# Moving to USA



## mortalcyrax (Jan 10, 2011)

Hi all,

I am a 17yo turning 18, australian citizen trying to move to USA.
I am looking for the best route for me to take to live/work there permanently. I will begin a Bachelor's Degree in Games Design this year that will take three years to complete.

I am wondering if I should either complete the course here in Australia and then do my Masters in America on an F-1 Visa. Hopefully whilst studying I can search for work there. 

OR

If I should do my Bachelor's Degree in America.

Are there any other options I can take to live/work there.

I have no immediate family over in America nor do I wish to get married to a US citizen.

Thank you for the help


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## mortalcyrax (Jan 10, 2011)

Is it easier finding a job there with a US degree rather than an Australian degree?

I do not think that I am missing any information but if I am, I would be happy to add it.


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## twostep (Apr 3, 2008)

Have you read through the stickies and uscis.gov to learn about US visa requirements? 

Have you done some research about college/university admission for international students in the US? Are you prepared to make the financial committment?

You can search for jobs but a) it is very unlikely for an employer to sponsor a visa to a brand new graduate b) it is a very popular route thus heavy competiton.


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## mortalcyrax (Jan 10, 2011)

twostep said:


> Have you read through the stickies and uscis.gov to learn about US visa requirements?
> 
> Have you done some research about college/university admission for international students in the US? Are you prepared to make the financial committment?
> 
> You can search for jobs but a) it is very unlikely for an employer to sponsor a visa to a brand new graduate b) it is a very popular route thus heavy competiton.


I have read through the stickies and I know which visas I can apply for.

If I were to complete my studies in Australia, I could apply for a J-1(internship in usa) or *try* and line up a job so that a company can sponsor my E-3/H1-B.

If I were to apply for a F-1 visa and attend a college/university there, I need to have at least all of my first year expenses covered (tuition, books, living expenses), right?


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

To get back to your original question, bachelor's degrees in the US are usually 4 year programs (which include two years of general studies). You may have to hunt around a bit to find a university that offers Games Design as a major. You're more likely to find that in the US at a "technical college" or private training school (and those programs can be dreadfully expensive). 

Your chances for getting admission in the US to a university program with any sort of financial aid are probably better at the master's level than as an undergraduate - though that depends on the subject area and how the university evaluates your Australian degree.
Cheers,
Bev


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## mortalcyrax (Jan 10, 2011)

Bevdeforges said:


> To get back to your original question, bachelor's degrees in the US are usually 4 year programs (which include two years of general studies). You may have to hunt around a bit to find a university that offers Games Design as a major. You're more likely to find that in the US at a "technical college" or private training school (and those programs can be dreadfully expensive).
> 
> Your chances for getting admission in the US to a university program with any sort of financial aid are probably better at the master's level than as an undergraduate - though that depends on the subject area and how the university evaluates your Australian degree.
> Cheers,
> Bev


Is it easy to upgrade from a F-1 visa whilst in the US? How much money would I need for them to even accept my visa, I heard it was about 1 year's worth of expenses which would be about, $30,000-40,000 USD, is this right?


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## twostep (Apr 3, 2008)

mortalcyrax said:


> Is it easy to upgrade from a F-1 visa whilst in the US? How much money would I need for them to even accept my visa, I heard it was about 1 year's worth of expenses which would be about, $30,000-40,000 USD, is this right?


It depends on tuition/books/living expenses. There is a wide range. The data is a bit out of datebut it gives you a start. Best Colleges - Education - US News


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

mortalcyrax said:


> Is it easy to upgrade from a F-1 visa whilst in the US? How much money would I need for them to even accept my visa, I heard it was about 1 year's worth of expenses which would be about, $30,000-40,000 USD, is this right?


It also depends a bit on what you mean by "upgrading" your visa. Student visas are notorious for requiring that you return home after the visa expires. There are, of course, exceptions, but generally speaking it can be difficult to impossible to change visa status while remaining in the US. 

Any school you apply to for admission should be able to give you information about visa requirements (financial or otherwise) if they are able to sponsor your visa application. If the school blows you off when you ask about visas, it's a real warning sign. 
Cheers,
Bev


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## mortalcyrax (Jan 10, 2011)

Thank you for answers, but I have a few more questions.

So it is very unlikely to go from a F-1 visa to a E-3/H1-B visa(If i found work there) whilst in the US?

Would it be easier to wait a few years, to allow the job market to recover, and then try to apply for jobs from Australia with a Bachelor's Degree?


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## twostep (Apr 3, 2008)

mortalcyrax said:


> Thank you for answers, but I have a few more questions.
> 
> So it is very unlikely to go from a F-1 visa to a E-3/H1-B visa(If i found work there) whilst in the US?
> 
> Would it be easier to wait a few years, to allow the job market to recover, and then try to apply for jobs from Australia with a Bachelor's Degree?


We cannot tell you what to do or what will happen with the US job market/visa requirements. 
Step onto the other side of the fence and make a call - what will you bring to the table for a US employer at what point in your life? It is called sales. You have to sell your skill sets.


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## mortalcyrax (Jan 10, 2011)

twostep said:


> We cannot tell you what to do or what will happen with the US job market/visa requirements.
> Step onto the other side of the fence and make a call - what will you bring to the table for a US employer at what point in your life? It is called sales. You have to sell your skill sets.


Thank you for the information, you have been really helpful


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## twostep (Apr 3, 2008)

mortalcyrax said:


> Thank you for the information, you have been really helpful


Network, network, network! Make facetime with teachers, assistants, research companies you will target in the long run and get in touch with their college recruiters, their in-house mentors. That is the way the game gets played in the US. If you need help - PM me. I will be out of pocket next week but this will be an ongoing project.


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## space_junk (Nov 2, 2010)

*sponsorship*

At the moment the job market here is not that great in general, where I live in Boston things are not so bad, even for IT jobs. 
Just my 2 cents but:
Unless you really have your heart set on that games programming degree I'd look more towards CS or MIS or something. Esp if the degree is from a private small for profit school. 
Second, if you really want to find a visa sponsor here your best bets are going to be finding an internship in college here or looking for a job in a place where you dont find too many IT guys wanting to live. 
For example, before I lived here in Boston I lived in a small town in central Wisconsin, mostly farmers there. There was a trucking company based there and they just couldnt find programmers willing to move to the middle of the frozen nowhere so they sponsored about 1/2 the employees from India.
Anyway just my opinions.


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