So, you have three options: 1. Buy an offer that comes with the agency program; 2. Find one yourself; 3. Buy from a third party.
Actually, the choice is much simpler (or more complicated) than it seems. It depends on your perspective. Your agency will send you all the files. Here, I will write about what won't be in those files.
Before proceeding with this decision (paying the first installment and signing the contract), you need to decide on the location and type of job. This is not optional, it is mandatory; otherwise, a crappy job is guaranteed. To start, Google the stories of participants, just spend a few days Googling and reading: the more you read, the more realistic your perspective will be. If your goal is money, the next question is: what is your English level?
(Upper-) Intermediate:
Your only option: Resort, beach towns, position: Food-runner, Busser. Your task is to hang out in the restaurant industry (in the dining room!) and get tips. A food-runner is a waiter's assistant who brings food from the kitchen to the waiter's station to make their work easier, sometimes serving food to guests' tables. A busser is a guest's assistant who sets the table with essentials: water, bread, ice, etc., and serves drinks.
Other positions provide fewer tips.
On average, your rate will be $1.5-5/hour and $15/hour in tips, totaling $16-20/hour.
Again, ONLY resort towns, warm coasts, famous cities. No villages, no New Yorks.
(View from my restaurant)
Advanced:
My level was lower, so I am a theoretical advisor. I know for sure that for a 6-7 hour shift, waiters in resort towns make $300-400/shift on an average day (a shift is half a day, this is important, there is an opportunity for a second job). Very few restaurants are willing to hire foreigners as waiters.
You will definitely find work on the coasts. In general, it is always better to bet on resort places.
So, once you have decided on the location and position, let's move on to choosing an offer.
Full Service (~$300)
[I was told not to write bad things here, but don't take an offer with a rate lower than $12, you won't recoup the trip]
However, the plus is obvious: You are taking an offer from a reliable provider that you can definitely trust. But the rate will be small.
Self-Arranged (~$0)
Hardcore option. I do not recommend it to those who are going for the first time.
As I wrote, the first time your perception of America is not very realistic; you don't know the rules, the people, the opportunities, or how an employer selects people. Therefore, even after reading everything below, it is very difficult to build a confident strategy for finding an offer. This is the main minus.
The second minus is time. Expect 1 response out of 100. The process will stretch for a couple of weeks.
Keep this in mind.
- Based on the points above, you choose a resort town (my recommendation is the coast of MA state), study its popularity, read the stories of participants from these cities, and make sure the place is profitable.
Actually, this is the most important part - to bet on the right city/island.
Your task is to make sure that there are many restaurants in the city and that many American tourists go there (!). Just Google (in English) "where to spend a vacation", look at articles for Americans.
Take a closer look at Martha's Vineyard, Cape Cod, Nantucket.
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Open the well-known TRIPADVISOR.COM, open the list of restaurants in the chosen city. Next, create an Excel spreadsheet with the emails of all these restaurants, you can include neighboring cities. Your task is quantity, from 500 addresses. This will take a couple of evenings, you can watch TV series in parallel.
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Now the second most important stage: The design of the letter. I cannot describe how an employer will approach viewing it, but I will give clear recommendations. Your letter consists of: text, a PDF file of your resume, a link to a YouTube video-resume. No part can be cut out, the video is the main thing.
Resume:
(Evolution of my resume, find 5 differences)
I compiled the resume on the right thinking about how an employer would look at it. You need to make it for a specific position.
Accent points: 1. English level, 2. Position, 3. Some photos of your experience. Remember, in general, the employer doesn't care about you. So give them useful info.
Youtube:
My video is very shameful, so I won't attach it. Here is a relatively decent one: youtube.com/watch?v=PJejey79JEM
Again, your task is not to talk about yourself, but to provide the necessary information for the employer. The main thing, of course, is your language. Write the text in Russian, translate it, rehearse, learn to read smoothly and with intonation. Hang a piece of paper in front of you and read it on camera.
Topics you need to cover: 0. Introduce yourself 1. I want to work in a restaurant because ________, 2. I have worked in restaurants and know how to do _________, 3. I want to work for you because ________ (a general phrase). 4. Why are you going to America.
I.e., you give useful information, seasoning it with information about yourself being good.
Text:
"Good afternoon, [restaurant name].
My name is Maxim, I am from Belarus, I have heard a lot about your restaurant! I want to talk to you about a job.
This summer I plan to go to New York for the Work&Travel program. I am very attracted to working in a restaurant, in particular the positions of food-runner and busser, I like the atmosphere of yours, which is why I am writing.
Below I attach my resume, as well as a video-resume, so that you can hear my level of English. If you are looking for workers, I will wait for your answer!
I will be glad to spend the summer with you!
Good day."
This is a template. You need to indicate the topic, why you are writing to them specifically, what you want, and also provide links to your resume.
As a result, you get a letter that is simple and understandable to the employer. If a response comes, discuss salary, shifts, hours, and so on. If anything, write to me in PM, I will answer questions.
Buying an offer from a 3rd party ($450)
The most optimal option for the first time, actually. I used it and I don't regret it. The main minus is it's veeeery hard to find someone you can trust. And it's a bit more expensive than the agency.
You can find former participants, some private guys who are engaged in sales. Your tools: groups in VK, FB, and just Google. But, of course, the most reliable are VK and FB, where you see real people and can ask them questions.
After a couple of hours of searching, I found this guy: vk.com/workandtraveljob
Not perfect, but a good option. You can find my review in his discussions, my experience of interaction is described there. I bought an offer for $450 for a $15 rate, food-runner.
But in any case, no prepayments, any money only after the offer is checked by the sponsor. And check accounts for fakes.
The beauty of this option is that you get a person who can be asked any questions about America 24/7. And don't be shy, no one will tell you anything, just ask questions. And questions will be born from the stories that you should read in Google.
- You have a list of emails, you have a letter. Do a mailing. 40-60 letters a day, you will manage in two weeks. In general, it will take a month to find a job this way.
Important!
What to pay attention to when you receive an offer?
All these questions are asked directly to the employer, not to any third parties.
- Rate.
There are no particular catches, if it is tied to tips, ask the employer how much they make on average per shift - they answer honestly. You must clearly understand how much you will receive. If you don't ask, you risk receiving less than you imagine.
- Working hours.
Everyone writes - 40. But almost always it is not so. Ask the question, will they be able to provide you with such a number of hours? Or what can you count on? Also ask the question, at what time of day (morning 8-15 or night 16-22) will the shift be. This is important if there are two jobs. You need to know your schedule. It is much easier to ask one job to hire you only for the morning, and then look for a job only for the night. Better find yourself a job for the morning according to the offer, it is harder, because most restaurants work in the evenings and it is easier to find an evening job on the spot. If you don't find out, there will be problems when looking for another job, I met a girl whose schedule according to the offer was floating and changed VERY strongly every week, she could not find a second job.
- Housing.
Sometimes they provide housing. Ask directly if you can count on it (I was cheated a little like this, because I didn't ask directly and didn't get a direct answer).
- Shifts.
An important question is whether there is a difference in tips between the day and night shift.
- Start of work.
When can you start work? Will you start from the first day or will there be some training period? If you don't ask, you will be wandering around somewhere for two days like me.
- Duties.
Ask a direct question about what you will be doing, because the offer is not always true. I had a witstaff position and slightly different duties. If you don't ask, there may be unpleasant surprises.
This is the most important thing. Everything else is as usual: Google people's stories, read unsuccessful and successful ones, form your own questions.
