Why did you leave? Was it out of necessity or a desire to travel?

Neither. My situation was unusual. Living in Ireland, I was offered a position in Bord Bia’s New York office. After some serious debate I decided to take the offer and relocate. Although I’d travelled a bit in the past (I spent the previous summer on a J1 in Toronto) and enjoyed it a lot, America was never somewhere that appealed to me and I certainly wouldn’t have moved if not for this job offer.

How long have you lived in New York? What were your first impressions of the city?

I’ve been here almost eight months. I arrived in early October when the weather was mild, but dull. I have to admit my first impressions were of a grey, noisy concrete jungle – stereotypical, but true. It takes a while to get used to the constant noise and crowds, but you adjust fairly quickly. I think a lot of people who haven’t spent time here have a glamorised view of New York. It’s an exciting place, but behind the glitz there’s a hollow side to it too.

What kind of opportunities are there for a young person in New York? What is it like to work there?

In general, it’s really tough. So many people flock to New York for work that competition is quite intense. Many of my Irish friends searched for months before getting employment. A complication is the limitations of the work visa. Most young Irish are here on a one-year training visa. This visa forbids working as a full-time employee, only as an intern.

The problem is that because competition is so high the vast majority of internships are unpaid. Taking on additional weekend work is also illegal under the visa. As you can imagine, this puts a lot of people in a very difficult living situation, especially in a city with astronomical rents. That said, if you have standout qualities and a good work ethic, the opportunities can be fantastic. It’s possible to get a visa extension if a company is willing to sponsor you, although the number of these visas is limited, so sadly no matter how good you are, getting one can boil down to pure luck.

Working days in New York are long. It’s common for my office block to be busy at 8pm. American companies usually give only two weeks of holidays a year. It’s definitely not for those who enjoy a laid-back lifestyle.

What’s the cost of living like in comparison with cities in Ireland? How much can someone expect to pay for rent and transport to work?

Manhattan is crazily expensive. It would be rare to get a single room in a shared apartment for under $1,000 (€735) a month. The boroughs are slightly more reasonable.

I live 20 minutes from the city, in Queens, with two girls and our apartment is $2,200 (€1,615) a month between us. I think the affordable transport system is one of the best things about New York.

An unlimited monthly metro card, with all subway and bus travel is $112 (€82). Eating out is very expensive, as are drinks. Unless you’re in a high-end job, wages aren’t great. Minimum wage here is $8, less than €6. You learn to take advantage of websites like Groupon and LivingSocial’s deals and coupons, which we use for weekend trips and events.

Can you imagine staying in NY permanently or would you like to come home?

So many people come over here and never want to return, but personally it’s not for me. I’m very happy with my friends and my job, but there are a lot of aspects to America that I do not like. As a society I think it has a lot of its priorities wrong. I miss the Irish sense of humour, food and laid-back attitude.

I can’t see myself living abroad in future, I’d rather be around friends and family. However, I’m glad to have had this experience. Moving alone to New York is a test. It was the most difficult thing I’ve done, but it completely matured me, broadened my mind and taught me a lot.

What are New Yorkers like?

For the most part New Yorkers are really friendly, welcoming and helpful. Some can be a bit intense – you see people getting ridiculously angry in public over minor things like train delays. It’s like anywhere though, you encounter all types. It also depends on the borough – Manhattan is very touristy and commercial, like the New York you’d see in films, whereas Queens is really ethnically diverse and Brooklyn is the hipster spot. When you go out of the city, people are more relaxed. Places like Montauk and Connecticut, which are just two hours from New York, feel like a different country.

What is it like to socialise in New York? How did you make friends when you moved?

As you’d expect, social life in New York is non-stop. Between shows, gigs, sports, bars and events, you can have a great night out any day of the week. The subways run 24 hours, as do many shops, so you can go for dinner at 5am if you feel like it.

It was pretty easy making friends as everyone who works on my floor is Irish. Through going to events I got to know other people my age, then their friends and so on. Almost all my friends here are Irish. We tend to stick together and look out for each other, so it’s nice to have that sense of community in a big city. I think it comes from sharing the same outlook and sense of humour.

It’s also ridiculous how many times you find Irish people that know friends of yours from home. It’s such a cliché, but Ireland really is the smallest country.

Immigrant visa

An immigrant visa is required of anyone who wishes to enter the United States to reside there permanently, whether or not that person plans to seek employment in the US. The filing of an immigrant visa petition is also the initial step required to receive a permanent resident card (also known as a green card). In most cases, with the exception of the diversity immigrant visa lottery, you can only receive an immigrant visa if someone files an immigrant visa petition on your behalf.

US immigration law provides for the issuance of immigrant visas in four general categories:

• Sponsorship by an immediate relative.

• Sponsorship by family member.

• Sponsorship by a prospective employer.

• Returning resident – SB-1.

• Winning the diversity immigrant visa lottery.

For application and documentation requirements for all immigrant visa categories please visit www.dublin.usembassy.gov

Summer work travel (J) visa

In this category, a participant is defined as a bona fide foreign post-secondary student in his or her own country, currently enrolled in and actively pursuing a degree or a full-time course of study at an accredited academic institution, or as that status is defined by the alien’s home country educational system. Final year students are eligible to take part in this programme even though they will have graduated at the time of participation, as long as they apply to participate in the programme prior to graduation.

For more information about the programme, please visit the website http://j1visa.state.gov/