Rejected 563 Times. 1 Offer Saved His Visa. Harsha’s 8-Month Job Hunt

🎧 Welcome to Episode 1 of Chandu’s World Podcast – where we go beyond LinkedIn highlights and talk about the real life of international students and tech professionals in the U.S. In this episode, I talk to Harsha Teja G, a Data Engineer at ThoughtFocus, AWS certified, and someone who went from Vizag to the U.S. chasing a dream. LinkedIn of Harsha's:- https://www.linkedin.com/in/ghtharshateja/ We talk about: ✅ Why he chose Northeastern University and Data Science ✅ The brutal financial reality of moving to the U.S. ✅ First few months of loneliness, struggle, and part-time hustle ✅ How he cracked his job, built skills in Spark, Python, Airflow ✅ And whether studying in the U.S. is *really* worth it in 2025 If you're a student, job seeker, or just looking for some real talk from someone who's been there — this one's for you. Timestamps:- 00:00 Intro 00:41 Welcome Harsha 01:25 Harsha's Intro 02:50 LIFE BEFORE AMERICA 07:35 Was funding the Master’s ever a challenge? 08:18 STRUGGLES IN THE U.S. 15:25 HOW HE GOT HIS JOB 20:10 How many job applications did he send? 24:28 Tip that job seekers need the most 26:06 Cold applying vs Referrals 31:15 Outro 📌 Watch These NEXT (Highly Recommended): - Job market Situation in the USA: https://youtu.be/d79cO7cENyE?si=fsmB7Ub8RtLf5XUw - I-20 Explained Clearly: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wwvfWX3sNHk - 5 DS-160 Mistakes to AVOID: https://youtu.be/eBntx4C87Vo - OPT Process Step-by-Step: https://youtu.be/Dy961IIi1kc?si=oP3xTg88m5UX3Q4k 📱 Stay Connected: 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/usimmigrantguide/ 🔗 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/poornachandra-kongara/ 📧 Email: ckongarac@gmail.com Best Credit Card Resources:- Credit Card Referrals:- - Zolve: https://zolve.onelink.me/o1XN?pid=referrals&deep_link_sub2=ZOLVE-0ACZT&referral_code=ZOLVE-0ACZT&c=ZOLVE-0ACZT - Discover Card: https://refer.discover.com/ckongarac13!58f9728aae!a - Chase Freedom: https://www.referyourchasecard.com/18N/JFCR2S5IV3 - Amex Blue Cash: https://americanexpress.com/en-us/referral/blue-cash-everyday-credit-card?ref=POORNKmD9C&XLINK=MYCP 🔔 Subscribe for more real journeys like this: @ChandusWorld 📩 Want to be a guest? DM me on Instagram or LinkedIn! #InternationalStudents #DataEngineer #MastersInUSA #StudentLifeUSA #ChandusWorldPodcast #IndianInUSA #USJobSearch #ImmigrantJourney