making the move to LA help?
 

Hiya. Ive just graduated from uni and really want to move to LA to pursue a career in marketing/advertising. have researched the areas and everything but now need some info on work visas/green cards.

is it easy for a graduate to attain one of these? i think i need an H1B- does anyone know how long these take to acquire (if i can get one at all!!)

also, i was wondering if any other brits live out in LA and what you may think of it, which are the best places to live (safe-ish but also not too pricey) ive heard santa monica and encino etc are quite good?

thanks
emma :)

Re: making the move to LA help?
 

First you need info on work visas. If you are lucky enough to get one, perhaps it will lead eventually to a green card. But first, you need the visa.

From what I understand, no, it's not easy...especially for a new grad, and especially in a declining economy.

First you need to have a company willing to hire you and sponsor your visa. Do you have that yet? I believe there are still H1B visas available this year, so if you have an employer who is interested, get them on top of it quickly! If it works out, you could be here in the USA by October 2009.

Rene

Re: making the move to LA help?
 

ah thanks, yeah i think i saw that there are about 20,000 left for this year. i thought as much....the work visa info sites say students can get them, but then i couldnt find much info on that

Re: making the move to LA help?
 

What do you consider not too pricey? My husband rents a very old 1-bedroom, 1-bathroom, approximately 600 SF apartment in West Hollywood for $1,300 a month.

I have a feeling Santa Monica would be at least that, if not higher....not sure about Encino.

Rene

Re: making the move to LA help?
 

well im actually looking in to getting a room mate, at least for the first year or two while im out there, dont mind shacking up with people, having been a student for 3 years. i dont know im think roughly $750 ish a month. reckon thats realsitic as my share for a two bed apartment somewhere in LA? not too fussed on location, as long as its fairly central. is west hollywood a good place to be?

Re: making the move to LA help?
 

don't worry about houses or prices or rent.


worry about getting a visa.

I think your chances are slim at best.

your chances of moving to the USA are a little less bleak if you don't concentrate on one urban area.

Re: making the move to LA help?
 

You aren't sectionb1977 are you? Sentence construction and grammar are suspiciously similar.... :rofl:

Re: making the move to LA help?
 

flatshare on a 2 bedroom and your thinking of spending $750 a month? I think your dreaming...even in a flee pit...but don't forget utilities won't be cheap either.

But anyway, as mentioned, the visa is your main issue...there might be H1B's available, but you've got about a snots chance of getting one without have loads of experience because, well there's just loads of experienced marketing bods already here looking for work.

Might be able to blag a J1 intern type deal? Pay would be even worse though..

Have a look at the wiki up top for your other visa options, but they would be a bit bleak.

Re: making the move to LA help?
 

Houston's nice!

Re: making the move to LA help?
 

thankyou all for your constructive criticism, much appreciated. obviously, when i have been replying to messages, my grammar had slipped on one occassion, but rest assured, i am not another respondent.

i know that chances are slim with the visa situation, but i am not expecting this to happen within 2 months, it is an ongoing process that i am hoping to fulfill, hopefully like the rest of you did?

i have recieved a job in a top ad agency in london, i was wondering what any of you thought the recommeded time would be to look for applying abroad?

Please i only want helpfull replies, i know that it is hard to get a visa, i have looked into this thoroughly, i would just like advice from those that have gone through similar experiences? i am fully aware of the downfalls and set backs, but please, just helpfull information?

Re: making the move to LA help?
 

From what I've read on these forums over the years, it seems coming to the USA usually falls into someone's lap...here are a few examples that I've seen:

1. Someone gets headhunted
2. Someone meets a USC and immigrates based on marriage
3. Someone works for a company overseas already that has US offices and gets transferred
4. Someone comes to the USA as a student and ends up marrying a USC
5. Someone wins the DV lottery

The ones I've seen who actually pursue a way to the USA themselves, find themselves in a much tougher situation than those who were NOT planning to come to the USA, until circumstances gave them a chance, and they went for it, out of the blue.

By all means, keep looking into it. Perhaps at this time, your best bet is to work in the UK for a firm that has US offices, and work towards a transfer to the USA in the next year or two.

Rene

Re: making the move to LA help?
 

Noorah about has it covered there, thats most peoples situation...

Re: making the move to LA help?
 

Marry a yank or spend years getting worth while experience.

Even if you worked at a place that could transfer you, to justify the cost you'd have to have niche skills or company knowledge and again, just like the H1, that's not likely to happen these days.

Who knows what it might be like in 5 or 10 years time, but as a fresh grad with no experience, I wouldn't expect to get here any sooner than in that time frame if your looking to get here via work.

Look into J1 and see how feasible that could be to get a bit of time over here perhaps.

Why LA though? Sure it's a bit area for the field, but there's other areas you could look into, NY and Boston have a fair bit of marketing firms and possibly less competition so maybe possibly more chance....marginal though.

Re: making the move to LA help?
 

thankyou for your replies.
i chose LA in particular because, like you said yes it does have a large marketing/advertising field.
I was thinking about new york but have heard that it is even more pricey than LA.
i have been on holiday to LA before (yes i no it is probably completely different living there than holidaying there, like most places) but i really liked the place and wanted somewhere young to base myself. theres probably thousands upon thousands of other cities that would be perfect but where to start!!

Re: making the move to LA help?
 

by far your best option would be to work for a large company with offices in London and LA/NYC, and then after a couple of years try and get a transfer. I'm not in the same business as you, but thats what i did. In fact, of all the english people I know over here (10+) I dont know anyone on an H1B, they all came over as transfers (L1A/B)