The US Embassy in Dublin has urged qualified students who are interested in applying for the J-1 Summer Work Travel (SWT) or Camp Counselor program in 2018 to begin the application process as soon as possible.
The J-1 scheme is 50 years old, and over 160,000 Irish students have taken part in it over the years.
US Chargé d’Affaires Reece Smyth
It said that “because of the popularity of the program among Irish students, the US Embassy and Department of State have worked with the Summer Work & Travel US sponsor agencies to secure an additional 2,600 J-1 Summer Work Travel slots, which means there will be the same number available as were allocated to Ireland last year. For 2018, Ireland has approximately 7,000 total J-1 SWT slots allocated.”
It added that the global job pre-placement policy, introduced in Ireland in 2016 by two major US sponsors for Irish students, requires would-be participants to secure a job before visa issuance and travel to the United States.
The embassy believes that “this policy has been a great improvement to the J-1 SWT program in Ireland, and ensures that students can start working as soon as they arrive in the United States.”
It recommends that both SWT and Camp Counselor prospects begin to research their options early and select a J-1 Irish Partner Agency which will best suit their needs. A list of organisations that recruit most of the J-1 participants from Ireland can be found at: https://ie.usembassy.gov/
For more information visit the US Embassy’s website at https://ie.usembassy.gov
