A letter from us to you

I hope this finds you well — though I understand if it doesn't. If you're refreshing your inbox at 2 AM wondering why 200 applications produced two responses, I have been exactly there.

47 days left on OPT. A master's degree. Three years of experience. A portfolio I was proud of. And complete, deafening silence from a system that was never designed with people like us in mind.

The job market doesn't need you to work harder. It needs you to be positioned differently — with someone in your corner who understands not just careers, but the specific, urgent weight of a visa clock ticking down.

We built ScaleUp because we lived this problem. Not to build another career tool — but to build the team we desperately needed and couldn't find.

You don't have to do this alone.
— The ScaleUp Team

The ScaleUp Team

Built by international students • 2,000+ placements

"I had 6 weeks left on my OPT when I started with ScaleUp. I thought it was over. They got me an offer with 3 weeks to spare. That's not a service — that's everything."

M. MadanData Engineer • Hired in 3 weeks

About ScaleUp

Not just built for you.

Built by people who have been exactly where you are — on a visa clock, qualified, invisible, and running out of time.

ScaleUp is a career engineering firm for international students in the U.S. job market. One dedicated human advocate. Precision targeting. Referral engineering. Salary negotiation. The full system — not advice, execution.

2,000+Professionals placed in the U.S.
job market

30dAverage days from start to offer
received

94%Get interview calls within 2
weeks

$40KAverage salary uplift via
negotiation

OPT & STEM OPTTech & Non-Tech30-Day GuaranteeNamed Advocate

Where we came from

Not built in a
boardroom.Built at 3 AM
on a visa clock.

The founder had 47 days left on OPT. 200+ applications sent. Two callbacks — both ghosted. A master's degree. Three years of experience. And complete silence from a system that processes candidates, not people.

The breaking point wasn't the rejections. It was the silence. The 98% non-response rate that makes you question your worth, your degree, your entire trajectory. Learned helplessness — induced by a broken system.

"I wasn't under-qualified. I was under-positioned. No one told me the game wasn't just about applying — it was about who applied on your behalf, how they positioned you, and whether you had a team running in the background while you slept."

So we built that team. Not as a hack — as a movement. For everyone who has ever refreshed their inbox at 2 AM hoping for a response that never came.

From 47 days on OPT → 2,000+ placements

'22

Deep Discovery & Positioning Audit

47 days left on OPT. 200+ applications. 2 callbacks. Both ghosted. The system was broken — and we decided to fix it from the inside.

Moment zero

'23

The First Advocate Model

Built the first human-advocate system — a dedicated person who applied on your behalf, engineered referrals, and handled execution while you slept. 5 interviews in Week 1.

The idea that worked

'24

The Full Team Forms

Divina, Nitti, Kshitiz, and Sagar joined. Referral engineering, LinkedIn optimization, and interview prep systems were built and refined. 94% interview rate hit.

Team assembled

'25

Salary Negotiation Added

Average $40K uplift per client through structured negotiation. OPT fast-track playbook codified. Non-tech track launched alongside tech.

System matured

Now

2,000+ Placements. Still Going.

16 specialists. 30-day guarantee. Zero-fluff model. Still answering WhatsApps at 11 PM. Still personally invested in every single outcome.

Today

What we believe

Three beliefs that
drive everything we do

Not values written for a pitch deck. Convictions built from 2,000+ placements, 200+ failed applications before that, and every 11 PM WhatsApp in between.

The silence is not about you

A 98% non-response rate is a system failure, not a personal one. The ATS black hole, the recruiter queue, the referral gap — these are structural barriers. We fix structural problems with structural solutions: a dedicated human who navigates the system on your behalf, every day.

Referrals change everything

Cold applications: 2% response rate. Referred candidates: 40%+. That 38-point gap isn't luck — it's access. We exist to close that gap for every international student, not just those with a well-connected alumni network. Referral engineering isn't a bonus — it's the core.

Advocacy is a right, not a luxury

Every well-positioned candidate has an informal team — mentors, alumni, well-networked friends. ScaleUp formalizes that for everyone. Your background, your network, your visa status — none of these should determine whether you get to compete. That's not idealism. That's what we show up to do every day.

"We're not another career tool. We're a protest against the idea
that finding work has to be isolating, traumatic, and systematically biased."

Our Team

The people who will
actually work for you

Not faceless VAs. Named specialists with real client outcomes. You'll know their name before the end of your first day — because they'll message you first.

Divina R.

Career Coach & Student Success
Specialist

LinkedIn & Profile Optimization

"Rohan's profile views went 5× in 2
weeks after our session."

Nitti M.

Student Success Manager & Interview
Coach

Interview Prep & STAR Method

"Bhavya walked out with $22K more
because she knew exactly how to
answer every question."

Kshitiz S.

Career Advocate & Application Lead

Job Applications & Recruiter Outreach

"I apply while you prep. V. Jain got an
offer without spending a single hour on
job boards."

Sagar

Senior Technical Mentor

Data Analytics / ML Interview Prep

"Tanmay failed 3 technical rounds
before working with me. Passed every
one after."

+12

12 more specialists across software engineering, data engineering, business analytics, product management, non-tech roles, and salary negotiation.
Every client is matched to the right expert for their industry and visa situation.

Our impact

The numbers that
tell the story

Every stat is a real person who got their offer, their confidence, and their future back.

2,000+

Professionals placed in the U.S. job
market since founding

94%

Get interview calls within 2 weeks
of starting with ScaleUp

30d

Average days from advocate
assignment to offer received

$40K

Average salary uplift through
ScaleUp's negotiation system

Speed as strategy

Applications in first 24–48 hours get
15–20% more responses. We start
Day 1, not Week 3.

Radical proof-of-work

Time-stamped screenshots of every
application. WhatsApp updates in
real time. Zero black boxes.

Built OPT-first

Every timeline, every strategy, every
referral outreach is calibrated around
your visa deadline — not industry
averages.

The Founder

Built ScaleUp from 47 days on OPT

Available for 1:1 calls

"I don't take calls to sell you. I take them because I remember exactly what 47 days on OPT feels like — and I want to tell you honestly whether ScaleUp is right for your situation. If it's not, I'll tell you that too."

Book a free 30-min strategy call

Ready when you are

You know who we are.
Now let's get you hired.

2,000+ placements. A team of 16 specialists. A model built from 47 days on OPT and the determination to make sure no international student has to face that alone again.

The call is free. The conversation is honest. If ScaleUp is right for you, we'll tell you how. If it's not, we'll tell you that instead.

Book Free Strategy Call See How It Works

Results in 30 days or we keep working — at no extra cost

Ready to stop applying
and start getting hired?

Book a free 30-minute strategy call. No pitch, no pressure — just a clear picture of what's blocking you and how we fix it. Your advocate starts within 24 hours.

✓

Advocate assigned in 24 hours

Process starts immediately after the call

✓

30-day results guarantee

Results or we keep working at no extra cost

✓

OPT / STEM OPT specialists

Compressed timelines built into every plan

✓

Average +$40K salary uplift

100% of clients negotiate. It always works.

Book Your Free
Strategy Call

Takes 60 seconds. No spam ever.

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