How hard is it for a Canadian engineer to work/move to the states (Houston)?

Question

10 years refining experience (chemical engineering).

Answer 1

I'm assuming you know about the immigration laws so I'll address just the physical part.

Houston is very hot and humid starting in about April and running  to October. After that we get generally VERY rainy weather where it varies from cooler and windy 40-60F.

Food prices are as in anywhere in the states rising very rapidly. We figure ours are up about 20-25% within the last year. Don't get too excited about the meat here in Texas, being from Iowa I can assure you its not very good for what you pay. IN Canada where you can get good meat you will be a little disappointed.

Houston is probably the capitol of restaurants and you can find anything from Viet to Turk here. There is also an abundance of night life from opera to professional sports.

Many of the main highways are under construction. Getting around can be a challenge. Get used to that. They are always under construction.

I live in Katy on the west side of town very close to what is called the 'Energy Corridor'. But Houston is oil. It's EVERYWHERE. You can't swing a cat and not be close to a company that either is or directly supports the oil industry.

Job wise you might want to consider these:

http://www.oceaneering.com/index.asp

http://www.halliburton.com/

http://www.mustangeng.com/

If I were moving to Houston I'd look at Cinco Ranch or Falcon Point on the west side. Fairfield on the northwest side. The Woodlands or Spring on the north.

http://www.cincoranch.com/

http://www.falconpointnews.com/

http://www.visitfairfield.com/

http://www.thewoodlands.com/

Hey good luck and I hope this helped.

Answer 2

easy as pie,, jobs in the chem eng,, gas oil,, are decent in houston,, the only problem will be with your immigration status, and you shouldn't have a problem getting approved for a resident allien status..

Answer 3

First of all look into the laws that govern immigration to the US.  US Immigration Support, it include info on applying to become a legal resident not just to become a US citizen.

http://www.usimmigrationsupport.org/

Then do a yahoo search for engineering jobs in Houston.