To: All
Well, that's not entirely correct. There is a huge difference between J and F visas in terms of future employment opportunities. The difference is the length of the OPT period. And this is vital, here is why:
Most of us will graduate in May 2009. Unfortunately, we can only apply for the H1B visa in April (and no, we cannot apply in April 2009 since we don’t hold the MBA degree yet, and yes, we want only apply under the advanced degree cap). So we can only apply in April 2010, which will (hopefully) give you the visa starting October 2010. Unfortunately, the OPT period will end in June 2010 so we will have to leave the country for 3 months. Lucky you if you can find an employer that will give you such a vacation. I doubt that many will. Note also that if you do the summer internship (~10 weeks) that is also substituted from the OPT period. So, one would have to ask for almost a 6 month vacation. Sounds reasonable?
