Hi reader!
Now that my J-1 Visa is approved, I can finally tell you about my experience this past few months.
THE ANTICIPATION
My journey began on March, as a recent graduate of 2 days who happens to see a publication from Architect-Us on IG. My first thought, as many of you may think was; this is a scam. I’m from Valparaíso, a beautiful but small city in the coast of Chile, How I could even dream to go in this journey? It looked so amazing and different of what I knew, with so many possibilities to learn and to bring back, that obviously that couldn’t be real. It was real, very real.
Firstly, I started to ask, Georgiana was an amazing help with all my doubts, with anything that I ask, she patiently would answer very fast. I started to plan my next moves, to contact other participants, to getting familiar with the program, the documents and to follow their advice. In June I become part of the pool of candidates.
THE PROCESS OF APPLYING
The months pass and with the summer, everything went slow, companies in general were taking more time in reviewing candidates, in doing interviews, etc. My anxiety was playing with my head, but Georgiana, Pati and Santa handle everything with so much patience and a positive spirit because they knew it was all going to be worth in the end. At the end of September an amazing office in New Jersey (very close to NYC too) show interest in my work and 3 weeks later I had an official offer. This was an amazing moment, as I already have been to New Jersey and New York just the year before, and I love it.
THE VISA
The process of the VISA started very fast, with a lot of intructions and ways to go. They handle almost everything at first if you sent the documents and they are telling you about all the process as it happens, an then it’s on you the embassy appoinment and process. With everything approved now, my advice in the burocraty process;
- Have everything researched beforehand, that way it’s easier to start the process as soon as possible.
- If you have to do the payment and it’s international, call your bank or you provider before! Many banks have a lot of possibilities, but is likely that you may need to call them before anything.
- You are in charge of your appointment to the Embassy, keep calm and be honest, it can be very intimidating but asking before the interview is the way to go! Also, don’t believe everything that you see on Tiktok, the process for the J-1 can be very different than other Visas, trust Architect-US and the sponsor.
Finally I’m waiting for my documents, and starting to plan my first days and weeks in the States. I’m really excited and I hope to write again very soon, but as an Architect in IAE!
