I recently quit my job and while in the process of moving to a new company - being myself missed out a few major things. So below are a few of my lessons learned for anyone on an H1B visa looking to switch companies.
This information should only be used as a guideline. IT does not reflect the views of my employers or any lawyers I have worked with.
1. Don't quit as soon as you sign the offer letter.
2. The visa transfer process takes at least 3 weeks provided all the cogs in the machine are working correctly.
3. There is no harm in telling the recruiter that you will start work 2 weeks after your visa transfer comes through. This will give you enough time to give your 2 weeks notice and have a smooth transition to the new company as you will already have the H1B approval in hand.
4. When going through the visa transfer, your current employer has no idea that you are looking to move companies. You can have multiple companies with an approved transfer - H1B but can only work for one of them.
5. At the time of this writing to apply for an H1B transfer, the employee must have an LCA for the location when he/she will be working approved before the H1B is filed for. This takes between 7 to 10 days, all things working perfectly.
6. An H1b transfer of employer or a change of status is as complicated as applying for a fresh H1B
7. Once you quit, your current employer may cancel your health insurance so you may have to file for COBRA
8. Cobra is continued benefits for insurance so you will have to cover the premium while you are not employed.
9. If you do not hear from the lawyers in 2 days, makes sure you try to contact them and find out what the hold up is. In my experience, some can be slower for different reasons usually beyond their control. eg: LCA website is not working, vacations, missing paper work, mail delays (incomplete address)
10. If you quit/ are laid off and you haven't had time to plan for the above, your H1b visa transfer process may be a little more complicated. USCIS may not send you an 194 with your approval. In this case, you will have to reenter the country before you start working. This is not subject to the Oct 1st date. This just means you can walk over to Mexico or Canada (provided you have a visa) and come back (almost immediately)
-A
Wednesday, June 09, 2010
Wednesday, September 13, 2006
things to get once u get here.
1. first things first..
get ur id..
and open ur bank account.
figure out where class is.
2. work out ur schedule....what u shud do it try to keep as many days a possible free..so ur not running up and down everyday..
3. try and find a place close by..but if u cant definately make sure there is a quick and close by mode of transport available to u
4. locate the closest grocery store...trust me on this... if its closde ur ok otherwise u will go there once in maybe 2 weeks!
5. locate an indian store and an indian restraunt if ur big on indian food.those are usually open late as well. thats my experience so far.
6. So what do u get at the store?try and go straight to walmart and get a 2 week supply of the perishables.
1. milk
2. bread
3. cheese and butter - staple diet
4. granola/cereal
5. yoghurt - plain and flavoured
6. frozen vegetables tho i didnt liek the first packet i oopened.
7. chocolate
8. oil - canola is what i bought
9. tomatoes, onions and potatoes
10. ginger and garlic paste - ul use it alot
11. cans of vegetables.
12. vessels if u dont have ne..
13. cutlery if u dont have ne..
14. basmati rice
15. coffee if u drink alot
16. chocolate milk if ur like us!!
for daily stuff:
1. set of kitchen rolls.
2. cling film
3. aluminium foil.
4. toilet paper.
5. toiletries incase u dont have all that u need.
6. windex - good for cleaning!!
7. vessel soap - which is also hand soap
8. trash bags - big and small for ur kitchen trash can and the smaller ones in ur rooms
9. so trash cans
10. lights/lamps incase the light is not enuf where u sit
11. white bulbs if u can find ne and need to study in white light
12. tide - was the washing machine
13. bounce for the dryer
14. lots of quartes cuz thats the only thing the washer and dryers accept..tho they arent that hard to find!
15. normal tissue paper
16. a water filter - tho u can drink straight fromthe tap..its better to be safe than sorry..actualy i hardly use mine!
17. some ready meals...
18. a comforter and sheets
19. a matress - im still happy with my air bead
20. toaster
21. microwave oven
22. some storage boxes to keep stuff uve opened.
a word of advice.....thanx to mohit...
nething u pick up ..pick up of the brand of the shop ur shopping at..those will always be cheaper..
tho at the time it doesnt make a difference..it will in the long run!
get ur id..
and open ur bank account.
figure out where class is.
2. work out ur schedule....what u shud do it try to keep as many days a possible free..so ur not running up and down everyday..
3. try and find a place close by..but if u cant definately make sure there is a quick and close by mode of transport available to u
4. locate the closest grocery store...trust me on this... if its closde ur ok otherwise u will go there once in maybe 2 weeks!
5. locate an indian store and an indian restraunt if ur big on indian food.those are usually open late as well. thats my experience so far.
6. So what do u get at the store?try and go straight to walmart and get a 2 week supply of the perishables.
1. milk
2. bread
3. cheese and butter - staple diet
4. granola/cereal
5. yoghurt - plain and flavoured
6. frozen vegetables tho i didnt liek the first packet i oopened.
7. chocolate
8. oil - canola is what i bought
9. tomatoes, onions and potatoes
10. ginger and garlic paste - ul use it alot
11. cans of vegetables.
12. vessels if u dont have ne..
13. cutlery if u dont have ne..
14. basmati rice
15. coffee if u drink alot
16. chocolate milk if ur like us!!
for daily stuff:
1. set of kitchen rolls.
2. cling film
3. aluminium foil.
4. toilet paper.
5. toiletries incase u dont have all that u need.
6. windex - good for cleaning!!
7. vessel soap - which is also hand soap
8. trash bags - big and small for ur kitchen trash can and the smaller ones in ur rooms
9. so trash cans
10. lights/lamps incase the light is not enuf where u sit
11. white bulbs if u can find ne and need to study in white light
12. tide - was the washing machine
13. bounce for the dryer
14. lots of quartes cuz thats the only thing the washer and dryers accept..tho they arent that hard to find!
15. normal tissue paper
16. a water filter - tho u can drink straight fromthe tap..its better to be safe than sorry..actualy i hardly use mine!
17. some ready meals...
18. a comforter and sheets
19. a matress - im still happy with my air bead
20. toaster
21. microwave oven
22. some storage boxes to keep stuff uve opened.
a word of advice.....thanx to mohit...
nething u pick up ..pick up of the brand of the shop ur shopping at..those will always be cheaper..
tho at the time it doesnt make a difference..it will in the long run!
things to carry
There are a few things ul never find listed newhere else...but these are a few things that i carried and i think you might consider adding to your bags
1. Some coloured photographs.
2. A filled address book!
3. Some note books
4. All ur toiletries.
5. A tri band phone from india...cuz here u get horrid phones!so im using a horrid phone!!
6. A digital camera and a webcam...im soo trigger happy!!
7. 50 hangers..i carried 2 doezen...and its soo not enuf...I didnt have enuf hangers after the first lot of my laundry was done!! but u can get the hangers here too incase u dont want to carry them
8. A list of all the food ur going to need...so that u can go out and buy it as soon as u want..trust me the list just keeps growing!
9. A pillow if ur used to the hard pillows.
10. Cary a formal set of clothes like a suit..most ppl do..tho i didnt bother to carry a set from india.
11. All ur medicines..
dont forget a single one...so start making ur required list early.
12. U need a light jacket...one which can be used as a rain coat is much better that a wind cheater....that still gets wet!
13. if possible travel light...u can buy clothes here...walmart-target-old navy and once in a while shops im not even going to mention here!
14. Stationary - like pens ur used to..and pencils and basic stuff...and a white board or a memo board
i think thats about it...
1. Some coloured photographs.
2. A filled address book!
3. Some note books
4. All ur toiletries.
5. A tri band phone from india...cuz here u get horrid phones!so im using a horrid phone!!
6. A digital camera and a webcam...im soo trigger happy!!
7. 50 hangers..i carried 2 doezen...and its soo not enuf...I didnt have enuf hangers after the first lot of my laundry was done!! but u can get the hangers here too incase u dont want to carry them
8. A list of all the food ur going to need...so that u can go out and buy it as soon as u want..trust me the list just keeps growing!
9. A pillow if ur used to the hard pillows.
10. Cary a formal set of clothes like a suit..most ppl do..tho i didnt bother to carry a set from india.
11. All ur medicines..
dont forget a single one...so start making ur required list early.
12. U need a light jacket...one which can be used as a rain coat is much better that a wind cheater....that still gets wet!
13. if possible travel light...u can buy clothes here...walmart-target-old navy and once in a while shops im not even going to mention here!
14. Stationary - like pens ur used to..and pencils and basic stuff...and a white board or a memo board
i think thats about it...
a few cmu courses
CMU follows a different course system
We have unit and alot more courses that other schools.
While we do about 8 a semester ppl do 9 in a whole course.
So maybe its that we dont do it in as much detail!
The placements out of cmu are fantastic...but that doesnt mean that its not as good from the other schools!
I know of ppl from TAMU who got the same placements and internships as seniors from CMU.
MISM is fun..
can be techy and can be management oriented..depends the way u structure ur course and which courses u manage to place out of.
plus u can take courses at any of the other schools...
this program has a mojority from india and china. but its fun!
Total 180 units
Time: 16 months
Cumpulsory units a sem: 54
INI is alot more work...and a lot more time consuming...
Also they can take a few courses outside as well..
total 171 units
Time 18 months tho ppl take 2 years.
MSPPM is public policy.
This has ppl from the non technical background but like MISM is also a heinz school course.
I think this follow the same system as MISM in terms of time and units.
There is also a security course....under heinz school.
MSCF - Computational Finance
another good course.
under tepper school of business.
its a one yr program.
Tepper has fantastic facilities.
We have unit and alot more courses that other schools.
While we do about 8 a semester ppl do 9 in a whole course.
So maybe its that we dont do it in as much detail!
The placements out of cmu are fantastic...but that doesnt mean that its not as good from the other schools!
I know of ppl from TAMU who got the same placements and internships as seniors from CMU.
MISM is fun..
can be techy and can be management oriented..depends the way u structure ur course and which courses u manage to place out of.
plus u can take courses at any of the other schools...
this program has a mojority from india and china. but its fun!
Total 180 units
Time: 16 months
Cumpulsory units a sem: 54
INI is alot more work...and a lot more time consuming...
Also they can take a few courses outside as well..
total 171 units
Time 18 months tho ppl take 2 years.
MSPPM is public policy.
This has ppl from the non technical background but like MISM is also a heinz school course.
I think this follow the same system as MISM in terms of time and units.
There is also a security course....under heinz school.
MSCF - Computational Finance
another good course.
under tepper school of business.
its a one yr program.
Tepper has fantastic facilities.
Thursday, September 07, 2006
GRE
So the gre.....is not the hardest part of the application process!
As grad students we all have to give it..but in many cases the score is over shadowed by all the other things u show on ur resume,in ur statement of purpose and ur academics.
When i gave my gre honestly i didnt study that much for it.
i did the maths properly to ensure that i was able to get an 800. so went thru all the math sections in barrons and wrote down important formulae(which are not that many)-those of u who gave the sats will find the gre super easy!
for engineering and other quantitative courses math is the more important section.
GRE english is a totally different ball game all together.
i personally didnt like the english at all..math was fun
3000 words that come as flash cards is no fun!
but heres the neat part
when u study if u give urself about 5 days u can make lists of words that mean the same thing.so u read the word and its meaning, and add it to the list where it fits the meaning of all the other words the best.
This way u end up remebering half the words u have written and now as you can associate each word with another you should pick it up alot faster cuz now its just about association.
In my case, i didnt get a single word from the list i had studied. but do them everyone else got word list words.
and ofcourse try and get your hands on as many practice cd's as possible. atleast do all the math and get used to reading long comprehensions!those are the most boring.
As grad students we all have to give it..but in many cases the score is over shadowed by all the other things u show on ur resume,in ur statement of purpose and ur academics.
When i gave my gre honestly i didnt study that much for it.
i did the maths properly to ensure that i was able to get an 800. so went thru all the math sections in barrons and wrote down important formulae(which are not that many)-those of u who gave the sats will find the gre super easy!
for engineering and other quantitative courses math is the more important section.
GRE english is a totally different ball game all together.
i personally didnt like the english at all..math was fun
3000 words that come as flash cards is no fun!
but heres the neat part
when u study if u give urself about 5 days u can make lists of words that mean the same thing.so u read the word and its meaning, and add it to the list where it fits the meaning of all the other words the best.
This way u end up remebering half the words u have written and now as you can associate each word with another you should pick it up alot faster cuz now its just about association.
In my case, i didnt get a single word from the list i had studied. but do them everyone else got word list words.
and ofcourse try and get your hands on as many practice cd's as possible. atleast do all the math and get used to reading long comprehensions!those are the most boring.
Saturday, August 19, 2006
someone told me to be a councellor
so here goes: firstly u have to give the required tests.. toefl is universal... most colleges need it. but try and short list ur college list so that when u give the test u can report the scores to those. gre is for all masters programs except mbas- for that u need your gmat exams. england and australia do accept most of these scores as does ISB and all our indian b schools(but have some restrictions like u have to give gmat incase u did ur undergrad abroad else its the common test for u!)
your application steps
1. identify ur colleges and make sure you are eligible for their program.
2. give all the requred tests. prepare for them as much as possible with the books and the test cds. barrons, kaplan, princeton are all enough. you dont really need tuitions.
3. work out ur sop.
see what the colleges want out of their students.what they expect.highlight ur strong points.and stay away from the weaker aspects of ur resume.u have to sell yourself to the college without begging them.U basically tell them: im an asset to your institutionie: its a symbiotic relationship both u and the uni benifit.and ofcourse in the end mention the college/uni and soemthing that has really caught ur eye.cement in the ending y u belong there!
4. with the sop done which will take a good month to 2 months all the hard work is done
5.but ur recomendations need some work too. you have to identify a prof/boss to give u one and tell him/her what quality u want them to highlight.some will even ask you for a draft. and then u can do what u want.so make sure u know exactly what u want them to say so between the 3 recos they highlight all your strong points!cuz u have urself fed them ur ideas
more to come....keep checking in!
2. give all the requred tests. prepare for them as much as possible with the books and the test cds. barrons, kaplan, princeton are all enough. you dont really need tuitions.
3. work out ur sop.
see what the colleges want out of their students.what they expect.highlight ur strong points.and stay away from the weaker aspects of ur resume.u have to sell yourself to the college without begging them.U basically tell them: im an asset to your institutionie: its a symbiotic relationship both u and the uni benifit.and ofcourse in the end mention the college/uni and soemthing that has really caught ur eye.cement in the ending y u belong there!
4. with the sop done which will take a good month to 2 months all the hard work is done
5.but ur recomendations need some work too. you have to identify a prof/boss to give u one and tell him/her what quality u want them to highlight.some will even ask you for a draft. and then u can do what u want.so make sure u know exactly what u want them to say so between the 3 recos they highlight all your strong points!cuz u have urself fed them ur ideas
more to come....keep checking in!
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