Working in Chicago- visas etc?

ZigZag1234

Hi Guys,

Sorry to butt in on your thread but I am looking for similar information re visas.


My partner and I have been granted a 2 year work visa for Canada and this has to be activated by March 2016. We are hoping to travel in Jan 2017. However, we are both really interested in going to Chicago. We have no issue with doing 2 years in Canada first but gathering information on what visas to get and how to actually get into Chicago is next to impossible and all we are meeting is dead ends.
We are both based in Ireland and Irish. I am 30 and a qualified teacher, I have spent the last 6 years working in adult education settings and colleges, I have a Master’s in Education and am in the process of completing a PhD. My partner is 32 working in the financial sector and also has a Masters. I want to stay in my field i.e. teaching where as my partner might change to Marketing as that is what his masters is in.
In order to get into Chicago do we need to have jobs organised first? If so, it is then up to the employer to organise our visas or is there one we can apply for ourselves and get a job when we land?
We have both looked into the Green card lotto but the next opening is quite a bit away yet.
Has anyone gone through the above? If we go to Canada first would it be easier to get in Chicago from Ireland or straight from Canada? Any information would be so appreciated!

Thank you!

silja

Mod note: I moved your post to its own thread as it isn't related to the other Op

Having worked in Canada has no effect on getting a US visa, other than if you find an employer in Canada with a US subsidiary that loves you so much, they will sponsor your visa. The diversity visa lottery is your best bet, unless you have specialty qualification; for example if you teach special needs, you may be able to get a work visa. And yes, the employer would need to sponsor and organise your work visa; as this costs them $7000+, they really only do that if you have very specific skills.

BTW, you mention you and your partner- if you are not legally married, if one of you gets the lottery visa or a work visa, the other cannot come with, unless they get a visa independently.

DM addict

I'd add to this that you need to get your visa sorted before you move over. If you start applying for jobs in country, most US employers will assume you already have a visa.

Aside from large companies/jobs that are in high demand, diversity lottery is your best shot.

ZigZag1234

Thank you for the information! We have decided to go with Canada and if we can get into Chicago afterward then great.

as mentioned above I am a secondary school teacher but nearly all of my experience is in adult education which I love. I have just applied to the Ontario College of teachers to get my qualifications recognised over there and am wondering if anyone knows anything about how to get a job in teacher in Toronto? I would like to stay in the adult education field or do some lecturing but am also happy to give a secondary school setting a go.

Thank you.

athtrasna

ZigZag1234 wrote: »

Thank you for the information! We have decided to go with Canada and if we can get into Chicago afterward then great.

as mentioned above I am a secondary school teacher but nearly all of my experience is in adult education which I love. I have just applied to the Ontario College of teachers to get my qualifications recognised over there and am wondering if anyone knows anything about how to get a job in teacher in Toronto? I would like to stay in the adult education field or do some lecturing but am also happy to give a secondary school setting a go.

Thank you.

Maybe try the Canada forum?

Dave1442397

Yeah, see what the Canadians say. My sister lives in Edmonton, tried to get a job as a teacher, and got so frustrated with the paperwork and the idiots in the education system that she just gave up on it.

Having lost her paperwork multiple times, the final straw was when they came back to her saying that they couldn't accept her Maths and Science degree from Trinity College because it was written in Latin, and they didn't have anyone who could read Latin. She decided that if the people working in the system were that bad, she wanted no part of it

DM addict

Dave1442397 wrote: »

Yeah, see what the Canadians say. My sister lives in Edmonton, tried to get a job as a teacher, and got so frustrated with the paperwork and the idiots in the education system that she just gave up on it.

Having lost her paperwork multiple times, the final straw was when they came back to her saying that they couldn't accept her Maths and Science degree from Trinity College because it was written in Latin, and they didn't have anyone who could read Latin. She decided that if the people working in the system were that bad, she wanted no part of it

Just an FYI, you can get an official translation of the degree certificate