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I know a Ukrainian woman who has married a US citizen. Given the security and economic situation in Ukraine, she and her spouse are working on getting her a green card so they can move to the US. However, she is reluctant, as she is afraid that she won't be able to get a job.

She graduated from Lviv Polytechnic University with a degree in Logistics and has been working as a software development project manager for more than 10 years. She has a history of working with foreign (non-Ukrainian) clients in English, in which she is fluent. For the past two years, she has been serving as the scrum master for a team of Ukrainian software developers working on an application for a US company, and so spends much of her time communicating with American clients in English.

Given that she has a degree from probably the most prestigious technical institution in her country, a tremendous amount of work experience in a managerial role in software development, and significant experience working directly with Americans in English, I think she should have a good work outlook in the US. Am I being too optimistic?

To restate the question: will hiring managers and recruiters view her education and experience as not relevant, given that it occurred in Ukraine, or does she stand a reasonable chance of continuing her career in software development after immigrating?

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    As always: some will view it as equivalent. Some won't. There is no universal truth.
    – Philip Kendall
    Commented May 8, 2022 at 10:36
  • @PhilipKendall Yes, obviously there is going to be some variance. I'm hoping to get some insight from professionals involved in this process as to general standards. Is it worthless and she might as well apply as a cashier, or does it have some value so she stands a reasonable chance at continuing her career?
    – DCShannon
    Commented May 8, 2022 at 10:49
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    @DCShannon There is going to be so much variance that's it's really pointless to speculate. Even if it's worth speculating, I don't think this Ukrainian person should decide no apply based upon the perception of not having a reasonable chance. Apart from a bit of time, what have they got to lose?
    – Gregory Currie
    Commented May 8, 2022 at 11:34
  • @GregoryCurrie Well that's not very reassuring. Even if there's a large amount of variance per company, one would hope that enough companies would respect foreign work experience that a general statement could be made about the industry. As far as things to lose: current job, money to relocate, time spent furthering a career, mental health.
    – DCShannon
    Commented May 8, 2022 at 12:05
  • @DCShannon so those "losses" can be positves: better new job, relocating to better environment, career furthered and better mental health from better position all round.
    – Solar Mike
    Commented May 8, 2022 at 13:01

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From all I ever heard, software developers from the Ukraine have an excellent reputation. And many people will assume that a woman, uprooted from Ukraine, with her experience, will be a tough cookie who won’t be impressed by any difficulty in her job.

Add to that that right now any company will gladly announce to the world that they just hired a woman from the Ukraine. So they look good to the world, and get a good employee. Her chances are excellent.

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