How Where They Hire works

Pick a major or a career and compare what matters before you choose a school or start your job search: the occupations it leads to, where those jobs are, what they pay, and which schools and employers are in each market.

Everything comes from public U.S. government data, next to the jobs on Where They Hire’s board for international students.

Why this data matters

Choosing a school is only part of the decision. Your major, the career you’re considering, and the local job market all matter too. Job markets can look very different from one city to another. Start with the career and the job market. Then compare schools and employers.

One major, many possible careers

People with the same major don’t all end up in the same occupation, and people in the same occupation don’t all have the same major. Compare the options before choosing a job market or school.

Jobs aren’t spread evenly across the U.S.

The market for the same occupation can look very different from one metro area to another. Employment, pay, and market size all vary. National numbers don’t show you how those markets differ.

Your school’s location affects your job market

Internships, networking, and first jobs often start close to campus. Location affects more than climate and cost. It also shapes which employers and opportunities are nearby.

For international students, LCA history adds another signal

Employers file LCAs with the Department of Labor as part of the H-1B process: a public record of the employer, the occupation, and the work location. Only a fraction of U.S. employers have any. Filing history shows which ones have filed for your occupation before, and where. Use it from your first year, not just at graduation.

Example: same major, very different markets

Tens of thousands of international students graduate in computer science in the U.S. each year. But the metros with the most graduates aren’t necessarily the ones with the most LCA activity for the related occupation. These two metros show how different the two patterns can be.

Where students study and where the jobs are don’t always line up.

International graduates: the number who graduated in one academic year. Filings: LCAs filed for the related occupation over the last four quarters.

A different way to think about the decision

Major

Which occupations are related to this major?

Occupation

How big is it, what does it pay, and where is it concentrated?

Metro area

Which schools there offer the major you need?

Employers

Which employers in that metro area have LCA filings for related occupations?

Start in this order: Major → Occupation → Job market → School → Employers

The goal isn’t one “best” choice. It’s knowing what market you’re entering before you decide.

Where each number comes from: How to read the data →

Full table

Where international computer science students graduate vs. where LCA filings are

Each year 26,833 international students graduate in computer science at schools in409 metro areas. The occupation most closely related to the major, Software Developers, has LCA filings in 382 metro areas, but 12 of them account for half.

Below are all 23 metro areas that graduate 300 or more international students in this major each year. None were left out. The right column is LCA filings for that occupation over four quarters (Apr 2025–Mar 2026).

Study in a metro area near the top of the table, and most filings for the occupation you’re aiming for are in other metro areas: plan early to search beyond the area around campus.

Most filings are extensions or employer changes for people already in the job, so the right column shows how deep each market is.