New Program in Boston Aims to Recruit H1B Entrepreneurs

As detailed in the MurthyBlog, NYC Attracting Foreign National Entrepreneurs with Groundbreaking New H1B Program (02.Mar.2016), New York City has spearheaded an innovative program to allow a select few foreign national entrepreneurs to be sponsored for cap-exempt H1B positions. Earlier this month, Babson College, a private, not-for-profit business college located near Boston, Massachusetts, announced that it is following suit by launching a global entrepreneur-in-residence (GEIR) program. Beginning in the fall, the program will sponsor a limited number of qualifying international students graduating from institutions around the Boston region for cap-exempt positions.

The foreign nationals selected for the GEIR program will work part time at Babson’s Arthur M. Blank Center for Entrepreneurship, mentoring students, organizing school fundraisers, and conducting research. In exchange, program participants can avail themselves of the resources that Babson College has to offer, as they develop their respective entrepreneurial platforms. The GEIR program is unique in that it is the first of its kind to be offered by a private college or university.

Announcing the launch of the program alongside Boston mayor Marty Walsh, Babson College president Kerry Healey noted:

Babson believes that entrepreneurship is the most powerful force for social and economic good in the world today … Each year, it’s estimated that more than a thousand entrepreneurs leave the commonwealth of Massachusetts due to the cap on H1B visas … this [H1B visa] cap exemption for colleges and universities provides a limitless opportunity for entrepreneurs with viable businesses to secure H1B visas.” Leaders of Boston’s tech community, many of whom have long championed programs such as GEIR, are excited about the prospect of fresh talent developing cutting-edge ideas right in their backyard. Jeff Bussgang, partner at Flybridge Capital Partners, an investment firm based in Boston, praised the program as “a fantastic development … to have [Babson College] launch a global entrepreneurship program is a tremendous endorsement and lends a huge amount of credibility to the initiative. [See Mayor Walsh, Kerry Healey Announce Babson’s Global Entrepreneur in Residence Program, by Olivia Vanni, BostInno, 15.Jun.2016.]

The launching of the GEIR program at Babson College, only a few months after the kickoff of the program in New York City, is a very encouraging sign indeed. Hopefully, more colleges and universities around the country will develop similar programs, in the near future, to keep talented, hardworking entrepreneurs in the United States. The future of our tech industry may very well depend on it.

 

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