Applying for a visa before being issued University Degree?

[VivToronto]

I'm in my final year of University in Canada and i'm short a half credit so i'll be taking summer school - therefore i wont actually be a graduate until the october graduation. I'm looking to move to Florida to work in the hospitality industry.

If i've got job offers/sponsorship as well as a place to live can i apply for a visa before i've actually graduated?
- if not, is there a way that i can have some sort of work permit until i offically graduate?

Thanks!

Viv

[Steven]

The only relevant TN-1 category is "Hotel Manager", I'm assuming you're not likely to get a job offer for that fresh out of university.

You need an employer to sponsor you to get pretty much any type of work authorization.

The only relevant one I can think of is H-2B, which is valid for a year. However to get it the employer has to show (with proof, advertisements, etc.) they can't find anyone locally, and given the economy in the US at the moment I'd say that's next to impossible.

My advice would be to get some experience in Canada first before you try job hunting in the US. For example if you work for a hotel chain that has branches in the US and Canada for at least a year, after that you can get transferred to the US providing you have "specialized knowledge" of how that hotel chain works, on L-1B.

The only other possible category I can think of is H-1B, which is always very hard to get because of the quota.