 This video is in partnership with Edmund Cug and I'm going to tell you more about them and their products in just a little bit. Moving to US is a big transition mentally, physically and emotionally and you really need to plan and prepare for this. This video is going to help you do just that. You're going to share real student experiences and I'm particularly going to focus on the on-campus jobs and the internships. So keep on watching. Oh my god! So that's how I did not get an internship which is not a good feeling. It's a lot to go through in a small time. Hi guys! My name is Shachi and I'm a travel and visa coach. On this channel, you will find lots of useful videos on the US visa process. So make sure to check it out. So whether you are an aspiring FN visa student or you already have your US visa and you're just waiting to travel to the US. This video is going to cover five tips which is going to make your transition to US simple and hassle free. So let's get started. So the first tip I have for you is plan early and learn essential skills. So the one thing that I've observed through my experience of working with students is that students who start early have a much better and a much smoother transition to the US. So starting early allows you to apply to more universities. It allows you to have more admits and also increases your chances of getting a visa slot because more slots are usually available at the start of the intake. And with all of this, you will have enough time to pack, to plan your travel, to learn essential skills like cooking, doing your laundry, managing your budget and finances. All of which you have to do by yourself when you're in the US. And if you plan well, you can arrive in US two to three weeks before the start of your classes so that you have enough time to get adjusted to your new surroundings and to settle down. Speaking of planning, let me tell you a little bit more about today's partner, Edmit Card and their amazing product, Pentorex. Now, Pentorex is a one-stop shop for all the necessities that you're going to require when you're in the US. So Edmit Card can help you with literally everything. So right from helping you booking your flight tickets, finding you an accommodation, setting up your bank accounts and your forex cards, getting you a SIM card and getting you credit cards. Pentorex program takes care of all of this and I know that a lot of you go through the hassle of doing each and every one of this by yourself, especially in the last minute. But Edmit Card is here to simplify all of this for you. So the link for this is in the description box below. Do check it out. You just need to click on the link, register yourself and the Edmit Card team is going to reach you and help you set up all of this. Particularly, do check out their credit card because it has a lot of amazing benefits. And if you use their services, you also stand a chance to win cash packs and rewards up to 500 USD. So highly recommend checking them out. The link for this is in the description box below. The second tip I have for you is apply for on-campus jobs even before you reach US. So on-campus jobs is a great way to support yourself financially and take that little bit of burden of your sponsor. A good on-campus job can in fact pretty much cover your living expenses in the US. And you need not wait till you arrive in US to apply for on-campus jobs. So every university has a hotel where they list all the on-campus jobs available and as soon as you get your visa and your travel plans are confirmed, you should log into this portal and start applying for these jobs. So on-campus jobs are a variety of on-campus jobs. It could be TA, RA role. It could be working in the dining hall in the cafeteria. It could be working as a student guide or a tutor or really specific roles like helping the university with their social media platforms. So there are plenty of such on-campus jobs available and you should start early because it takes some bit of time, some bit of tries to finally land an on-campus job. And a bonus step for you here is don't restrict yourself just to the university portal. Every department also has its own on-campus jobs and many of them are actually not listed on this portal. So again, once your travel plans are confirmed, do reach out to your department. You could draft a simple email which introduces yourself, lists your key skills, the areas in which you could contribute and send it out to as many professors as possible within your department, letting them know that once you arrive on campus, you are ready to take up any on-campus job. I'll be very honest here, when I landed I had absolutely no job and for around a year I was struggling. I got my first job as a lab assistant in the summer and that's like I arrived in August but I got my first job in summer. So it took a lot of time, my, of course, pulling some strings, refloals to work a lot to make good contacts and keep, make sure you're in the eyes of the professors. For my lab assistant job, I definitely tried for maybe a month or so and that's when I landed the job. Whereas for the gym, as soon as I had my first job, I had an assistant so I was able to get in the gym but I would suggest make a lot of contacts. Use your contacts. So when you say make contacts, what does that mean? Make sure you have good rappos with your professors, seniors, make sure you show them like you are a potential student who is willing to work and you have to go talk to managers. You'll have to pull your strings and yeah, that's about it. And how do you manage two jobs studying? The thing is that one of my job does require me in person. I have to put in my ass but the other job with where I'm working as a lab assistant, I can work from home. So it's quite flexible but at the end of the day, you need to have time management. That's all I can say. Routine, huh? Yeah, it's a routine. Like cut down on those parties, don't go. You have to sleep in, use your weekends to just sleep in, take your time and yeah, that's all. So this way if you start early, you wouldn't have to wait for one or two semesters to land this job. As soon as you arrive in campus, within a month or so, you could start your on-campus job and like I said, it's a great way to support yourself financially and also build up your resume. The third tip I have for you is, prepare to apply for internships and CPT. So internship or a CPT is something which is on every student's mind when they come to the US and it's one of the highlights of your program and it's a great way to boost your resume, get work experience and get some practical learning. However, applying to an internship or a CPT is a lot of effort. On an average, a student would apply to about 100 plus companies before landing one internship offer. So before you reach US, you need to come prepared for this and there are simple ways in which you can do that. The first thing is to have your resume in place. So make sure that your resume is properly formatted, it's professionally worded and also make two to three versions of your resume so that you're able to apply to a variety of internships. The second thing you can do is to reach out to your professors. So your professors are going to help you a lot in applying to internships in reaching out to companies and going through the entire process. So before you reach US, make sure that you introduce yourself to them, drop them an email, schedule a one-on-one if possible and let them know what are your key skills, what are the areas that you will be interested in working. With all of this in place, once you reach campus, within one or two months, you can start the internship process and start applying. So the number one reason why most students don't land an internship is because once you reach campus, they're so consumed by the assignments, the deadlines, the coursework and everything else that is going on that applying to internships, applying to CPT takes a backseat. Start applying as much as possible. You need to make sure that your resume is up to the mark. You can reach out to a lot of professors. They're going to help you out in your resume making and something like that. Then you can go on LinkedIn and Henshake. Indeed, there's a couple more websites you can go on. There's one called Veup. It's very, very good, you know. Thanks. So I got my internship to Henshake by the way. So I did my, so there are two things called CPT and OPT. CPT is basically for internship and OPT is for full-time jobs. So I started applying when I came here in US after like in October something like that. October November, I started applying and I got my first interview call in November. Oh, great. And then I never heard from them because I don't know why what happened. I messed up my interview. So basically immediately applied as soon as it was? Yeah, so I came to Stevens in August 21 and then I started applying from October. And that's what my professor told me, you know, to start applying. I know you don't have any experience because I was a fresher. I came out of college and I came directly to US. So I was a fresher. I had no experience. I just had a couple of internship experiences and stuff like that. So I started applying from November, October November and then I got my first interview call in November. I did my interview. I reached out to them like after two months. They didn't say anything to me. I was a bit disappointed, but then, you know, my seniors told me that, you know, you need to keep applying. Yeah, don't do so. So don't let this happen to you. Do as much preparation as possible beforehand so that once you're here, along with everything else, you're also able to manage applying to companies. The fourth tip I have for you is start creating your own network and support system. So every university in US has student clubs and organizations and these could be academic. It could be cultural. It could be sports related and you definitely should be part of at least some of these organizations and clubs. So once you have your visa in place, do your research as to what clubs and organizations are there in the university. Reach out to them and join them. Life in US can get lonely at times. It's really important that you create your own network and your own support system. Find your mentors, your peer group and all of this can start by joining these clubs and organizations. Particularly for Indian students, most universities do have Indian student groups. So reach out to them, join them and this could be a way in which you celebrate common festivals, enjoy common food and also find people from your background. So I've heard this from a lot of students that it can get lonely in the city sometimes. So how have you created your own community and your own support system here? So again, on my second semester, I joined the student governing board. I joined the fraternity. I joined student life club as a worker. So I started gaining friends. I started talking to people. I also joined our school's East Force team and I have a great family of five with them that we meet nearly every day. So my advice would be talk to people. Don't be shy because I measure everybody feels lonely at one point and if you start talking, you will start gaining friends. You will have a more and a better support group that can help you through your moments when you come to a big city like New York. And all of this can help you adjust to life in US better and make you a little less homesick. So the fifth tip I have for you is do your research about the local area. So once your travel plans are confirmed, do your research and find out as much information as possible about the area that you're going to be living in. US is a very diverse country and every state is different. There is different climate, different food options, different laws and regulations, also different public transport options. So you really have to understand all of these things with respect to your area and your city. So do your research and this will help you in adjusting better to the life in US and also reduce any culture shocks. So how old are you? I'm 19. So 19 in New York, the English girls studying in one of the top institutions. So how does it feel? It's a lot to go through. It's a lot to go through in a small time. So yeah, the first thing you should do is get an Airbnb. You never know. If you don't have family over here, get an Airbnb and do look out for apartments or anything. And most probably I would prefer you for the first semester or first year or maybe if you have the funds and you should go totally go for it. Take the dorms. People think that it's too much money and the start that's basically the amount of living in everywhere else in New York. It's high. You have to pay for it anyways. So just get in the dorms. If you can. So yeah, please learn how to cook. If you're coming here because I have a friend who doesn't know how to cook. He's spending money every month eating out and please learn how to cook. Getting groceries is very easy. It's going to be very cheap when you get in bulk. You can cook a lot of food. It's called meal prepping. Look it up on YouTube. Make a lot of food. Just put it in the refrigerator. It'll stay good for a week. You're done for your week. Additional tip I have for you here is also be aware of the safety protocols in your area. So there might be certain areas you need to avoid or certain time zones that you need to avoid and you should have information about all of this because once you're in the US you're going to be on your own and taking care of your safety is your responsibility. So I really hope that these five tips help in making your US journey simple and hassle-free. If you have any more questions feel free to leave them in the comment section below. You can also DM me on Instagram my Instagram handle is at chatty.man If you're looking for a video on what to pack to the US we have that also. So do check out this video which will give you an entire packing checklist particularly for students. Also if you're looking help in your visa journey then you can reach out to us. So we can help you get your FN visa. We have one-to-one sessions mock sessions and full-fledged programs like the seven-day program which takes care of all your visa requirements. So the link for this in the description box below do check it out and we have more videos coming up so stay subscribed. I'll see you in the next one. Signing off for now. Bye.