International student advice, anyone?

[fernandesvat19]

Hi,

I've been following the forums but only just registered to post. I am from Trinidad and I have some questions for international students in the MFE program. (US residents please weigh in as well!)

Specifically, can you share your experiences about
1.) getting an internship: any difficulties? do we need to use OPT or CPT as internationals to be able to work off campus during the summer?
2.) getting a job afterward: how correlated are internships with job placement upon graduation?
3.) obtaining loans: does Baruch recommend (or have arrangements with) any particular Banks/Loans for internationals?
4.) anything else that may be relevant to me as an international?

(If there is someone in an administrative position I should talk to about any of the above please direct me to said person.)

Some background:
I studied in the US; have a BS in Physics and also did a lot of Economics. I did some econometrics research during my one year of OPT (optional practical training) after I graduated but then got burned by the H1-B work visa process last year, hence all my questions about issues facing internationals. I really want to get back to my mathematical roots and learn computational techniques in finance.

For other prospective students who ask about Baruch's program... If you have the chance to visit New York I really recommend meeting with Dan Stefanica. I did so briefly last month and he was very accessible, friendly and honest. I sat in on one of his final review lectures and it was quite fun. (Though I had to wikipedia some of the "Greek" finance terms to fully appreciate it.) I think it speaks very well about the program to have him as the Director.

Thanks,
Marc.

 

[Andy Nguyen]

:welcome: to QN, Marc

I think I remember who you are. Are you the student who talked to Nelisa after the lecture?

By the way, Nelisa is Prof. Stefanica's assistant and as such, she should be able to answer most of your questions. Another person you should contact is Ms. Cathy (her contact info can be found in the Baruch MFE FAQ in my signatures). However, I don't think they would get a chance to answer everyone in person during the admission period.

As for your questions, they are very important and rather relevant to international students so I'd try my best to take a shot at those.

Disclaimer: I'm not int students but in my past life, I have done paper work for my friends, relatives who are int students so I'm rather familiar with the process. I have not updated with INS rule changes since after 9/11 so I may not have the latest info.

1.) getting an internship: any difficulties? do we need to use OPT or CPT as internationals to be able to work off campus during the summer?
2.) getting a job afterward: how correlated are internships with job placement upon graduation?
3.) obtaining loans: does Baruch recommend (or have arrangements with) any particular Banks/Loans for internationals?
4.) anything else that may be relevant to me as an international?

1) If you work on-campus, you are allowed to work 20 hours/week each semester and 40 hours/week during summer/break. There is no special permission needed. If you work off-campus you would need to get the OPT noted on your I-20 from the Int'l Advisor. Once you are done with the program, you have 1 year on your CPT to secure a FT job offer. From my experience, that should be more than enough. There is also a time limit on how much you can use your OPT but given that our program is 3 semesters long and you only need it to do internship for 1 semester, that won't be a problem.
2) Helps greatly. It will help you to choose what area you want to work in. If you don't have internship, chances are you will still get a job.
3) You can secure any loan from any US bank if you can find a co-signer who is US citizen. I came across some special loans for int'l students which do not have that requirement but i can't find the link at this moment.
4) Just ask, I can't think of anything now