Date: Wed, 20 Apr 2005 14:30:31 -0700 From: Norm Matloff To: Norm Matloff Subject: "competition" for foreign students becomes keener To: H-1B/L-1/offshoring e-newsletter On a number of occasions, I have questioned the propriety of public universities actively helping foreign students get U.S. employment and H-1B visas. They reply that they are not using public funds for this, and though I have a feeling that they are not being 100% truthful in such statements, it really doesn't matter. What does matter is that these international students are competing with U.S. citizens for jobs. Though I fully support the hiring of "the best and the brightest," the vast majority of foreign students are not in that category. For example, the foreign students are disproportionately enrolled in the academically weaker universities. (See David S. North, Soothing the Establishment: The Impact of Foreign-Born Scientists and Engineers on America, University Press of America, 1995, p.48. See much more analysis in Section IV.E of my university law journal paper, at http://heather.cs.ucdavis.edu/MichJLawReform.pdf) The fact is that foreign students provide cheap, compliant labor, both when they are in graduate school and when they join the workforce. As put so candidly by Stephen Seideman, Dean of the College of Computing Science at the New Jersey Institute of Technology, the foreign students "will do everything they can to stay here." (See "Foreign Students Fill Computer Science Graduate Programs," by Patrick Thibodeau, Computerworld, February 28, 2005.) And as I've mentioned, our government's National Science Foundation explicitly advocated bringing in foreign students as a source of cheap labor for both universities and industry. (See Section VI.D of my law journal article.) In addition, foreign students fill seats in graduate programs that simply would not be filled by the free market, allowing professors to teach very arcane graduate courses. Thus universities are desperate to retain foreign students. Yet, students in other nations are much less interested in coming to the U.S. today than in the past. Thus they are looking for ways to attract/retain the foreign students. There is considerable evidence their goal is to make it easier for foreign students to get H-1Bs or even green cards after graduation. A powerful congressional lobbying group, the National Association of Foreign Student Advisers (NAFSA), has started a big PR campaign to make the public aware of the "need" to have a lot of foreign students. I reported on this recently: http://heather.cs.ucdavis.edu/Archive/ActionAct1.txt http://heather.cs.ucdavis.edu/Archive/ActionAct2.txt But in spite of everything I said above, the press release enclosed below is startling. Here a public university has actually retained a law firm to help its foreign students obtain H-1Bs etc. The press release gives a Web link to the immigration law firm which the university has retained, and one part of it is hilarious. Like the press release, that Web page is aimed at an employer audience, and includes a section titled "Common Misperceptions," consisting of two columns--a Myths column and a Realities column. Here is the humorous one: Myth: Hiring international students is expensive. Reality: Total cost to a recruiter is typically no more than $3,200. This of course is in direct contrast to repeated claims made by the industry. Just like week, for instance, Intel countered the Programmers Guild point that H-1Bs are hired as cheap labor by saying no, H-1Bs cost MORE than Americans due to the fees: Berry said employers prefer foreign workers because they're cheaper and are tied to an employer for a period of years. But Intel's Koon said her company must pay visa and legal fees to hire foreign workers. "It costs us more to hire with an H-1B," she said. The industry has made these statements repeatedly. They are misleading, of course, because the fees are small compared to the salary savings the employers obtain by hiring H-1Bs. But my point here is the fundamemental duplicity of the H-1B lobby. Or to put it another way, of COURSE this myth has developed that hiring H-1Bs is expensive--the lobbyists have deliberately perpetrated that myth. Norm AScribe Newswire April 18, 2005 Monday Copyright 2005 AScribe Inc. AScribe Newswire April 18, 2005 Monday LENGTH: 811 words HEADLINE: University of Maryland Business School Gives Recruiters Free Access to International Employment Advice; Innovative New Program Enables Employers to Hire Best Qualified Candidates BODY: COLLEGE PARK, Md., April 19 [AScribe Newswire] -- The Robert H. Smith School of Business at the University of Maryland today announced a unique collaboration with Reed Smith LLP, one of the largest law firms in the United States and known for a leading immigration practice, that gives employers free access to Reed's immigration lawyers for legal advice and consulting services. Employers will benefit from the innovative new program, which in keeping with the Smith Office of Career Management's dedication to employer-focused customer service, will make it easier to recruit and hire foreign graduates. Effective immediately, any employer interested in recruiting a Smith School student can take advantage of Reed Smith's complementary services, which include: - Consultation with employers regarding all aspects of the sponsorship process - Case-by-case visa assessments - Pre-negotiated legal fees for H1-B visa processing - Advice and materials on immigration issues "The Smith School remains at the forefront in its efforts to match corporate recruiters with the best and most qualified pool of graduates. This is just one step in many that we have taken to make the hiring and recruitment of our students as seamless as possible," said Howard Frank, dean of the Robert H. Smith School of Business. "Thirty-nine percent of our graduate population is from outside the United States, and we are doing both our students and our corporate community a great service in making it easier to recruit from Smith's full student population." There are a limited number of H1-B visas issued per year - a number currently set by Congress at 85,000 - and employers sometimes eschew foreign students in the belief that navigating the visa application process is too difficult. [For more information about the H1-B visa process, please visit www.smith.umd.edu/career/employers_intl_hire.html ]. "There is a tremendous amount of misinformation in the employment marketplace concerning the process of hiring foreign students, often resulting in employment decisions that are not in the best interest of either employers or students," said Mark Rhoads, head of Reed Smith's international Immigration Practice Group. "By demystifying the process and providing tactical support, together we can bring employers to the table that would not have otherwise pursued international talent. We are excited to have been chosen by the Smith School as their partner in this innovative new venture." Employers interested in recruiting an international Smith School graduate can access these immigration consultation services and legal advice by contacting Peter Brown, director of employer development, Office of Career Management, Robert H. Smith School of Business, 301-405-9475, email: pbrown@rhsmith.umd.edu. The Smith School's collaboration with Reed Smith follows previous initiatives designed to enhance the career and recruiting experiences of employers, students, and alumni. In 2003, the Smith School was the first to partner with a worldwide executive search firm, Stanton Chase International, to prepare MBA students for their careers and to present employers worldwide with the best qualified and most appropriate candidates. In the fall of 2004, the school partnered with DBM, a global human resources consulting firm, to produce career management services and tools specifically designed for the Smith School's part-time and executive MBA students. ---- CONTACT: Angela Toda, 301-405-8062; atoda@rhsmith.umd.edu ABOUT THE UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND'S ROBERT H. SMITH SCHOOL OF BUSINESS: The Robert H. Smith School of Business is an internationally recognized leader in management education and research for the digital economy. One of 13 colleges and schools at the University of Maryland, College Park, the Smith School offers undergraduate, full-time and part-time MBA, Executive MBA, PhD, and executive education programs, as well as outreach services to the corporate community. The school offers its degree, custom and certification programs in learning locations in three continents including North America, Europe and Asia. More information about the Robert H. Smith School of Business can be found at www.rhsmith.umd.edu. ABOUT REED SMITH LLP: Reed Smith LLP, a top-25 international law firm with 1,000 lawyers located in 14 U.S. and two U.K. cities, represents Fortune 100 as well as mid-market and emerging companies. Clients include financial services firms, life sciences companies, health care providers, technology companies and entrepreneurs, power generators and suppliers, manufacturers, universities, non-profit organizations, real estate developers, and municipalities throughout the United States and in 40 countries. For more information, visit www.reedsmith.com. CONTACT: Angela Toda, 301-405-8062; atoda@rhsmith.umd.edu LOAD-DATE: April 20, 2005