Hello everybody, I am so glad to be sitting here today while writing my first blog about who I am, how I ended up coming to the USA as an intern, and how the whole visa process went.
So first, I am currently a civil engineering student in France. after two years of preparatory classes, I was admitted to «Ecole des ponts et chaussées» which is one of the most prestigious engineering schools in France known specifically for being a leader in the civil engineering domain. Having a strong interest in physics and mechanics and being particularly interested in coastal areas and port infrastructure, civil engineering seemes like the natural choice for a major. In my univerity, there is a great opportunity to pursue a gap year in order to do internships for the whole year and gain experience. I thought this opportunity makes sense as I do want to gain experience abroad in structural engineering in a company setting as I may work as a researcher later in my career.
Since I wanted to gain international experience, an English speaking country was a must as I am interested in mastering english in a professional setting. After checking last years internships in my school portal, I noticed some of the alumnis who did their internships in the USA had great feedback to share. I ended up contacting one of these companies as it was very praised by students, Gilsanz Murray Stecifek (GMSllp) which had in my view everything I was looking for in a one-year internship program. I passed the interview and the test with success, which led to the job offer by the company. I did also choose the L.A. office as I am more interested in the dynamics of structures and seismic design which is more important in a city prone to earthquakes.
After accepting the offer letter, the company recommended Architect-US for sponsoring my visa. I had some concerns about the visa process, as at that time, all J-1 visa applications were postponed with a strict new protocole being implemented afterwards. All in all, the process in itself was not complicated as Achitect-US did a great job simplifying all the procedures. However, it did take more time than expected as from my side, I did not send all the required documents fast enough, and also the company visit has taken some time as I was told. After that, finding an appointemnt in the embassy was the hardest and most stressful part of the process as there were no availabilities before my program starting day, and the urgent appointment request has been denied, so I had to check everyday, multiple times a day until miraculously, I reschedueled my appointment and thereafter the embassy process was very fast and efficient as I received my passport the day after my interview.
All in all, I am so glad I picked Architect-US as my sponsor as they provide all the information that you need and support the interns during the whole process, and a special thanks to Georgiana who was the person responsible for my application. I look forward to having a great experience in Los Angeles, to gain experience in my domain and grow as a person while discovering the magic of the city.
