Foreigners applying for jobs in the U.S.

[Canadian]

I cannot find any threads on applying for jobs in the U.S., only about people applying for jobs in Canada from the U.K. The job market in Canada is not very good, and I was wondering if anyone from Canada has been able to secure employment at any colleges or liberal arts schools in the U.S., and if so, how long did the visa process take (approximately 3 months or longer)? Any advice would be helpful. Out of the three jobs I applied for in the U.S. this year, I did in fact get two interviews. The U.S. has many more job postings and teaching schools (or liberal arts schools) in comparison to Canada. I would like to apply for more jobs in the U.S., but I am not sure if it will be a waste of time. Are there any pros and cons I should know about? 

[doit]

It is fairly easy as a foreigner to get a job in the US, though it does have its set of challenges.
The easiest way to get authorization here in the US is if you finished your degree in the US. In that case, you can apply for an OPT, which will allow you to work up to a year without having to worry about visas.
Without an OPT, or if your OPT is expiring, a school that hires you can apply for an H1B. Faculty positions are exempt from yearly quotas, so it can be applied for at any time. Depending on when you are hired, your options will be different. Regular processing for an H1B can take anywhere from 3 to 6 months, so if you are hired in the fall it shouldn't be an issue. Any later, and you can pay for expedited processing, which would cost a little over 1k, and would be processed in 15 days.

The main issue to keep in mind is that larger and more resource rich schools will have bigger international offices and will be used to dealing with this. Smaller schools might not, and that might either mean that they will be figuring it out as it goes, or that they might not sponsor applicants at all. I've had to turn down one postdoc and one faculty position because the former wouldn't sponsor visas and the latter would be willing to sign paperwork, but would not pay any fees and I'd be on my own to hire an immigration lawyer. If the jobs you are applying to are R1s or top SLACs, those would have no problems sponsoring you. Smaller ones may have more issues, but those are things that would likely come up at the offer stage, so apply away.

[Thanks]

Thanks for the information and advice. I would pay the 2K, if it means I would be employed. I do not have a graduate background in fields like criminology, gender and family, or medical sociology, so my job options are pretty limited.