Bob

That's not really the problem, getting a visa is, when there are plenty of folks who don't need one and have experience over here already.

Which is why if he needs a visa for a job, he really needs to either have niche skills or get a company transfer.

Rickyk

I think your best route would be to get a Canadian visa (much easier than the US) go work there for a few years. Standards and experience are the same as the US and if you still want to move to the US in a few years it is relatively easy.

kins

Why are you telling me that getting a visa is the problem, when that's the first thing I said in my post?

Bob

You said at the moment.

Which is true as there aren't any H1B's available, but even if there were H1B's available, he would not really have any luck finding someone to sponsor him, without niche skills and experience.

So his options other than study, are getting niche experience, which is good regardless, or getting a company transfer, which would probably rely back on having niche skills.

An abundance of regular projects is somewhat not to relevant.

Canveydave

I work for a staffing company in Houston, we employ a fair number of British construction specialists, (and by specialists I mean people who build rigs etc).

These people are contractors to our clients, but actually employed by our company on E2 treaty visa's. It is far from the most stable way of being in the US, but many of our contractors have moved from client to client over many years.

I will be clear that they aren't chippies or sparkies, but specialized construction experts with experience in building specific oil and gas facilities.

Canveydave

This...


If I could find a British Construction Manager with Waste Water experience, willing to work in Birmingham Alabama I would be a very happy man, with one less open job to fill.

kins

...and he'd get the experience through internships while doing the Masters. No?

Bob

Not really no...I don't think anyone would bother with that kind of limited experience for a visa.

It would build up contacts for the future though.

Dorothy

How is it easier to get a visa for the US after a few years?

Rickyk

A number of ways, if you become a Canadian citizen you go the TN route. Many Canadian construction companies also do US work, L1 route. US companies are much more comfortable hiring from Canada using H1B, although with the current oversubscription they may not want to bother with H1B.

NoOfficialComment

This has been irritating me though I accept it.

I'm a chartered RIBA architect with 7 years training and 3 degrees. One of the few ocupations whos training standards are regulated by their own act of parliment. There are few, if any, countries with higher standards for Architectural education...

...and it's almost completely unrecognised in the US! Regardless of proficiency or prior industry experience it requires up to three years of retraining and sitting several state liscensing exams. It's a huge commitment just to continue what I've been doing for a decade.

It's something the RIBA have been working to resolve for a long time but with little success.

If there are any other Architects on the forum who've made the transition I'd love to hear your stories!

Thunderclap

Gosh. Although a week ago I would've been shocked (I am well aware of the rigorous academic and training requirements to receive RIBA chartership), I'm not surprised at all from the additional information I've been reading with regard to extensive requalification requirements in the US, which extends to nearly, if not, all professions.


Is RIBA recognised in Australia/New Zealand? I am aware that CIOB is and some Australasian universities offer CIOB accredited degrees.

scrubbedexpat099

My Chartered status seemingly is recognised everywhere except the US well certainly English speaking first world countries. Why should Architects be different.

RoadWarriorFromLP

Not exactly my industry, but I would presume that a major US contractor will place more weight on experience than anything else.

(Of course, there are the visa issues, as others have noted.)

The infrastructure work might be the way to go, since it is more global and specialized. But even so, you will probably need experience.

If I am not mistaken, the Canadian and NZ working holiday visas allow you to get a "real" job, at least in some circumstances. (The Aussies do not allow anything resembling professional work on a working holiday visa, last I checked.)

Your best option is probably to stay in the EU and get experience there, but perhaps the Canadians or Kiwis can provide an alternative. (Probably not what you wanted to hear, I know...)

That being said, expect a US building boom. The industry is about to go nuts.

Psyman

Pretty much the same story for me, although I'm a landscape architect (the education/qualification process in the UK is pretty much the same as for an architect). I just had to suck it up and work my way up over here. Had to work under a licensed landscape architect for several years before I could take State licensing exams. Most (all?) state Bureau's of Occupational Licenses wont recognise overseas education. It has to be from an accredited university, which will only be in the US or maybe Canada.