In Depth: Coding Jobs No Longer Sure Thing for U.S.-Educated Chinese

Once considered among the safest and most lucrative careers, computer coders in the United States are now facing an exceptionally challenging job market, with Chinese students and professionals hit especially hard. Unemployment rates in 2024 for recent computer engineering and science graduates surged to 7.5% and 6.1%, respectively, among the highest of all majors according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. This increase coincides with significant job cuts by major tech firms—including Meta, Amazon, Microsoft, and Alphabet—over the past three years. These developments have evoked comparisons to the dot-com bust of the early 2000s. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the number of computer-related jobs, after rising nearly 82% between 2000 and 2023, fell in 2024 for the first time in a decade, with about 20,000 coding roles lost. The jobless rate for computer and mathematics positions rose to 2.8%, its second-highest level in nearly ten years. [para. 1][para. 2][para. 3][para. 4]

Graduates now compete fiercely with both experienced professionals willing to take lower-level jobs and artificial intelligence (AI) systems encroaching on entry-level coding roles. For many foreign job seekers, especially Chinese students, difficulties are exacerbated by stricter visa regulations and uncertainties around work permits. A survey from Handshake found that over 50% of the class of 2025 were pessimistic about job prospects, with 28% of computer science majors describing themselves as "very pessimistic." Some Chinese job seekers apply to hundreds of positions with minimal feedback, turning to outsourcing agencies as a last resort or considering returning to China. [para. 5][para. 6][para. 7][para. 8]

Major layoffs and hiring freezes at leading tech companies in 2024 have made landing a job much harder. For instance, Meta cut 3,600 jobs in January, its largest single round of layoffs since 2022–2023, while Microsoft slashed between 6,000 and 9,000 jobs in mid-2024. By May, nearly 57,000 tech workers in the U.S. had been laid off that year. Testimonials from recent graduates show that many must apply to hundreds of positions to receive even a handful of offers, with graduates at top programs such as those at Ivy League schools facing historically low placement rates. Internships that convert to full-time employment remain among the few reliable pathways into large tech firms. [para. 9][para. 10][para. 11][para. 12][para. 13][para. 14][para. 15][para. 16]

Industry veterans attribute the tough job market to overshooting demand during the pandemic, high turnover, and easy access to remote work, which fueled a period of aggressive overhiring. This was followed by a correction when ad and hardware sales weakened and interest rates rose, triggering layoffs. Median salaries in the field remain high, with computer-related jobs paying $106,000 and software developers earning nearly $129,000 in 2024, far above the national median. However, the supply of computer science graduates has almost doubled in the past two decades, and foreign-born workers now account for nearly 27% of tech jobs. [para. 17][para. 18][para. 19][para. 20][para. 21][para. 22]

Chinese students, a major contingent in U.S. computer science programs, increasingly face uncertainty in obtaining H-1B visas as job opportunities shrink, even among outsourcing agencies that were once a fallback. Many are now preparing to join either the U.S. or Chinese labor markets, though both are currently tight—China’s tech hiring is also down over 20% in 2024, especially for graduate-level roles. [para. 23][para. 24][para. 25][para. 26][para. 27][para. 28][para. 29][para. 30]

While AI is often blamed for job loss, many industry insiders argue that economic slowdown and market saturation are the main culprits. AI still functions primarily as a tool to assist, rather than replace, programmers—though pressure is building for coders to adapt. The U.S. market continues to value experience, partly protected by anti-age discrimination laws, making career longevity more viable than in China, where preference is given to recent graduates. Despite the daunting environment, U.S. programming careers remain attractive for many due to their high pay and strong job protections. [para. 31][para. 32][para. 33][para. 34][para. 35][para. 36][para. 37][para. 38][para. 39][para. 40][para. 41][para. 42]