Here are the 20 US universities whose graduates can now move to the UK without a job offer

Recent graduates from 20 US universities will be able to apply for a visa to live and work in the UK for up to three years without having a job offer on the table. The UK immigration system has been updated to attract highly skilled workers to the country.

Before moving to the UK, US citizens typically need a UK-based firm to provide a concrete job offer and agree to sponsor their work visa paperwork.

The UK government has an annual list of what it considers to be the best 50 universities in the world. Each institution must have appeared on two of three global rankings in order to qualify for that list.

The UK government has a list of US universities. Europe and Asia are where most of the other universities are located.

A two year visa is available for graduates with a masters degree, while a PhD can stay for three years. A person can apply for a different visa scheme once the visa expires.

There are other conditions. The applicants need to be proficient in English. They need to show that they can support themselves with at least 1,270 dollars in available funds. The visa costs $903. The National Health Service in the UK will cost up to $2,035 for applicants.

The visa change is part of the UK's new points-based immigration system

Since leaving the European Union in January 2021, the British government has changed its immigration policy towards a points-based system.

The system requires visa applicants to accumulate 70 points in order to be granted skilled worker status. The points are calculated based on factors such as a person's qualifications, the type of job they are applying for, and the amount they will be paid.

It wants to attract highly skilled candidates for tech, startup and finance roles.

The chancellor of the exchequer said that the new visa offer means that the UK can continue to attract the best and brightest from across the globe. Previously, foreign nationals who graduated from a British university had to leave within four months of completion, but now they can stay for two years.

Some people have criticized the plans. Christopher Trisos, director and senior researcher at South Africa's University of Cape Town, said that there were no African, South Asian, or Latin American institutions on the UK's list.

If the UK wants to address problems like the climate crisis, energy access, and future pandemics, it should recognize the specialist skills and knowledge held by graduates in developing countries, warned Trisos.

Included on the list are the following 20 US universities, in alphabetical order: 

• California Institute of Technology (Caltech)

• Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)

• New York University (NYU)

• University of California Berkeley

• University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA)

• University of California, San Diego

• University of Michigan-Ann Arbor

• University of Pennsylvania

• University of Texas at Austin

The full list can be found on the UK Government website.