×
INTELLIGENT WORK FORUMS
FOR ENGINEERING PROFESSIONALS

Log In

Come Join Us!

Are you an
Engineering professional?
Join Eng-Tips Forums!
  • Talk With Other Members
  • Be Notified Of Responses
    To Your Posts
  • Keyword Search
  • One-Click Access To Your
    Favorite Forums
  • Automated Signatures
    On Your Posts
  • Best Of All, It's Free!
  • Students Click Here

*Eng-Tips's functionality depends on members receiving e-mail. By joining you are opting in to receive e-mail.

Posting Guidelines

Promoting, selling, recruiting, coursework and thesis posting is forbidden.

Students Click Here

Jobs

Australian student interning in US

Australian student interning in US

Australian student interning in US

(OP)
Hi folks

Im currently a 3rd year student (27 y.o - I started late) looking to do an internship in the US. Im doing a duel major in Mechanical and Materials.

My main interest is materials engineering, but specifically composites. So much so ive spent the last couple of months making my own carbon fiber parts, also dabbling in glass fiber and a very poor attempt at Kevlar. I'd really like to work in industry that composites are a part of and given America's large Aerospace and automotive sectors it's the place to be. Australia's industrial landscape is poor and just seems to be going backwards, composite manufacturing being almost barely existent.

Ive looked at the J1 Visa, which allows me to enter the US once ive found a sponsorship agency and an actual intern position.

Its a very generalised question, but are US companies open to hiring foreign students to intern positions? I'm probably at a natural disadvantage being overseas against local talent (which is fair IMO). I was led to believe a lot of the industry is in the mid west but it seems its all around the place really.

I actually tried calling some companies in the aero sector, to speak to someone about hiring. The first company, a very large one, transferred me to 3 different departments before I was told there was no-one I could actually talk to in regards to hiring, the second transferred me to 5 different departments where I was told "all the information is on the website". So getting information has been a great experience so far lol

Any help (and further information) would be greatly appreciated

Many thanks

Sam

RE: Australian student interning in US

Student internships in the US are normally affiliated with a university or college where the student alternates between work and study - I did this many years ago. However, you would need to be enrolled as a student.

If you apply for an engineering position at a company, you don't have a degree so this option is out. I would stay where you are, finish the 4th year and come to the US for graduate work, if you are still interested.

RE: Australian student interning in US

One other idea, did you try at your college or university if they have any foreign internship opportunities in materials engineering?

RE: Australian student interning in US

We used to take lots of interns from Germany - and later Poland - mainly since they had to intern for their degree and so there was a large supply who were more than happy to come hang out on the California coast for 6 months at low pay and do lots of work.

However, that program was cancelled several years ago.

A lot of aerospace stuff is tied in with defense stuff and having a security clearance can be an issue, especially for a foreigner - even one from a friendly country.

Posting guidelines FAQ731-376: Eng-Tips.com Forum Policies http://eng-tips.com/market.cfm? (probably not aimed specifically at you)
What is Engineering anyway: FAQ1088-1484: In layman terms, what is "engineering"?

RE: Australian student interning in US

Kenat's point is a good one, and many companies may not want to deal with the (perceived) trouble of bringing someone over for a summer internship.

I'm not surprised that you got the run-around for large companies -- they're typically either too invested in their automated candidate systems or too lawsuit-shy for the personal angle to work.

I guess what I'm suggesting is that you try to find small companies -- one where you might be able to get ahold of someone with a sense of novelty.

Red Flag This Post

Please let us know here why this post is inappropriate. Reasons such as off-topic, duplicates, flames, illegal, vulgar, or students posting their homework.

Red Flag Submitted

Thank you for helping keep Eng-Tips Forums free from inappropriate posts.
The Eng-Tips staff will check this out and take appropriate action.

Reply To This Thread

Posting in the Eng-Tips forums is a member-only feature.

Click Here to join Eng-Tips and talk with other members!


Resources