about chinese wife's job searching

[tweety121]

Hi,

I got my EAD card at the end of last month (no green card yet) and started looking for a job. I have EE master degree but no working experience. I'm limited to search for a local job because i want to stay with my husband, which is very obvious.

up to now, there is no positive result. i'm a little upset and feel frustrated. maybe it is still not time to be frustrated. i'm wondering, if it is really difficult for the chinese wives to find a job?what kind of jobs do your chinese wives have?

[BillV 8-16-2004]

Hi,

 

I got my EAD card at the end of last month (no green card yet) and started looking for a job. I have EE master degree but no working experience. I'm limited to search for a local job because i want to stay with my husband, which is very obvious.

 

up to now, there is no positive result. i'm a little upset and feel frustrated. maybe it is still not time to be frustrated. i'm wondering, if it is really difficult for the chinese wives to find a job?what kind of jobs do your chinese wives have?

 

EE grads most often work for companies and organizations involved in aircraft, appliance, automotive, biomedical, computer and copier manufacturing. Other major employers include hospitals, scientific instrument makers, the military, oil companies, radio and TV stations, steel mills and stereo manufacturers. You did not mention what state you lived in but California, Texas, New York and New Jersey ¨C states with many large electronics firms ¨C employ a majority of all electrical and electronics engineers.

[tweety121]

yes, you are right. I live in South OC, CA. There are lots of companies. but for all the job openings that i'm interested in, they require at least 2-5 year's experience. I don't have any working experience I just graduated in Feb and then I came here to get married. so...

Edited November 23, 2006 by tweety121 (see edit history)

[Patrick & Li]

Try a temp agency. It gets your foot in the door and gives you a resume`.

 

Patrick

[tonado]

Networking. Try joining a networking group in your area (maybe a group for the unemployed).

[newman]

I have a BS EE, Electrical Engineering, in electrical power such as electrical generation, transmission or distribution systems. not electronics. Electronics sounds good for what has been previously mentioned. When I graduated in 1983 I started my first job at $24,000 which was the average. I presently make $110,000 plus. This is not to brag but, show what you can do even if you have to start out on the low side. Get your foot in the door. Five years ago Nebraska was hiring BS EE's at $50,000 right out of school because there was such a shortage. I would suggest do your research on the job market. Don't be afraid to start rather low as your progress and experience will help later on. Be patient and good luck.

[SirLancelot]

I presently make $110,000 plus. This is not to brag but, show what you can do even if you have to start out on the low side.

 

 

You gotta love Alaska. The richest state in the Union in terms of per capita income.... drum roll.... Alaska!

[tywy_99]

The first job will be hard to find. Just put in apps when ever you see an opening. You will get a lot of rejections, but eventually you will find someone willing to give you a chance.

 

Good luck on your quest.

The first job will be hard to find.

I don't even know where or how to touch on this dilemma facing our spouse's but I'm glad to see someone post about it. All I can say is that it can be very humbling and demeaning to one's spirit.

[Steve and Qingqing]

Finding a job in your field can and will take time. My wife has a masters in Chemistry and it took her a year to finally land a job in her field! She went on several interviews and sent her resume to many companies. The hardest part for her was the interview and I think if you have confidence at the interview thats 80% of the battle. We suggest signing up online at MONSTER.com to begin with.. get your resume out there and resubmit it every week to monster..That way your resume stays at the top of the list otherwise it gets buried if you dont keep resubmitting it... or update it once a week. also check out..www.indeed.com.. its a very good place to search for jobs. also careerbuilder.com ... also check out .craiglist for your city.... craiglist is like your local want ads.... good source as well...Dont give up and dont expect to find something right away...the economy has alot to do with it as well..you might want to take a part time job now and keep searching for a job in your field. Also go on any job interviews just for the practice of interviewing... Also, goto your community college and their career center. They can help you ( for Free) with a resume, job search and mock interview. This helped my wife gain alot of confidence that helped her land the job she has now..She only had one job in China before coming to America. With help from the college, she had a 2 hour interview and was hired the same day!!.. Now shes VERY HAPPY.. Good luck and remember it sometimes takes time but dont give up..Oh, and the husbands should be patient and understanding when the wifes get upset and fustrated at not finding a job or the job they really want.( wife told me to add this)

[tweety121]

thank you all for the experience and encouragement. my hubby is very understanding, which is very important for me.

[ed and ying]

Try a temp agency. It gets your foot in the door and gives you a resume`.

 

Patrick

Good advice !!

Many engineers working at my company, all disciplines. Many are working through a agency. The new way is that a portion of staff will be sourced through agencies. It can be steady work. We do select agency workers for offers of employment with our company.

[jemmyell]

Hi,

 

Since you are in South OC you are close to UCI. Maybe take a night class there to connect with the engineering school. They do job placements, maybe an internship to get started.

 

http://unex.uci.edu/?WT.mc_id=I3353CMP

 

-James

[Guest ShaQuaNew]

Having a Masters as a EE in the US is huge, regardless whether there is work experience or not. There are a good many companies that would be willing to let you start and cut your teeth at their firms. The organizational structures of these firms have a few advanced level Engineers, and several engineers that support them, all of varying degrees of experience.

 

Writing a great resume is key. A good one will be easy to read and have enough detail about education and achievements that a decision-maker can quickly scan. After you go through several iterations of writing one, and get something that has been written, and re-written, and looked over with many eyes, it will be time to submit it online. You might try opening an account on Monster.com, Dice.com, and ComputerJobs.com. There your profile can be viewed as you wish, and headhunters will begin to call. I can assure you, that anyone with a masters in EE will have no problem.

 

My wife worked as a B2B interpreter between Chinese to Chinese, Chinese to American, and Chinese to Russian companies. She is well-rounded in the business world, and will soon be making the move back to work here in the US.

[Urkidding]

I saw this post a few weeks ago and I wanted to add to it so here goes for those of you who want to know!

 

Job searching for anyone is difficult, but added to the fact that that person has newly arrived from a distant country is even harder.

 

My wife received her Masters from a US college and was still intimidated by her job searches and interviews. On several occasions she would tell me about how they discriminated against her and how often job politics came into the picture.

 

Let¡¯s face it, you have an office full of women, of course they would single you out as the new hire especially if you¡¯re a ¡°foreigner¡± coming into the company. Women are worst then men with it comes to office gossip.

 

The jobs my wife often found was those working for Chinese in a Chinese company. She would feel comfortable because they would speak they same language, eat the same food and relate to the same problems. Of course this doesn¡¯t help your wife trying to learn English either.

 

However Chinese employers seemed to be the worst when it came to discrimination. If the company was owned by Taiwanese then you¡¯re discriminated if your from mainland China. If it was owned by mainland Chinese then they think that you can not find a job in an American company thus paying lower wages than American companies pay. I often heard how they would also turn down applicants because they were from Taiwan.

 

I can go on with other problems that she ran into however bottom line is what another writer mentioned here ¨C CONFIDENCE. Give you wife the time and confidence that she needs to find the right job.

 

I would always tell my wife that she was better than what they would offer her and to pass on it and look for another job. This happened many of times. Give you wives that confidence and she will find the job she enjoys doing and come home happy.

 

Happy Wife + Good Job = Great Home Life

[tweety121]

It is so nice to share the feeling with all of you here:)