tmino
MBAs from top schools are just too coveted, regardless of industry, to be denied a top job simply on grounds of getting a visa. Post undergrad maybe yes, but not post-MBA.
wrong big time...lots of companies (small to very large) wont recruit international students. I think a lot of people have been surprised by that. Some of it might be a factor of lack of understanding US culture...so some CPGs wont want someone who doesnt understand american consumers trying to market their stuff. Others may hire a small number of people a year and if one ends up not getting a visa its a big issue because they would not know until it is too late to hire someone to replace them.
The reason tech companies like Microsoft will recruit is because they put in for so many visa's (for their programmers and IT types), that they know they will have a visa for you. However, a company that doesnt hire internationals in large numbers, thus applying for lots of visas, will not want to deal with that. While a visa application may not be that expensive, if you havent done lots of them and have to get lawyers or something on it then it quickly becomes a huge hassle.
In all honesty, if you are an international recruiting is going to be a lot harder if you dont want a traditional MBA job like at big banks or MC, or if you dont want a job in the tech area.
Examples of those that
wont hire internationals:
Coca-Cola, Exxon, Johnson & Johnson, Chevron, Blackstone, Accenture, Boston Scientific, Procter & Gamble, Target, Walmart, Danaher, Baxter Health, Kraft, Diageo, Pepsi, and Kellogg...along with a lot of smaller ones.
Examples of those that
do hire internationals:
Booz, AT Kearney, Merrill Lynch, Citi, BCG, Coach, Goldman, Credit Suisse, Deloitte, JP Morgan, Morgan Stanley, Genentech, Apple, nvidia, Becton Dickenson, Cargill, Microsoft, Nike, Facebook, Amazon, Sony, Google...you get the trend that almost all are IB, MC, or Tech