Yale Daily News

The International Student Organization has launched a series of panels to provide support for international students navigating the challenges of finding jobs and internships in the United States. 

The panels feature Yale alumni ranging from recent graduates to experts who have been working in the United States for decades now. After the three-part series wraps up next week, ISO plans to continue organizing other activities so international students get a chance to learn about the job market in the United States, how to apply for jobs and to network with alumni. 

“These panels provide an opportunity for students to get insight from past Yale international students facing similar challenges and get a chance to see how the job market works in the United States,” ISO outreach chair Anna Dei Rossi ’24 said.

The first panel session took place remotely on April 14 and featured six international Yale alumni who currently work in consulting and finance in the United States. Angeliki Vogiatzoglou ’25 told the News that she was glad to have attended the panel and to have been given advice by so many “young but accomplished people.” 

The second session took place last Thursday. The session followed a similar structure and time frame as the first session, but focusing this time on jobs in academia in the United States. The final session will take place next week and will feature panelists from the technology sector. 

“I thought the events so far have been extremely illuminating — international students face many challenges while at Yale and after, many of which our American peers may be unaware of,” Alex Yu ’25 said. 

Yu said that international students face added pressures that their American peers do not experience when looking for jobs.

Dei Rossi also emphasized that international students face additional barriers when looking for jobs in the United States, such as obtaining a visa, securing bank loans and finalizing work authorization through practical training programs. 

“Most international students that hope to work in the U.S. after college need to seek visa sponsorship from companies, which can be hard to find and are usually only offered by large-sized firms,” Yu said. “The advice of these alumni — most of whom only graduated a few years ago — inspired and encouraged us, showing us that barriers could be knocked down.”

Dei Rossi said ISO is looking to host more panels next semester, in addition to other speaker events, that can help international students with career development. She also discussed the possibility of building initiatives with other universities in an effort to establish a network specifically for international students.

Eesha Bodapati ’25, an international student, found the panels inspiring and relevant.

“The diversity of speakers, as well as the fact that the panels included both senior alumni who had been in the industry for several years, as well as younger alumni who were just starting out, gave me a clear idea about how I can navigate my career path in the U.S., and provided me with a lot to think about as I plan my future,” Bodapati said.

The International Student Organization has over 800 members.