Doing J1 On Your Own

Jim236

Thinking of doing the J1 next summer and will probs have to go over on me own. Has anyone here ever gone over for the J1 on their own? What was your experience like? Is it hard/easy enough to find accomodation with others doing the J1?

ToniTuddle

www.craigslist.com has alot of accomodation. I've started researching it myself. Will try and find all the info I have and pass it on to you.

I'm leaning towards either Boston or New York myself and will also be travelling by my lonesome. I have a friend in each city I could stay with which will be handy until I sort my own accomodation.
But I'm looking to have nearly all the info ready.

There are plenty websites with people offering rooms. Including families and people of all ages and backgrounds. Shop around.

One place might be $500 dollars a month for a crappy tiny place. Then on the other street you could find an excellent room with loads of extras for the same price.

ToniTuddle

Oh and if you are doing the J1 then you must be a student of some sort?

You could put an email to all the students in the school asking if any others are planning on going for it. Ask for everyone to meet up at some lunchtime to help discuss out the details and hints and tips.

doctor evil

I'm 23 and doing a one year Access Course this year which if I pass will gurantee me a place in a full time course for next. Am I eligible for a J1?

I'm never done the j1 before and will be going alone.

gosimeon

Hey. I actually went on my own on the J1 last summer. My friends bailed on the idea one by one but I went for it anyway.

Starting in NY, I ended up getting a job in Portland, OR of all places, working in a stadium. Then went to Seattle for a bit, before ending up with a few Irish people in LA for the last couple of weeks.

Just because you go alone doesn't mean you will be lonely. I was ****ting it, but it worked out great. I could do what I wanted and go where I wanted.

The only downside is you really have to have a plan if you go it alone, as nobody in America is gonna help you if thinks go tits up and you are stranded somewhere.

ToniTuddle

doctor evil wrote: »

I'm 23 and doing a one year Access Course this year which if I pass will gurantee me a place in a full time course for next. Am I eligible for a J1?

I'm never done the j1 before and will be going alone.

From all the info I've been told you won't be eligible. Check out www.usit.ie
For most of the visas you have to be in at least a 2 year course.

To them you will have passed one year and you are technically finished whether you go on to third level or not. They would be afraid then that you have no incentive to come home and continue your studies.....

Unless you could get a letter from your future college saying you do intend to study there, plus you do intend to return to Ireland. You might have to talk to the head of the college. But it's worth a shot.

Jim236

Cheers for the replies lads!

@Tonituddle - thanks for the link, and yeh wud appreciate any info ya have, only just started researchin meself in past week or so.

ToniTuddle

I will PM you now in a minute with the various websites I have that could possibly help you with work/accomodation. There's a good few and some may be of no use. But if you have a few hours to spare get stuck in!

It's worth also checking out if any distance family memebers/old family friends are living in USA. They could put you up for a night or two or even help find you work.

Or if anyone in your local town has close connections kind of like:

"Oh sure my sister-in-law Mary has a son out there in New York sure he would sort ya out"

Valmont

Jim236 wrote: »

probs have to go over on me own.

Maybe I'm reading a bit too much into your post but why is there a pervasive spirit in this country that travelling alone is necessarily a negative thing? People feeling sorry for themselves because they haven't got an entourage to go to L.A with? Ireland, to me, is unique in this manner. I have met people from all over Europe and the States on my j1s, most of whom were off by themselves too just looking for an adventure and some good times.

I chose to travel to the states twice by myself as the independence of having complete control over where I wanted to go or what I wanted to do was a wonderful experience. If you go with a group, all decisions will pander to the common denominator and why hang around with your mates who you see all year anyway? Make some new ones over there, isn't that the point? "Sure I'll just go to San Diego since that's what everyone else is doing..." What about where you want to go?

Where have all the strong and independently minded Irish adventurers gone?

A j1 is a fantastic opportunity to have the time of your life and you need to grab it by the horns and make it whatever you want it to be.

ps. Nothing wrong with going with your mates is that's how you do things, I'm just trying to get at the common misconception that solo travel is bad.

ToniTuddle

I understand what you are saying. However, I can see how some people who have never even left their county(let alone the country) might find it a bit scary.

Fair enough I feiced off to NZ by myself, but that's me. I like being by myself or in huge groups.

Plus it's handy if you go off with friends-helps with costs of accomodation/food.
Plus from my point of view, you always have someone handy to drag off to the pub.:p

Heaven forbid a female should be in a bar by herself cause that's plain odd :rolleyes: I got that alot when I was travelling by myself.

Friends help iron out the bumps along the way.
I've no problem going over to Boston/New York by myself.
But I'm still going to see if I can get some college people going too. All the ones in college are strangers, I don't know them. So more opportunites to make new friends and have adventures!:)

Solo travel is EXCELLENT. Just make sure you have plenty funds. If that means taking up a weekend job or part time evening job then do it. (Keep on top of your studies though).
It's the funds I would be worried about. I'm going to make sure no matter where I go I have enough money to survive the first 6 months comfortably at least.
Plus on entry most countries wnat you to have evidence of said funds.

Jim236

Valmont wrote: »

Maybe I'm reading a bit too much into your post but why is there a pervasive spirit in this country that travelling alone is necessarily a negative thing? People feeling sorry for themselves because they haven't got an entourage to go to L.A with? Ireland, to me, is unique in this manner. I have met people from all over Europe and the States on my j1s, most of whom were off by themselves too just looking for an adventure and some good times.

I chose to travel to the states twice by myself as the independence of having complete control over where I wanted to go or what I wanted to do was a wonderful experience. If you go with a group, all decisions will pander to the common denominator and why hang around with your mates who you see all year anyway? Make some new ones over there, isn't that the point? "Sure I'll just go to San Diego since that's what everyone else is doing..." What about where you want to go?

Where have all the strong and independently minded Irish adventurers gone?

A j1 is a fantastic opportunity to have the time of your life and you need to grab it by the horns and make it whatever you want it to be.

ps. Nothing wrong with going with your mates is that's how you do things, I'm just trying to get at the common misconception that solo travel is bad.

I'm not sayin its a bad thing like, its just I've never lived on me own before, nevermind in a different country, so to not have someone with ya that ya know would be a bit nerverackin like, which is main reason I'm a bit hesitant about doin the J1 on me own.


Btw don't get me wrong, I wouldn't be living alone over there cause like ToniTuddle says the costs would be huge, plus yeh need a bit of company livin with ya at least I think.

Cheers btw for the PM ToniTuddle, really appreciate the info!:)

ToniTuddle

No problem.
If you decide on New York or Boston. I'll let you know what I dig up. I'll be asking my mates where is the best and cheapest place to live in their opinion. Then do me own research

(I'm gonna try get a job sorted long before I go out there, get in before all the other J1-ers.)

doctor evil

ToniTuddle wrote: »

From all the info I've been told you won't be eligible. Check out www.usit.ie
For most of the visas you have to be in at least a 2 year course.

To them you will have passed one year and you are technically finished whether you go on to third level or not. They would be afraid then that you have no incentive to come home and continue your studies.....

Unless you could get a letter from your future college saying you do intend to study there, plus you do intend to return to Ireland. You might have to talk to the head of the college. But it's worth a shot.

Thanks Toni, I've emailed the person in charge of the access course.

I'm going to into getting a working visa for Canada.

I haven't done much research and am planning on going by myself (excited and a bit scared!)

ToniTuddle

doctor evil wrote: »

I'm going to into getting a working visa for Canada.

Nice one! I was going to go for the year myself. But think I'm going to stick at this full time college thing now I'm in it. Took me long enough to get there!
I'll PM you with the Canadian websites that might be of use to you.
(ones I looked up and got hold off)

Dustin & Sockie

Hi,
I went on a J1 to NY in summer 2008 with just one other friend of mine. Everyone else dropped out so it went from the initial 10 to 2. I think you are better off either going with one person, I would advise you to be careful who you go with because unless you know them really well tensions can run high if all of a sudden you are living with them in (more than likely) a small space for 3 months. However we got on really well, never fell out, had a fantastic time, met loads of other students. Craigslist is good for accom and sometimes jobs, but we found our house on sublet.com. you might have to pay a small fee to use the site but it was brilliant. I would advise you to have accom sorted before you get there...especially if you are going on your own and if you don't have a job organized. you will prob end up living in queens or brooklyn because manhattan is too expensive. I would strongly suggest living in either woodside or sunnyside(literally across the bridge from midtown manhattan) in queens. a lot of irish people live there and they are very good to look after irish students. you will find cheaper places to stay but these are the best places. I lived in Glendale....which was fine...only problem is that its not as near to subway as other places and it was a very quite place...a lot of cemeteries actually which sounds creepy but it wasn't. Maspeth is also near sunnyside and woodside so that is a good place to stay either. it is very important that your accom is located near subway...especially if on your own because you will spend a lot of time on it and it can be dangerous at night but still i felt safer there than i do in Dublin. It was an irish girl that lived down the road from us that got us jobs but i would try to organize that before if you can...call in all the contacts you know if you have any but if you don't have a job going out, make sure and be out there early june at the very least. that will give you a week or so before the big influx. Most bar work or restaurant work requires up to 5 days training...at a low wage so make sure you have enough money to get you through 2-3 weeks. also you can set up a bank account with bank of america with just your passport. it comes in very handy and you can buy a phone for $50...with AT & T. Phone charges are ridiculously high though. Make sure to do all your paperwork right.... registering address and getting social security no as soon as possible when you get out there...makes it easier to get a job! If you decide on NY you will never want to come home! Best city in the world and I have been to Washington, L.A, San Fran and Vegas. None of them were a patch on NY.

Best of luck. (I'm so Jealous!)

ToniTuddle

Dustin & Sockie wrote: »

Hi,
sublet.com. you will prob end up living in queens or brooklyn because manhattan is too expensive. I would strongly suggest living in either woodside or sunnyside(literally across the bridge from midtown manhattan) in queens. Best of luck. (I'm so Jealous!)

That's exactly the type of info I want!!! Cheers
Fair enough saying living in NY but where on earth to begin. I'm gonna investigate that area cheers again.

Are you not going back out on your second J-visa this summer or are you going somewhere else?

Dustin & Sockie

Sublet.com actually give you a description of the area and the clientèle it has...take note of it. there is a huge difference between some areas in queens. oh and look up irish newpapers in ny online. they also help with jobs. No its looking unlikey i'm going back on J1, I will have to pay for a post grad next year...but i would really really love to go back there...:)

mojesius

Jim, the most important thing to consider is back up money if you're going alone in case you have to jobhunt for a while. Most landlords will look for two/three months rent upfront too. Saying that, I went to NYC on a solo J1 in 2008 and it was the best thing I have ever done; I met tons of amazing people and have gone back twice to visit. If I had gone with friends, I think i would have stuck in a little Irish coccon and the main bonus about travelling is meeting new people. I'm doing a postgrad course now so hoping to get a 12 month J1 afterwards because I am dying to go back.

Craigslist is great for jobs and accomodation. It can look slightly overwhelming looking for places but check out sublets/temporary because a lot of people leave for the summer and rent their rooms out. Beware of scammers and don't hand over any cash until you have keys in your hands. Restaurants and bars in NYC do a lot of 'open calls' for interviews where you can just walk in with your cv and have an immediate interview.

Best of luck. you'll have a great time wherever you go (NYC rocks though)

Dustin & Sockie

Hi again,

I realize by the last comment that it sounds like we were stuck in an 'irish cocoon' but this really wasn't the case. I worked and made friends with a lot of different nationalities not just americans but... russians, brazilians, dominicans, mexicans, english through work and I still keep contact with them so I wasn't suggesting you get wrapped up in the irish community there but initially when I arrived it was helpful to have a few irish faces around seen as I had never been to ny, had no relations or contacts whatsoever and was only after turning 18 but hey I learned a lot and haven't got one regret.

Oh and by the way mojesius has a good point about the scammers. I met three girls who moved into an apartment, paid upfront for the three months and lived there for 3 days and one day they came home and the locks were changed and all their stuff was on the side of the street. the landlord maintained they had wrecked the place but they hadn't even went out as they hadn't got jobs and were trying to hold onto their money until they had got jobs. so be careful.

bibbly

Hey,

i went on a J1 by myself, it was fine, just stayed in a motel and got to meet other irish, then i just moved in with a group who had a place and were trying to make up the numbers, worked out fine..

Also, met my girlfriend on that trip, and we are still together that was over 4 years ago..

Go for it!!

ToniTuddle

Dustin & Sockie wrote: »

Sublet.com actually give you a description of the area and the clientèle it has...take note of it. there is a huge difference between some areas in queens. oh and look up irish newpapers in ny online. they also help with jobs. No its looking unlikey i'm going back on J1, I will have to pay for a post grad next year...but i would really really love to go back there...:)

Yeah I noticed the desciption part of the area. If only alot of websites would do that.
Good idea of the Irish newspapers over there totally forgot about them!
Cheers.:)

Jim236

mojesius wrote: »

Jim, the most important thing to consider is back up money if you're going alone in case you have to jobhunt for a while. Most landlords will look for two/three months rent upfront too.

Would you really need to bring 2/3 months worth of rent with ya? Is that the norm like, to ask for all or most of the rent upfront?

ToniTuddle

No where would ask for 3 months rent! That's a bit much. I'd tell that landlord no way.

They would ask for a deposit and then a months rent.
Normally the deposit is the same amount as the rent. Other times it might be 50 bucks below or above. I've noticed this anyway.

zodiak

just a quick question.. funds wise.. how much are you looking at minimun to go over with to live comfortably.. kinda before you get yourself sorted

Dustin & Sockie

As regards funds....if you book with usit they have guidelines on how much money you have to bring with you if u are going with or without a job. However I personally brought $2000 with me...$1200 was to pay for my accom for the 3 months upfront so I had $800 to spare and I didn't get a job until 2 weeks after I arrived so I had a little spare out of the $800. I know it seems like a lot of money to spend in 2 weeks but when you are getting started, it's amazing when it can go. eg. we did a big amount of grocery shopping...food, toiletries everything...we bought everything there because we were trying to keep our luggage to a minimum...avoiding baggage charges etc. Then I bought a phone...it's not expensive to buy but their charges are ridiculously high in comparison to here. It costs to even try to make a call....whether or not the other person answers, you will still be charged. we paid for a monthly ticket for subway....works our cheaper that way. I had to buy a uniform when I got a job and I was also on training for 4 days so I didn't get paid until 2 weeks after I had a job...you have to take into account that you might not get paid immediately when you get a job. Once I was trained however I got tips cash in hand everyday.

Hope that helps.

Jim236

@Dustin - if ya don't mind me askin, how much did yeh make altogether over the 3 months?

Wuggectumondo

I went on my second J1 on my own. The thing is, is that you're never on your own! I met so many people and prob more than if I had gone over with a big group and hung out with them all the time. I agree with the person who said to be careful who you go with!!

I had a job organised in NYC before I went over, but it didn't work out. I panicked as I didn't have much savings and did feel overwhelmed in the city. You need to watch out for both acc and jobs scams on Craig's List and creepy guys. So I went to Wildwood as I knew there would be jobs and Irish people there. It was easy to find a job and acc (but some of the acc was yuck!!!). I stayed in NY for a few weeks at the end of the summer when I had more savings.

So my advice would be to have a few thousand savings because even if you have a job organised it mightn't work out! I am sad that I missed out in my summer in NY and stayed in WW instead which is 3 1/2 hours away... It was also a shock being in S Jersey compared to NY... the people are a bit different!