay for it, and once you have it, you're allowed to work anywhere. during the school year, you can only work on campus under the F1 status.

it gets a little trickier after graduation. your student visa allows you to work for 12 months during and after your degree (after one year of study). after that time ends, you need to convince a firm that you're worth the money and trouble to go through the visa sponsorship process. i'm still looking for a job, but so are many others who do not need a visa. i think the job market is just very competitive right now in this field, and probably even more difficult with the visa issue.

alternate game plan - go to europe. i'd rather not though, because i really want to start testing and complete my IDP before going anywhere else. NCARB works the same for foreigners for all i know. you'd get a license just like anyone else.

hope this helps.

You won't get a job.

There are enough Americans out of work right now.

I finished M.Arch at UCLA, had a job ( work visa ). The office collapsed, I was the only one kept, but had to reduce my salary to 50% of what it was before.
I spent 1 whole year looking for jobs, went to interviews in NY and L.A.

At the end, I left the US because I could not find anything.
I got really close to get jobs, but once they heard that I needed a sponsor...NOT!

I'm right now in Spain, and the situation here is catastrophic. I am now looking for jobs in Latin America.

Good Luck.

Thanks for the responses guys, they did help!

dmc: when do you think you can start testing for NCARB? Did you feel you could take any of the exams right after completing your M.Arch program? Is that even allowed or do you have to have the internship experience to start the process?

gaas: Any reason for going to Latin America as opposed to some other places in Europe? Also, have you considered taking the NCARB exams?

Does anyone know aprox how long takes to finish the license exams post graduation? I keep hearing around 3-5 years...overly optimistic or right on target?

red,

the rules have changed in several states so that you can start testing during your 3-yr internship. some states still won't allow it, but im registered with NCARB in one that does. once your record is opened, you can start taking exams.

i've been hearing more and more people taking the exams in 1-1.5 yrs. it's the internship that can take 3-5. the part that sucks about the current work situation is that NCARB will recognize only up to 1 year of work done in a non-US office. however, for the other 2 yrs of your internship you need to be supervised by a US-licensed architect.

I know many friends who are international students. There were close to 12-15 international students in my year and about 10 of them currently have jobs in the US(SOM etc..),Europe(UNStudio), Japan(Toyo Ito) and Korea. The US market is extremely bad and especially for international students seeking visa sponsorship, its even worse, as smaller firms are reluctant to provide this.
It all comes down to visa. You file for OPT upon graduation and you can set the start date for it to start. This date has to be within 2 months of graduation. You cannot work before this date so if you are lucky and find a job straight after graduation, you still can't work. So you have to be careful. Once OPT starts, you have 2 months to find a job. If you cannot, you are not eligible to file for a work visa even though you find a job down the road. You are not allowed to stay in the US as well, as your status will be illegal and will have a negative effect when you try to re-enter the US later. But if you can find a job during the 2 month period, you are legally allowed to work for 12 months. During this 12 months, you need to file for a work visa(April and Oct) with the sponsorship from your employer. But if they are reluctant to do so, you are in trouble.
So for international students, everything is against you. But like I said, many of my friends have found jobs both within the US and abroad, a lot of times with top-tier firms, so I think you definitely don't have to be depressed or pessimistic about your future here in the US.

dmc: good to know. How is the job search going? Any luck as of yet? Also, would you mind letting us know where you are? If not no worries, just curious.

ASTX: Really great advice, thank you very much for that info. Was wondering what school you went to. Would you mind sharing?

first, regarding the OPT and unemployment -- you have 90 calendar days to find a job (i know, great rule in this economy). the nice little loophole is that you can volunteer somewhere for 20 hours a week and that will maintain your status.

i'm in NYC. so far i had an offer, but the terms were very very unclear and i didn't get a clear answer on the visa issue, so i had to pass. i have some other leads, so i'm keeping at it.

where are you going to school btw?

Going to school in Chicago, UIC. where did you go to school?

Really good info, thanks for that dmc. Good luck with the job search. Really rooting for you. Let me know what happens.