Danielle Kadom

Globalink - HCI Class Project

Mentorship for H1-B Visa Immigrants

UX Research

UI Design

UX Design

Overview

The H1-B visa allows only a 60-day window to find a job in order to stay in the United States.

Immigrant job seekers spend hours each day applying for internships, with many leading to rejections.

As a solution, we developed a mentorship and networking platform specifically for immigrants with a special emphasis on job seeking.

This prototype was created through Figma as a semester-long project for CSCI 4800: Human-Computer Interaction.

Role

UI / UX Designer - Responsible for idea generation, need finding research, user insights, wireframing, and prototyping

Frameworks

Design for Diversity, Double Diamond Design Process

Design for Diversity Framework

Our team is comprised of three second-generation immigrants:

Danielle Kadom
Venn Reddy
Yushus Komarlu

This informed the basis of this project because each of these members had seen the difficulties of the visa process second-hand. Our personal connections directly demonstrated the lack of accessible information.

This perspective is emphasized through our implementation of a mentorship program, rather than opting for a conventional "job-matching app."

However, a lived experience that might be missing from our team is that of a first-generation immigrant. Our initial exposure to the difficulties of immigration came from our families, but not first-hand.

Double Diamond Design Process

Phase I: Discover

Primary and secondary research

Phase II: Define

Insights, themes, how might we statements

Phase III: Develop

Ideation and evaluation

Phase IV: Deliver

Build, test, and iterate

Needfinding methods: Selection of users

Selection of Extreme Users: graduating immigrants who are very eager to apply to U.S. jobs, past application experience

Selection of Average Users: graduating immigrants who
are considering moving back, unsure about length of stay

**The majority of the people we interviewed fell into this category

Selection of Non-Users: U.S. citizen students, or immigrant students who are set on moving back home for work

Interview Locations: Boyd Graduate Studies Building and Science Library.

Accommodations: None Requested

Average-User Interview Highlight: Aleksandar S.

POV Statements

We Met… Aleksandar S., a former F1 and H1-B visa holder who works full time as a technical consultant. He is originally from Macedonia.

We Were Surprised That… Companies that provide sponsorship hold power through a binding contract, making it very easy for them to overwork and underpay.

We Wonder If This Means… There’s a corporate culture where immigrants can be taken advantage of without a way to share each other's experiences with employers.

It Would Be A Game Changer If… Find ways for immigrants to connect and share reviews of employers to have reputable sources from people in the same situation.

Empathy Map

"Corporations have the ability to overwork you and underpay you becaue you are obligated to stay"

"When you sign a company contract, you are bound to their policy"

"It is hard to prepare for the interview process."

"The descriptions on Linkedin hide what you actually have to do"

Say

Stress

Dejected

Worried

Discouraged

Pessimistic

Frustrated

Overwhelmed

Cheated

Feel

Uses Glassdoor, Handshake, and Linkedin

Worked on interview preparation frequently

Doesn't "waste time on company cold applications"

Doesn't trust job postings to actually sponsor

I'm just another faceless application on websites

Corporate world is very fake

I don't know what goes on in recrutiers heads

If I have good connections and decent skills, I will be successful

Think

Aleksandar provided us with this document during his interview, showing just how complicated the visa application process is.

Extreme User Interview Highlight: Naveen K.

POV Statements

We Met… Naveen K., a masters student studying computer science at UGA and working as a Graduate Research Assistant in the CS Department.

We Were Surprised That… He thought sponsorship was an insurmountable obstacle when looking for a job in the US, and seemed to vastly prefer the job hunting process in India

We Wonder If This Means… That there are insights from the job hunting process in India which can be applied to the market in the US as well.

It Would Be A Game Changer If… He had an easy way to connect with employers who were actually willing to offer sponsorship to employees.

Empathy Map

"The career fair isnt that useful for international students"

"I couldn't get an internship due to my visa, which makes job hunting even more tough"

"Given the difficulty of the job search, we need at least six months"

"The visa limits me to working only 20 hours a week"

Frustration

Skeptical

Dejected

Discouraged

Pessimistic

Overwhelmed

Anger

Stressed

Applies to 50+ internships during hiring season

Tries to balance going to employer events with school research work

Studies almost all popular hiring apps because he needs to get a job fast

Goes to career fairs, does resume reviews, and tries to build a strong application

I wish the interviews in America cared more about technical skills

Constantly getting rejected is demoralizing

I cannot afford to screw around because the stakes are so high

Most of the opportunities on campus are useless to students with visas

"The career fair isnt that useful for international students"

"I couldn't get an internship due to my visa, which makes job hunting even more tough"

"Given the difficulty of the job search, we need at least six months"

"The visa limits me to working only 20 hours a week"

Say

"The career fair isnt that useful for international students"

"I couldn't get an internship due to my visa, which makes job hunting even more tough"

"Given the difficulty of the job search, we need at least six months"

"The visa limits me to working only 20 hours a week"

Annoyed

Disappointment

Dejected

Concerned

Feel

Goes to career fairs, does resume reviews, and tries to build a strong application

Studies almost all popular hiring apps because he needs to get a job fast

Tries to balance going to employer events with school research work

Applies to 50+ internships during hiring season

Think

I wish the interviews in America cared more about technical skills

Constantly getting rejected is demoralizing

I cannot afford to screw around because the stakes are so high

Most of the opportunities on campus are useless to students with visas

Non-User Interview Highlight: Shanwaz K.

POV Statements

We Met… Shanwaz, a grad student from India studying computer science and working as a TA for the biology department.

We Were Surprised That… He prefers the Indian job market since they focus on objective technical assessments instead of soft skills.

We Wonder If This Means… Immigrants struggle to adapt to the U.S. hiring market because foreign job markets emphasize different skills.

It Would Be A Game Changer If… Teach skills emphasized in U.S. jobs, and highlight opportunities that emphasize more technical recruiting.

Empathy Map

Say

“Sponsor-offering jobs receive a lot of competition from other people in my situation”

“The visa requirements are super confusing. I needed help to understand them”

“Ive seen people who spent two months waking up, applying all day, sleeping, and doing it all over again”

“Having to get a referral doesn’t put the emphasis on technical skills”

Frustration

Anger

Stressed

Discouraged

Feel

Works as a TA for a department outside of his own because it is the only assistantship he could get.

Asks immigrants who got hired which companies “actually” offer sponsorship.

Does a lot of interview preparation and workshops.

Showed us a series of email responses which read “we are not currently taking visa sponsorship”

Think

I want to make the most of my situation and find a full time position.

The government should implement more forgiving H1-B policies.

Without my TA position, I wouldn’t be able to afford school.

Current hiring websites are frustrating to use.

“Sponsor-offering jobs receive a lot of competition from other people in my situation”

“The visa requirements are super confusing. I needed help to understand them”

“Ive seen people who spent two months waking up, applying all day, sleeping, and doing it all over again”

“Having to get a referral doesn’t put the emphasis on technical skills”

Exhausted

Concerned

Dejected

Discouraged

Disappointment

Doubt

Annoyed

Stressed

Works as a TA for a department outside of his own because it is the only assistantship he could get.

Asks immigrants who got hired which companies “actually” offer sponsorship.

Does a lot of interview preparation and workshops.

Showed us a series of email responses which read “we are not currently taking visa sponsorship”

I want to make the most of my situation and find a full time position.

The government should implement more forgiving H1-B policies.

Without my TA position, I wouldn’t be able to afford school.

Current hiring websites are frustrating to use.

Key Issues

How Might We…

💡Increase transparency of hours and pay before agreeing to work?

💡Make the application process less intimidating?

💡Provide a way for immigrant job hunters to easily find the companies which are actually willing to sponsor them?

💡Offer job seekers the chance to make a clearer demonstration of technical skill, rather than relying on connections?

💡Design a product that highlights skill building and connection?

💡Reduce the time wasted during the job seeking process?

Finalized Problem Statement

U.S. immigrants on H1-B visas face significant barriers in securing and maintaining employment within the 60 day required window that matches their skill level, often resulting in financial strain, stress, and underemployment. With strict time limits to find new employment after layoffs and the high costs associated with international student tuition, this challenge is particularly pressing for immigrant students burdened by debt and for skilled workers whose expertise often goes underutilized due to limited job opportunities within their field.

Solution Ideation

Deciding on a Solution

We decided to design an immigrant mentorship and networking platform based on insights from our interviews and empathy maps, which highlighted the challenges immigrants face in navigating the U.S. job market.

Aleksander's comments pointed out that connections could help alleviate immigrants' confusion around job processes, while others emphasized that immigrant job seekers value guidance on professional skills and successful career paths.

This solution also aligned well with our key "How Might We" (HMW) statements, focusing on finding companies that:

Sponsor immigrants.
Are open to transparency about workplaces.
Want to reduce wasted time in the application process.

Solution Ideation

Task Breakdown

Finding a mentor

(complex)

Chatting with mentors

(simple)

Finding events

(simple/moderate)

Becoming a mentor

(moderate)

Initial Sketches

Finalized Screens

Key Takeaways

While this product remained a prototype, it taught me several important things regarding the design thinking process

The importance of interviewing nonusers. By interviewing Aleksandar, we discovered that his colleagues at other businesses are subject to workplace exploitation.
Designing a product that is intended to have a positive use requires you to consider all of the potential cases where your product could fail or be misused.
The impact that empathy could have. After showing our prototype to the users we initially interviewed, they expressed great appreciation and excitement over the prospect of having a product that truly catered to their needs.