Dollar dreams of some IITians who had bagged US offers from leading software giants in December 2016 are yet to materialise. Thanks to President Donald Trump's visa policy , some of the best minds in the country who had bagged crore-plus offers are now settling for lesser placements. The US visa policy is currently under review.

While firms are trying their best to get IIT graduates on board as promised, many on campus are wary of US offers in the upcoming placement season+ . The number of US offers had, in any case, dropped to single digits at leading IIT+ last December after the change in the country's political regime. Placement cells at IITs are now looking beyond the US for international profiles.

Japan, Taiwan, Canada, Singapore and some European countries have begun to rise in students' preference list. Very few IIT graduates who were offered jobs last year have started work in the US. The remaining have joined the organizations' India offices or are being offered alternatives abroad. Microsoft, for instance, has offered Canadian positions to students. "The students are looking forward to joining the Canadian office soon. Though the packages are not the same, most organizations have a good reputation. And they promise to move students to US locations after they complete a year or two, when they manage the visas," said an IIT-Bombay graduate. Some three to four students of IIT-Bombay have been affected.

A computer science and engineering student from the Powai campus said, "Students are always keen on US jobs, but many prefer to work for a year or two and then pursue higher studies. If it takes more than a year just to get US visas, the job location is of little consequence. Such students would rather choose better domestic opportunities. Getting student visas is easier than getting H-1B visas now."

Older IITs, though open to inviting US firms, are also treading cautiously to ensure students do not get a raw deal. At one of the older IITs, a student who had bagged a US job quit to join another company after his visa application was rejected.
"He was asked to work in the Bangalore office. He was one of our batch toppers," said a student from that institute. "Everyone, including the companies, are a little cautious about the visa policy in the US.

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