Abstract
The Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) student population consists of approximately 34% international students(“Student Demographics Illinois Institute of Technology”). International students who are accepted at IIT confirm that they have the necessary financial resources to live in Chicago(“Students and Employment | USCIS”). These students come to the US on a student visa and many international students, after discovering the cost of living in Chicago, need to work to support basic expenses. On-campus work opportunities are limited and as a result, many international students work illegally off campus. It is common practice for employers who illegally hire non-US citizens on student visas to compensate them with below minimum wage and no benefits. These circumstances exacerbate the dis- advantages these students can face as international students who are often marginalized as members of racial, ethnic, or gender minorities. Exploitative working conditions affect their academic success, mental health and wellness, and career trajectories. However, because international students risk losing their visas if they make these working conditions known, they are poorly positioned to advocate for themselves or to seek institutional support.
The goal of the study is to explore and describe the experience of international students who are working illegally in Chicago. I conducted semi-structured interviews with international students who volunteered to be interviewed. Findings from the thematic analysis of the interview data suggest the need for changes to Illinois Tech university policy and also demonstrate potential means for the university to improve outcomes for students.
1 Introduction
The international milieu of the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) or “Illinois Tech” is at the core of what makes the university an exciting place to study and do research. International students are a key part of Illinois Tech’s footprint, strategy, and vision. To this end, IIT’s mission statement(“Mission and Vision | Illinois Institute of Technology”) states:
“We are committed to providing a working and learning environment in which all members of our community are able to realize their full potential.”
However, students’ reliance on undercompensated, undocumented off-campus employment is at odds with this mission and vision, a conflict that requires institutional attention to resolve.
The problem of international students working illegally off campus while in the US on a student visa is not unique to Illinois Tech. This is a problem that is faced by other universities in the U.S. and internationally(“Frustrated with Regulations, UW International Students Turn to Illegal Work – the Seattle Globalist”; Pillinger 2008; “Illegal or Unauthorized Employment | International Affairs”; “Don’t Place Your Immigration Status at Risk: Some Consequences of Illegal Employment - International Student and Scholar Services | Binghamton University”; “Foreign Students Being Exploited”). This problem is in part the result of countries’ immigration policies(“Students and Employment | USCIS”; Reilly 2013). For example, some countries, such as Canada(“Work Off Campus as an International Student - Canada.ca”), have addressed the issue by allowing international students to work during their studies. However, more local strategies enacted at the level of the university have the potential to improve the situation even if they cannot fully address the problem. While international students are an essential stream of talent and revenue for many universities in the U.S.(Hegarty 2014), international students continue to face disproportionate hardships(Lee 2010; Klomegah 2006), and previous research demonstrates that universities continue to have an opportunity to improve outcomes for international students (Özturgut and Murphy 2009).
The goal of this study is to conduct interviews to understand the perspectives of international students at Illinois Tech who are facing unjust conditions, and to make policy recommendations based on the findings. Because international students risk deportation for working illegally, university leadership does not have a way to gather accurate information about the working conditions of international students. Consequently, conducting de-identified student interviews offers an opportunity to assist university leadership in making policy decisions based on more complete information about the experiences of international students. Thus, this study offers insights into the experiences of many international students at Illinois Tech who are currently suffering from these unfair conditions.
2 Methods
I conducted semi-structured interviews with international students who agreed to participate in this study. Students were identified by a number. Students were eligible to participate in the study if they met one of three conditions at the time of the interview: (1) a student currently working off campus illegally, (2) a student who had worked off-campus in the past, or (3) a student willing to work off-campus.
As a condition on participating in the interviews, I agreed to not audio record the interviews, to not identify any student by name, and to de-identify any comments before reporting findings. These conditions were aimed at ensuring students’ anonymity as best as possible given the potential risks for participants.
I developed an interview protocol (section 2.1) and a list of interview questions to guide each interview. I then did a thematic analysis of the interviews.
Following each interview, I summarized my notes to ensure that I captured the most important comments. I conducted a thematic analysis of my interview notes by deductively identifying themes from the interviews (Creswell et al. 2003). MAXQDA 2020 software package (VERBI Software, 2019) was used to facilitate qualitative data coding, organization and retrieval.
2.1 Interview protocol
The following is a list of the question used in the interview protocol.
Tell me about your experience working on a student visa.
(a) What type of jobs are you doing?
(b) How do you feel about your situation?
(c) How much do you make per hour? Do you think this is fair?
(d) Do you think you have been mistreated in your job? If so, how?
(e) Have you been threatened at work, for example, of being reported because you are working with a student visa?To what extent would you say that your work and financial situation have affected your ability to do your best in your studies?
Before you came to the U.S., how did you plan to support yourself? Did you expect to work at a below-minimum wage job?
Have you attempted to get an on-campus job? If so what was your experience?
Is your experience trying to find work a common experience among your friend group? How do you think your friends perceive the situation?
Have you attempted to speak up about your unfair treatment at work?
(a) If not, why not?
(b) What do you think will happen if you speak up?What are your professional qualifications currently? What position are you currently qualified for if you had a work visa? (Would you be qualified for better work if you had a work visa? E.g. perhaps you have a background as a civil engineer but you work at a restaurant because you do not have a work visa, etc.)
3 Results
Ten students agreed to be interviewed. The students are referred to by number for the purpose of de-identification. Typical pay for those working off campus was between $10 and $11 per hour, instead of the $15 per hour Chicago-area minimum wage. Key themes are described below.
3.1 Most students were tolerant of their situation
The majority of the students who participated in this study were tolerant of their situation, with many viewing off-campus work as an opportunity to improve their English language skills and learn about American culture. In addition, most students did not perceive their situation as unreasonable.
For instance, some students even considered working illegally to justify being paid less. Student 3 noted, ”As long as we do 30 hours a week, we cover basic living expenses.” This attitude suggests that international students were willing to accept sub-optimal working conditions in order to support themselves financially while studying in the United States.
3.2 Students are unlikely to complain to administration
Not surprisingly, none of the students interviewed reported speaking up to university administration regarding their difficulties finding on-campus employment or unfair working conditions off-campus. Speaking up would likely result in deportation, and none of the students interviewed had even considered speaking to the university about their employment challenges. Student 7 succinctly articulated the clear understanding of the consequences of speaking up when they answered the question of speaking up with a matter-of-fact reply: ”We are doing illegal job…” Students’ sense of the impossibility of speaking up was often coupled with a sense of resignation to the situation. For example, Student 6 said, “It’s something we cannot change and it’s something that doesn’t bother us much… we got used to it.”
3.3 Students rely on back-channels to find jobs
All of the students who participated in the study expected to find on-campus employment upon arrival but none were successful in their first semester. Students reported that they had applied to jobs through the on-campus job portal but received no responses. Instead, students who did secure jobs, whether on or off-campus, relied on back-channel recommendations from friends. Unfortunately, first-semester international students were at a disadvantage because they were most in need of financial support but were the least likely to have connections that could recommend them for employment. Student 6 remarked, ”For most international students, getting work on campus in the first semester is tough. . . if college provides help, it would be so good. . . people need help [settling in when they first come here].”
3.4 Most students lack financial education
Many students reported a lack of financial education, with some students noting that they did not know how to open a bank account or how to obtain a Social Security Number, or whether they were eligible for these resources.
3.5 Visa application processes exacerbate issues
Finally, several students shared their experiences of applying for a visa and the challenges they faced in guaranteeing that they would not need to work while studying in the United States. Students often associated fear with the visa application process. For example, Student 1 said, ”I got very scared for my visa interview”. Some students went into detail about the emotional stress of their parents pledging their savings as collateral. For example, Student 8 felt so moved by the issue that they went and retrieved the documents to show me visually as they described the stress of the application process. In practice, many students find ways to exaggerate their financial resources with the intention of finding employment when they get to the U.S. There is a strong incentive for these students to lie to get into the U.S. because they perceive coming to university in America as a gateway to a bright future. Consequently, the visa process fails to adequately assess the true financial preparedness of students. This tendency is further exacerbated by the unrealistic expectations many international students have about their chances of getting an on-campus job.
4 Discussion and recommendations
There are several specific areas where improvements can be made to support international students at Illinois Tech in achieving better outcomes. In summary, by improving communication around job applications and expectations for employment, providing more comprehensive financial education, and increasing career center outreach to international students, Illinois Tech can take valuable steps to improving outcomes for international students.
4.1 Improve on-campus job application portal
One area where communication could be improved is the on-campus job application portal. Students often do not receive clear feedback on their applications for on-campus jobs, which can lead to frustration and a lack of clarity around the application process. Improving communication with students via the job application portal would help to ensure that students are aware of whether their applications have been accepted or rejected, and would provide them with a better understanding of the on-campus employment process. Students often seemed jaded and despondent when they said that they never received a response about their online application. This suggests that the university could improve perceptions of trust with international students by improving communication in the online on-campus job application portal.
4.2 Offer financial education to international students
Another area where improvements can be made is in financial education for international students. Many international students lack knowledge about the SSN process, opening bank accounts, and strategies for living affordably, which can make it difficult for them to navigate the financial aspects of studying in the United States. By providing more comprehensive financial education, universities can help international students to better manage their finances and to make informed decisions about their spending and savings. Illinois Tech currently includes some financial advice in its on-boarding process for international students but the interviews conducted in this study suggest that there remains an opportunity for improvement.
4.3 Clearly communicate student employment information
In addition to improving financial education, Illinois Tech could also communicate expectations for student employment more clearly. Many international students arrive on campus with the expectation that they will be employed on-campus, but the reality is that there are far fewer on-campus jobs than there are students. As a result, many students will never be able to secure on-campus employment. By communicating these expectations more clearly, the university can help students to better plan for their financial needs before arriving to the U.S.
4.4 Involve career services in supporting international students
Finally, Illinois Tech could improve career center outreach to international students. While internships are a valuable opportunity for all students, they are particularly important for international students, who may face additional barriers to securing employment after graduation, and who may especially benefit from the income. At Illinois Tech, for example, only around 20% of international students secure internships during their degree programs. By providing more support and outreach to these students, the university can help them to access these valuable opportunities and to build their professional networks. The need for universities to improve career support tailored specifically to international students has precedent in previous studies(Sangganjanavanich, Lenz, and Cavazos Jr 2011).
Conclusion
The findings from this small qualitative study demonstrate that many international students are facing substantial hardships because of their employment situation. These interviewees communicated the emotional and financial burdens students faced and highlighted how they are ill-equipped to spearhead the move toward a more just situation on their own behalf. The university has a high leverage opportunity to improve student outcomes, and, consequently, their own bottom line, by working to improve the situation for international students regarding their employment challenges. The interviews also demonstrated some specific opportunities for policy reform that would improve the experience of international students at Illinois Tech in the immediate future.
While Illinois Tech will not be able to resolve the root causes of the challenges faced by international students in the United States, the university can take meaningful action by starting a dialogue with university leadership and considering the perspectives and suggestions of the international students as revealed in this study as leadership plans policy reform strategies to improve outcomes for international students.
License
The author of this technical report, which was written as a deliverable for a SoReMo project, retains the copyright of the written material herein upon publication of this document in SoReMo Reports.