AFAM met 2 apprentice students to talk about their experience as interns in the United States.

Matteo Maurice, apprentice student, industrial engineering, Paris and Fatima-Zahrae Msamri, apprentice student, mechanical engineering, Châlons-en-Champagne agreed to meet Albina, AFAM community manager to talk about their experience.

AFAM: tell us a few words about your American host company and how you found it.

Matteo: I am in my last year of the apprenticeship program at Arts et Metiers and I finished my 3-months internship in the United States last summer which was a requirement to get my Arts et Metiers diploma. First, my current French company (GYS) offered me an opportunity of an internship in one of its subsidiaries in Europe (Great Britain or Italy). But at the same time, my company in France had a contact of one of their clients in the United States based in California who needed an engineer to implement some production tools. This is a very small company. That's how I was put in contact and found this internship opportunity in the United States.

AFAM: Did you continue your contract with your French company while you were pursuing your 3-months internship in the US?

Matteo: No, I did not. I did what we call "mise en veille" of the contract with my French company. This "mise en veille" document both in French and in English was signed by all parties ( CFA - centre de formation d'apprentis, French host company, American host company and myself).

AFAM: did you and your company need to sign an internship agreement (convention de stage)?

Matteo: No, there was no such document to sign. Another document the American company prepared and signed was a DS-7002 ( training plan) which I needed to get the J1 visa.

AFAM: what sponsor did you work with? How did your American company handle it?

Matteo: I worked with CIEE ( its representative in France is Paranthese Paris). It went well. The company had a sponsor's virtual visit as they never had any J1 interns before. After my company proved their eligibility to get a J1 intern ( they needed to fill out and sign a DS-7002 form besides sending other papers), it was my turn to send all the papers from my side ( DS-2019, school certificate, my resume etc.). Then I took an appointment at the embassy and was ready to get my visa but there was a problem with my SEVIS registration ( which is very rare) and that's why it took me more than expected to get my J1 visa.

AFAM: do you have a piece of advice to give to others to avoid if possible any delays?

Matteo: yes, sure. First of all, please start all the visa procedures in advance ( 3 months in advance is what I advice). Then, in my case I felt like, when all the fees were paid, the procedure slowed down. So once you choose a sponsor, pay all the fees and send all the paperwork, try to be in touch with your sponsor and ask for updates all the time.

AFAM: Hello Fatima, and thank you for being with us! Could you please tell a few words about how you found an internship in the US and what was the role of your French company in it?

Fatima: as to me it did not happen at all as in Matteo's case. My French company did not have any opportunities abroad for me to help me validate my international mobility at school. But at the end of the day, it was still my French company that helped me. While talking to my HR manager, she offered me to send my resume to one of her managers and that's is how my resume ended up at some desk in the US. I was contacted by one of the managers from Hutchinson USA interested by my profile. Then I was interviewed and accepted for 3 months internship.

AFAM: Did your host company in the United States signed the same papers as in the case of Matteo?

Fatima: No, we did not deal with "mise en veille" contract though I was expecting it. I was not paid by my company in France during those two months but we did not use the "mise en veille" agreement. On the contrary, all three parties ( myself, French and American company) signed a French "convention de stage".

AFAM: Was is something unusual for an America company to be obliged to sign the "convention de stage"?

Fatima: They did not expect that but signed without any problem as I needed this paper to validate my international mobility. I was a bit stressed out as my paperwork process was not as quick as I wanted it to. But at the end of the sday, I got my visa on time and was able to start my internship as planned.

AFAM: Who paid all visa, a company or you?

Fatima: I paid only SEVICE and visa fees and my company paid the sponsor which was French American Chamber in my case. The sponsor was chosen by the company. FACC is its long-term partner.

Matteo: and I paid the whole invoice which Paranthese Paris sent. So, the company did not pay any visa fees at all. But my salary allowed me to to pay those fees.

AFAM: how did your installation happen? Did you have any problems with housing and a car? How did you deal with them?

Matteo: I managed to rent a house which I share with two other people. The website I used was craigslist.org. We met online with on of the renters and I felt that it was a good solution. Finally, I was right. And I stayed there for the duration of my internship.

I had more problems to rent a car as below 25 year old it is very expensive to rent. So at the beggining one of my collegues helped me with the ride and then my company help me find a cheaper car renting option.

Fatima: in my case, everything was taken care of by my host company. I could rent my car I used for the duration of my internship right at the airport and a hotel was provided and paid for me by the company.

AFAM: were you able to travel, combine your work with sightseeing during your stay?

Matteo: I lived and worked in Rohnert Park in California and had a pleasure to travel to San Francisco and see the city. I also could travel a bit in California and went to Los Angeles to see my host company's clients. But time was flying and actually you do not have a lot of time left when you are pursuing a 2 months internship.

Fatima: my internship took place in Newfields, New Hampshire. Life on the West Coast is a dream. I was very grateful to visit Boston and New-York many times and I was able to adapt quite easily to American culture. I used to work on site during the week, but I tried to travel each week-end to discover new places, which allowed to make new friends and meet new people. Admittedly, this three-month adventure have passed very quickly, but it was very interesting and I tried to enjoy every single moment of it.

AFAM: thank you very much for this interesting conversation and for your time.

More about Shasta program offered at AFAM for students and apprentices

More about apprenticeship in France: here