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51��Ƶ-Dearborn graduate student Patrick Imoh is a senior network engineer with more than a decade of experience. He’s worked for companies including ExxonMobil and Cisco. As Imoh — who returned to school in 2023 — approaches his Spring 2025 graduation, he’s been interviewing with Fortune 500 companies who have locations around the world. 

But with southeast Michigan's strong presence in industries like automotive, mobility and advanced manufacturing, Imoh — an international student from Nigeria who’s earning a Master of Science in cybersecurity and information assurance — has a talent that’s needed in the Detroit area. On the Indeed online job board, so many companies are looking for network and cybersecurity engineers that there are six pages of postings for Michigan alone.

A partnership between 51��Ƶ-Dearborn and Global Detroit, a nonprofit that advocates for immigrant inclusion to drive economic growth in southeast Michigan, is working to keep students like Imoh in the region. Through a four-week  led by the organization, 51��Ƶ-Dearborn graduate students learned how to expand their networks and develop the soft skills needed to succeed in the American workplace.

Through the GTA sessions, a cohort of 20 international students from the College of Engineering and Computer Science and the College of Business visited the Detroit LinkedIn office to learn about networking and personal branding. They also took part in mock interviews, discussed workplace culture in the U.S. with HR experts, attended a job fair and more.

“In the United States, there is an openness in the recruitment process that isn’t there in other countries. They want to get to know you beyond your skills. It’s different from what I’ve experienced before,” says Imoh, who has had multiple U.S.-based interviews since the program concluded. “While the skills you have are essential to promote, I’ve learned that employers here want to know if you’ll be a good fit for the team. So instead of reciting off a list of projects and experience in an interview, be your authentic self.” 

51��Ƶ-Dearborn Career Services Assistant Director Mai Qazzaz says the U.S. is a global leader in the science and technology field thanks, in part, to the skills the international students bring through education and experience. In southeast Michigan, however, .

“The U.S. is one of the leading destinations for international students, and Michigan welcomes a significant number of them,” Qazzaz says. “They offer exceptional and in-demand skill sets that are highly sought after by employers.” In addition to specialized degrees in high-demand fields, international students speak multiple languages and can help businesses better navigate a global market. Michigan has 38,123 international students — the eighth-largest international student population in the country — with 739 currently enrolled at 51��Ƶ-Dearborn.

Attracting and retaining international students benefits not only employers, but the economy of the entire region and state, . “International students [across the U.S.] comprise more than 70 percent of all the graduate students in electrical engineering, computer and information sciences, and industrial and manufacturing engineering — fields critical to the future of the Michigan economy,” the report states. In addition to bringing much-needed talent to many of Michigan’s key industries, international students make outsize contributions to university research and technology commercialization, and boost the economy with their tuition dollars and other spending, the report explains.

Imoh and his cohort took part in a GTA graduation ceremony at Fairlane Center South in early April. Priya Pati, who is earning a Master of Science in business analytics, says the program helped her better curate her professional experience on her resume. And Yogendra Sai Pavan Nalam — who goes by Pavan and is finishing his Master of Science in data science — gained more experience and assurance with soft skills like interpersonal communication. “I’m very good at technical stuff, but I was lacking in areas like talking in front of an audience,” he said at the ceremony. “I am up here and speaking with confidence thanks to the Global Detroit team.”

51��Ƶ-Dearborn Career Services Professional Development Program Manager Devin Johannis says employers across the United States want to hire international students, but are often concerned about student visa or U.S. work sponsorship costs. There are no financial costs to an employer hiring an international student for an internship or for short-term employment post-graduation, however. All international students studying full time in the U.S. are eligible to work for one year in their field of study through a work permit attached to their student visa, known as Optional Practical Training. OPT can be extended an additional two years for those with degrees in STEM-related fields. There are currently 791 51��Ƶ-Dearborn graduates working in the U.S. through OPT.

The federal government’s recent  across the U.S. has many international students — and the offices and organizations who support them — very worried. But Wang says the students she has spoken with remain committed to pursuing their education and careers here in the U.S.

“I’ve worked with international students for much of my 30-year career at U-M and I can tell you that they are kind, talented and bring a needed global perspective,” Wang says. “International students are also problem solvers and strategic thinkers. They’ve navigated a lot of difficulties to achieve their goals, and just like Detroit, they are resilient and persistent.”

Imoh wants to work in the U.S. — in southeast Michigan, ideally — because many large, global companies are based here and American workplaces often encourage an open exchange of ideas. “It’s where much of the world’s innovation starts,” he says. “While I was a graduate student at 51��Ƶ-Dearborn, I felt at home here. I like living near Detroit. It’s a welcoming place with a lot of opportunities for growth.” 

Story by Sarah Tuxbury