Find a Job on Your Own
Many students choose to find their own job, because it gives them the most flexibility in terms of location and type of job. Most students find a job before they depart for the U.S. Only students from select countries are allowed to find a job once they have arrived.
Online resources to help with the job search include:
If you are looking for a job once you arrive in the U.S, stay in contact with CIEE by phone or email; we might be able to help you with your search. We also want to make sure you have a successful experience and that you are following the rules of the CIEE Work & Travel USA program. To start the search in person:
- Check the “Help Wanted” sections in local newspapers for new jobs. Call an employer you’re interested in to set up an interview. This will save you time!
- Talk to employers in person about open jobs and to submit an application. Follow up with the employer in a few days if you don’t hear back.
- Let people know that you are looking for a job.
Prohibited Jobs
CIEE vets the employment of all our participants according to the regulations of the J-1 Work & Travel USA program. CIEE cannot approve employment if there are questions about the safety and well-being of the participant, or if the nature of the employment prevents the participant from having a meaningful cultural exchange experience in the United States.
The following job types are currently prohibited by CIEE:
- Any job that is unpaid or does not pay at least the minimum wage for that state
- Sales jobs requiring the participant to invest his/her own monies to pre-purchase inventory
- Domestic help positions in private U.S. households – e.g. au pair, servant, gardener or chauffeur
- Jobs in the adult entertainment industry
- Jobs on the Department of Labor’s “hazardous jobs list”
- Jobs in warehouses
- Jobs with moving companies
- Jobs in factories
- Jobs in manufacturing
- Jobs in construction or located on construction sites
- Jobs in catalog / online distribution centers
- Jobs in the fisheries industry
- Jobs that are substantially commission-based and thus do not guarantee minimum wage
- Jobs at mall kiosks/carts
- Employment that involves driving as a primary job duty
- Jobs with exposure to dangerous chemicals (e.g. pesticides)
- Jobs on the gaming floor of casinos
- Jobs with travelling carnivals / concessions
- Jobs where the participant is hired as an independent contractor / hired on a 1099 form
- Operators of pedicabs, rolling chairs, other passenger carrying vehicles for hire, and/or vehicles requiring a commercial driver’s license
- Jobs providing clinical care, medical services or involving patient contact, hands on therapy, counseling, administering treatment or making diagnoses of medical, psychiatric or psychological patients, or veterinary work involving hands-on care.
- As ship or aircraft crew members, or as pilots, except as crew members on ships that travel only within domestic U.S. waters
- Teacher, teaching assistant or coach
- Camp counselor
- Jobs through staffing/employment agencies
- Jobs entailing sustained physical contact with customers (e.g., body piercing, tattoo parlor, massage)
- Overnight/graveyard shift jobs
Any job, whether or not it is included in the list above, must be generally compatible with the rules, regulations, and intent of the program. Participants must be able to balance their work responsibilities with time spent exploring their local community, learning about the U.S. and getting to know Americans. In addition to the above, any job that could bring notoriety or disrepute to the Exchange Visitor Program is expressly prohibited by the program regulations.
Jobs in the National Parks may interest you for the opportunity to live in some of the most beautiful and remote areas of the U.S. Most of the jobs will be in the small towns around the perimeters of the parks or in lodging centers within the parks. Some of the most interesting are Grand Canyon, Rocky Mountain, Yellowstone, Yosemite, and Great Smoky Mountains. Get more information at:
www.nps.gov