H-1B demand spike may signal improving outlook for skilled pros

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By Patrick Thibodeau
December 2, 2009 06:00 AM ET http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9141648/H_1B_demand_spike_may_signal_improving_outlook_for_skilled_pros?source=CTWNLE_nlt_dailyam_2009-12-02

Computerworld - WASHINGTON -- Demand for H-1B visas has accelerated over the last six to eight weeks after being flat for months. This comes as the number of companies planning to increase college hiring is also on the rise. Together, the trends may be early indicators of an improving economy for skilled professionals.

Throughout summer and into September, demand for H-1B visas flatlined at about 45,000 visa petitions. But on Friday, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service released data showing that in two weeks alone it had received 3,300 H-1B petitions, continuing a spike that began in October that has increased the number of visas petitions to 58,900, approaching the 65,000 cap.

A separate H-1B cap of 20,000 for foreign workers who have earned an advanced degree from U.S. universities was reached in October.

If this demand for visas continues, the H-1B cap for the 2010 fiscal year may be met in a matter of days to early next year, according to estimates from a number of immigration attorneys.

An improving economic outlook and confidence in hiring may be driving this increase. The National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE), an organization whose members include large companies of 7,000 employees or more that include tech firms, said that in its member survey for November that 28% of respondents planned to increase college hiring, compared with 17% in August.

"College hiring has started to look better, much better than it did," said Ed Koc, who heads research at association. He said that anywhere from one-third to half of students in graduate programs are foreign nationals.

Koc also points out that the unemployment rate for college graduates holding bachelor's degrees in October was 4.7%, down from 4.9% in September, according to U.S. labor data.

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