Work and travel is a very popular program that allows you to live and work in the USA. As long as you qualify for a J1 visa, there are lots of different job opportunities across the United States that you can apply for. My friend Iva, who is from Croatia, spent a summer working and traveling in the US and loved her experienced. To understand the process of how work and travel works and what it’s really like to live and work in the USA, I interviewed her about her experience.

What it’s Like on a Work and Travel Program in the USA: An Interview

What is the USA work and travel program?

A: Work and travel is the name of the program that allows international students to work in the USA. You have sponsor companies that work with the US visa sponsors who work with the US state department. All of this is under Bridge USA, the cultural exchange programs. 

How does work and travel work?

A: The work and travel system goes like this; We have sponsor agencies in our home country. Most people that work and travel have two sponsor agencies, one in their home country and the other one is a US sponsor. 

You have a US sponsor, which is an organization that is helping you to obtain a work permit. They are helping you get all those documents that you need and they are in communication with the US state department. We also have a host company which is actually the company where we are going to work for. 

What sponsor do you apply to first?

A: First we applied to a sponsor in our country and then they helped us with getting a job, getting visa, and everything else. If you don’t have a job offer then it’s easier to do that first. If you have connections or already know where you can work, you can apply by yourself to just the US sponsor.

How do you find a sponsor? 

A: There are a lot of US visa sponsors. Right now, for my second work and travel program, I’m with CETUSA. I know there is CCUSA, Intrax, Global Exchange… there are a lot of them. You can use google, Facebook groups, or social media to search for them and figure out what works for the best for you. Mostly they are all the same.

When we applied to our sponsor in our country they were directly working with Intrax (a US visa sponsor). So we were automatically working with them too, because that’s who our country sponsor works with. 

Are there any USA sponsors you recommend? 

A: We didn’t have any problems with Intrax. That was our sponsor. 

I heard that CCUSA is not that good unless you already have a job and know where you are going to be working. They are not that supportive and don’t help you much during the program or when you are applying for jobs. But, they are cheaper so that is why everyone chooses them. 

For internships, my current sponsor CETUSA, is good because they have a lot of job opportunities. Every sponsor has opportunities in the hospitality field but if you are searching for something more specific… for example I’m a psychologist and I was looking for something that was more to do with my field of study… a lot of visa sponsors couldn’t find me an opportunity. But CETUSA has more opportunities for different areas.

What qualifications do you need to join the work and travel program?

A: For work and travel you need to be a student and you need to be enrolled. Some people enroll in college just to go work and travel. I had a colleague from Romania who finished college but just enrolled again to come work and travel in the USA.

You need to qualify for a J1 visa and it’s considered a cultural exchange visa. They don’t like to call this work, it’s “cultural exchange.” You are training, or learning, or something like that. I get it… but it’s work. It’s no different than regular work.

How much does the work and travel program cost? 

A: It’s a lot. The program was around $2,000 USD. In total I spent around €4,000 EUR.

The visa is not included and you have to pay $185 USD in visa fees. You have to pay for your plane ticket and that was around €700 EUR for a return ticket. Then you need to bring allowance to buy things and cover rent until you get your first paycheck.

It’s best to bring at least $1,000 USD because customs can ask you if you have enough money and that is the minimum you should have. They never asked me and I didn’t hear many people say they were asked that question but it depends on where you come from.

Some banks in our country even give student loans then return it after you finish your program. I did not do that because I was already planning to go to the USA so I had that money saved. 

When should you apply?

A: We actually applied late because we applied in December. A lot of people apply in September, that’s when the slots are open.

How do you choose a job and work location in the USA?

A: Your sponsor sends you a list of available work positions all over the USA, depending on what they have at the moment. You apply for one job from that list.

The sponsor has like 200 [applicants] that are applying for summer work and travel. If you say “I want this job” then they book an interview just for you. So, someone else needs to pick another job. 

If the host company (the person you are going to work for) does not choose you [after the interview] then the sponsor can send another person for an interview. That process lasts for a few months. It goes slowly. You know a few months in advance that either you got the job or not, so you have time to choose another job if you don’t like the one you interviewed for. 

What was your job like?

A: We were working in a grocery store doing night shifts. We would work from 2:30pm till 10:00pm. We were working in the produce but we were making fruit salads. 

We found a second job in a resort when we came to the US. It was in a beach resort as kids club associates. Basically, people send their kids to hang out with us and then we would make sand castles, drawing, arts and crafts, etc… We were working from 8:00am till 2:00pm… so we had half an hour in between to get from the beach resort to the grocery store. 

We didn’t get burned out, it was pretty relaxed. At the grocery store during peak season we got a little tired but not much. 

Why did you work two jobs? 

A: We wanted more money. We would survive with just one job but then we would not be able to travel because we were paying rent and groceries and everything else. It’s best to work a few jobs. Some people work three jobs and that’s normal for work and travel. The point is to come, earn as much as you can, and then travel during your one month grace period.

How much money did you make?  Was it enough to live in the USA?

A: Defiantly. We would not come here if it wasn’t enough. I can’t remember how much we were paid, I think it was $7 USD per hour? Usually, in Europe, you receive your pay monthly and here is every week or every two weeks. When we were working here we got our pay every week.

Are you guaranteed to make minimum wage? 

A: Yeah, but some places offer you more. You can make $25 USD/hr depending on your job. Some places offer $5/hr plus tips. It can be a good thing but it can be a bad thing.

What did you do with your time off?

A: Mostly it would be cooking, cleaning, doing laundry… but we also explored the area. We had some colleagues that had cars and would take us to Boston or other cities. We would go to a lot of beach parties. We didn’t sleep a lot because we were just trying to make the most of our time here. 

How did you find housing? 

A: We had to find a place by ourselves. We spent a few months researching Facebook and other groups to find housing. That did not work.

Our host company [the company we worked for,] actually helped us. They don’t offer housing but they have contacts with some people that are used to housing J1 students. So they sent us a list of people that rent to J1 students. That’s how we found our house for the summer.

When you get the job description from your sponsor you can see if the company is offering housing. If that is important for you then choose a job that offers you housing.

How did you set up a US phone number? 

A: Our sponsor from our country gave us SIM cards, but I ended up getting an E-SIM because its easier. 

How did you set up a bank account? 

A: Our sponsor gave us recommendations but they won’t tell you what one you need to go with, it’s something you need to decide for yourself.

You just need to bring a passport and your social security card… that can be the trickiest part because when you come to the US you don’t get your social security card right away. You need to be 10 days in the states to apply for a social security card and you wait like 2 weeks for it to arrive and then you can bring it to your bank. Some banks will allow you to open an account without social security card but then you need to bring it to them later. 

What were taxes like?

A: We paid a federal tax and state tax but we don’t pay medical tax… it gets deducted from our paycheck. It’s easy to file taxes because there are companies that do that. We reached out to a company. A lot of people do it by themselves, but we were too scared because we thought we would mess something up. 

What were the biggest cultural differences you experienced in America? 

A: There are small details that you notice when you come here. For example, door knobs. Door knobs are round here. Windows open by pushing them up and not out… that was weird… The houses are made of wood! Everything is wood. We don’t trust wood. We have houses that are built out of brick and hard material and then we come to the US and there are houses made of wood… it looks like a doll house. 

Coffee. We have a really big coffee culture in Croatia and we usually drink espresso or really small coffees, but in the US everyone drinks large coffees. You would think that coffee is strong but its not, its watery. We missed our espressos and we couldn’t find it anywhere. The first time I had espresso in the USA was in New York in Little Italy because it was an Italian restaurant.

Here when you are paying for something, like at restaurant, if you want to pay with your card they take your card and then bring it back. In Europe, everyone has POS machine that they bring to the table.

What were the biggest differences in the work culture? 

A: We worked two jobs but we didn’t get as tired as I would get in Croatia. Because here, if you are working in a restaurant everything is divided. You have a server, busser, food runner… When I was working as a waitress in Croatia, I was bartender, host, food runner, busser, everything… I was not working in a restaurant in the USA but we noticed it. 

What was the food like?

A: At first when we tried American food it was really sweet. It has a lot of sugar in it. Even when you are eating something that’s salty it has that sugary taste. 

We didn’t have much time to cook for ourself because we were working two jobs. We just cooked things that was going to help us stay energized throughout the day. We ate a lot of junk food; Mac and cheese, sandwiches, pizzas… it wasn’t really nutritious, but we survived. 

What were the biggest pros and cons of working in the USA? 

A: A pro was clocking in and clocking out. If you are going to stay an hour longer then you are going to get paid for that hour. In Europe we don’t do clocking in and clocking out. Mostly you get paid by a fixed salary. 

Cons? You get paid more here, but everything is expensive.

What do you wish you would have known before coming to work and travel in the USA?

A: To come earlier. I’m sad that I did not come to the USA during my first year of college when I was younger. I was always thought it was too expensive and I could not afford it. I was waiting to have enough money to come here but I see now that if I took a loan then I’d be able to travel much more. 

Do you have any advice for anyone who is coming to the USA for work and travel? 

A: The biggest advice I have is to be open. Be curious and take what life offers you. The USA is a really multicultural country and you can meet people from all over the world. You can also experience a lot if you’re open to it. 

At the resort I worked at, we had a guest who asked me if I would come back next year. I told him that I needed to settle down and focus on my career. He said that after he gradated, all of his friends went traveling while he focused on a career and paying back student loans. He paid that loan back, but he grew old and retired and now he can travel but does not have the same energy he did when he was younger. So, he thinks that his friends made the better decision although it did not sound wise at the moment. 

That got me thinking…. We should not take time for granted because we will get stuck saying “I should have done that” instead of “I’m happy that I did that.”

Conclusion

Work and travel is a popular program that lets international students come work in the USA. Thank you to Iva who explained the program and shared her personal experience with work and travel. Have you worked in the USA? What was your experience like? Please share your thoughts in the comments below.