How to Grow with AMSI (or the Truth about HB-1 Visa Sponsorship)

Obviously there are differences between American and non-American when it comes to future opportunities with AMSI. For both, during your Internship you have the ability to become licensed as a California Real Estate agent.  You have to follow the process that any person would follow regardless of your status in the United States. You have to pass the state required real estate sales exam to become an agent/broker.  For foreign Interns this is legal to do while you are on the J1 work/study training visa. You can even be paid commissions earned as a part of your experience with AMSI. You must have a passport, a social security number and follow the California Department of Real Estate’s licensing requirements. www.dre.ca.gov will give you all of the facts. If you are legal to work in the US by birth or other means, pass the exam, then AMSI will have a place for you!

As of July 1, 2007 there are new rules to obtain a license. First, before even taking the state exam, you must pass 2 college level courses on Real Estate. One is called Real Estate Principles. The other is called Real Estate Practice. You can take the classes in school or on the Internet. Once you have completed the courses you must send the transcripts with the application to the State.  They will notify you that you are eligible to sit for the exam. The real estate industry is attracting every year a tremendous amount of people. To counter this so that only the best candidates get licensed, the State has made the exam more difficult to pass. It usually takes about 3-4 months to get through the process.

Until July, you can sit for the exam by just taking the Real Estate Principles class and you will get a conditional license. Within 18 months you must prove to the State that you have completed 2 additional real estate classes. Then, you receive your unconditional license which to keep there are additional continuing education credit to be completed with in  every 4 years in order to keep it active or you will be required to pass the exam again.

But even if you have a real estate license, for it will not guarantee your ability to be hired on with an HB1 work visa. The US government does not consider a Real Estate Agent a ‘specialized skill’ in our industry so it would not be an option to even apply.

Interns have in the past become employees of AMSI as they had or have obtained legal status in the United States. For additional information, please address your questions to Human Resources, Robert Dionisio rdionisio@amsiemail.com or Sally Aderton saderton@amsisd.com.