The wealth of opportunity the US provides is part of the reason why each year thousands of ambitious professionals from around the globe apply to study at business schools across the 50 states, many of which rank among the best in the world.
After completing their studies, vast numbers of international students apply for the highly coveted H-1B visa, which provides the chance to stay on living and working in the US. The visa terms allow foreign nationals with specialized expertise—gained via a higher degree or work experience—to remain in the country.
Valid for an initial three year period, the H-1B visa can be extended for another three years, ensuring that visa holders can stay in the US for up to six years after graduation before applying for a different type of visa.
Obtaining an H-1B visa requires a company to petition the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) on an applicant’s behalf to become their sponsor. Each year, top companies such as Amazon, Google, and IBM—most of the top sponsoring companies hail from the tech sector—sponsor thousands of H-1B visas to gather up the best international talent.
However, it’s not just trillion dollar, publicly traded tech conglomerates that sponsor H-1B visas for international students. You can also find a range of innovative startups that provide sponsorship opportunities.
So, using data from the USCIS, we’ve compiled a list of nine leading startup companies that sponsor H-1B visas*, each offering exciting opportunities for ambitious b-school students.
Top Startup Companies That Sponsor H-1B Visas
9. Rippling
Rippling is a human resources (HR) software firm founded in 2016. It offers a platform-based solution service bringing various core...
The company typically hires across a variety of areas including sales, finance, HR, operations, and marketing. It is also a large sponsor of H-1B visas, helping 58 foreign nationals gain H-1B visa sponsorship in 2023.
8. Reddit
Reddit has been around since 2005 and is among the most visited websites in the world. Operating as a forum-based social networking platform and news aggregator, the firm is based in south San Francisco.
Reddit values are based on the concept of ‘What Would Snoo Do?’—referring to the alien-like figure that serves as the company logo. These core focuses include adding value, evolving, and making something people love.
Reddit hires across a variety of departments, including finance and accounting, sales, and people and culture. There are also large numbers of remote first roles available. For international students at business school who desire careers at Reddit, the firm has a proven track record when it comes to H-1B sponsorship: 62 approvals in 2023.
7. Chime
Chime is a fintech company that’s instantly recognizable due to the green and white branding you can find adorning its credit and debit cards.
The firm lists its aim as ‘bringing financial peace of mind to millions of people’, its values therefore focus on customers, including being ‘member obsessed’, and respecting the rules that govern its obligations to customers.
As a fintech firm, it’s perhaps unsurprising that the bulk of opportunities available at Chime are in engineering, however it also hires product managers, business operations professionals, data analysts and risk analysts. In 2023, Chime sponsored 65 H-1B visa holders.
6. X
X, formerly known as Twitter, has had a tumultuous time since Elon Musk took over the company in October 2022. The social media firm initially hit headlines as controversy-magnet Musk laid off 80% of staff. However, the firm remains a significant H-1B sponsor with 72 approvals in 2023.
With Musk’s ambition to streamline X, job opportunities are largely concentrated within software and machine learning engineering, however those looking to join the big tech firm can also find vacancies within areas such as brand strategy, site operations, and accounting management.
READ: How To Get Into Tech After Business School
5. Flexport
Flexport was founded in 2013. A supply chain management and logistics firm that operates multinationally, current CEO and cofounder Ryan Petersen is a graduate of the Columbia Business School MBA.
As a firm looking to enact change within global supply chains, it’s no surprise that Flexport prioritizes impact. Through the help of its dedicated sustainability arm, the firm claims to have offset more than 300 thousand tons of greenhouse gases.
Those looking to find opportunities with Flexport can find vacancies in areas including data science and analytics, business operations, finance, and human resources. These opportunities are available to foreign nationals, with 103 H-1B visa sponsorship applications from Flexport in 2023.
4. Stripe
Stripe was founded in 2009 by John and Patrick Collison, two brothers from Ireland. They chose to launch the firm in Palo Alto, California, however today the firm has dual headquarters with another base located in Dublin, Ireland.
A financial services firm that facilitates payments for companies that range from small startups to behemoths as large as Amazon, Stripe’s valuation sits at around $65 billion at the time of writing. The firm’s focus on enabling customers drives its mission, however it also engages in impact driven projects such as Stripe Climate, which pays companies to pull carbon out of the atmosphere.
Stripe is a large-scale sponsor of H-1B visas, with 148 in 2023. Housing more than 8,000 employees, jobs at Stripe range across a broad variety of areas including data analysis, finance, marketing, sales, and operations.
3. Databricks
A software firm that was birthed out of a big data project at University of California, Berkeley in 2013, Databricks specializes in artificial intelligence and data analytics. It employs more than 5,000 staff worldwide and is headquartered in San Francisco.
In 2023, Databricks sponsored 198 H-1B visas, placing it firmly among the startups offering the most opportunities for international students within this list. Those looking to hop aboard the artificial intelligence train and join Databricks can find opportunities in areas such as financial analysis, marketing operations, product marketing, sales development, and project management.
2. TikTok
Social media app TikTok has had such a meteoric rise in recent years it’s hard to believe the firm remains privately owned. While Bytedance, TikTok’s parent company, confirmed it will go public eventually, there have been few concrete signs that an initial public offering (IPO) will occur any time soon.
TikTok was founded in 2016 and really began to soar in popularity in 2018 after a merger with musical.ly helped make it accessible across the globe. The firm is led by CEO Shou Zi Chew, a Harvard MBA graduate, and today employs more than 8,000 staff worldwide. It has dual headquarters in LA and Singapore, while boasting offices in many major cities across the globe.
Foreign nationals looking to launch innovative careers in tech can find a plethora of opportunities at TikTok, with 477 H-1B visa sponsorships in 2023. The firm typically has vacancies across a wide array of functions, including operations, marketing, sales, and finance.
1. Bytedance
TikTok’s parent company, Bytedance, is a Chinese technology firm that’s based in Beijing. It is currently the most highly valued startup in the world. As well as being the developer of TikTok, it also boasts apps including Douyin—the domestic-only version of the video sharing app, and news content platform Toutiao.
The firm has a number of ‘ByteStyles’ that exemplify its core values. They focus on elements such as maintaining an entrepreneurial approach, emphasizing diversity and inclusion, and being pragmatic.
Alongside the large number of H-1B visas that TikTok sponsored in 2023, Bytedance sponsored a further 599 foreign nationals to join its ecosystem. Those looking for opportunities at Bytedance can find large numbers of vacancies in areas ranging from operations, to marketing, finance, and sales.
Data is valid for the USCIS fiscal year which runs from October 1st to September 30th. Approvals include both applications categorized under ‘initial approval’ and those under ‘continuing approval’. All startups featured sponsored 50+ H-1B visas in 2023 and are valued at $5 billion or higher.
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