Have you ever dream of taking a break before starting to work like there's no tomorrow? Especially after 3 or 4 years of hectic life at university!
Yeah, I did! XD
Thankfully, my parents actually supported me for this crazy idea!
First of all, you have to be a full time student, or recent university graduate of no more than 6months!
So if you don't fall in any of the 2 categories above, I'm sorry but you probably can't participate in this program.
This program runs twice a year which is the summer or winter program. You can choose to go anytime you want depending on your semester break or so.
So, here comes the preparation part!
Firstly, there are 3 different agencies that are doing this WAT USA program in Malaysia! They will help you throughout the entire preparation process, for example they will have all the documents ready for US J1 visa application and briefing before fly.
Basically, OOTB and speedwing have a similar list of US companies to choose from while IA has a kinda different list of US companies! So check them out using the links above!
The program fee etc. is more or less the same for all 3 companies, which means you need at least RM10k to participate in this program.
The agent that I chose was speedwing so I can tell you more about this agent! Well, there was no specific reason why I chose this though. It just happened XD
So, here is the procedure!
1. Get the US company list that are participating in this program from any of the 3agencies
2. Select the job offered by any of the US company on the list. (Select a few options because some can be fully occupied) This process takes the longest time of all because the agency needs to confirm with the US sponsors if they're full or not etc and it's all communicated via email, so it's extremely slow
TIPS aka things to consider: Will the minimum wage be enough to support your travel (E.g. 32hours per week * your minimum wage) or is there any possibility to find second job around your area.
3. Agency will arrange interview (it can be face-to-face interview if the US company has roadshow in KL, or Skype interview)
4. Wait for the interview result! If you get the job, they will send you a job offer letter and you will need to pay the remaining balance of the program fee!
Here is the payment breakdown for this program.
I paid a total of USD1205 upon job confirmation (including USD100 for deposit)
5. US visa interview at US embassy
Apparently there was a queue and you could only go in during your scheduled time. So be there on time! Oh and they will give you a brochure at counter 1 about your rights in US etc. Just go through that because the officer might ask you something about that.
After going through all these, you can finally purchase your flight ticket and settle your accommodation if they don't provide any.
Skyscanner
Google Flights
Kayak
Skyscanner
Google Flights
Kayak
(PS: nope I took the flight before the controversial thing happened XD)
And you're all set! :D
