Making friends meet, Niamh shares her top tips on expanding that contact list when on a J1 summer in the USA.

Hey, my name is Niamh and I went on my J1 to Chicago last summer. I had a fantastic summer and am here to share some tips on how to make your summer the best.

Making new friends was a really integral part of my summer abroad, although I was lucky enough to head over with a group of my friends from college, we all branched out and met new, interesting and life long friends.

Having lots of friends during your summer abroad makes your nights out and day activities more enjoyable as everyone has clashing work schedules.

So, here are my top tips for making friends when you move abroad on a J1.

Find your work bestie

As simple as it seems, having friends that you work with makes the days go so much quicker and it is nice to all be able to hang out together after work. My friends and I who went over, all worked in separate locations which really forced us to make friends at work. I ended up working with other Irish students on their J1 from all over the country and lots of American students on summer break. I felt like working by myself really helped me make new friends and get to know people better. Also, you will spend so much time with them over the summer.

After work in the evenings we would all go to the beach for an evening swim and even spend time together on our days off. My top tip here is even if you go over with a group of friends, work separately and be open to making new friends at work from the get go.

Meet people on nights out

Most J1 locations have a set up rotation of nights out. For us in Chicago there were three bars on Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday nights. They would have great drinks promotions, fun themes and they attracted a large group of people who were also on J1. I found these nights a great way to meet new Irish people and run into people that I knew from before.

As much fun as J1 nights are, I would totally recommend branching out and going on American nights out. After baseball games in Wrigley Field we would head out to all the baseball bars, which were so much fun and something I had not experienced before. In particular one bar called Sluggers also had a baseball themed arcade inside. Getting to learn about a new sport and making friends through the atmosphere on nights out really was a highlight for me.

Join local teams and community events

Coming over to Chicago, a couple of my friends joined the local GAA teams. Most of them had played before but I hadn't and I ended up getting dragged to a training session or two. This was such a nice way to meet new people and especially Irish people who lived in Chicago for a long time and could give us recommendations.

At the end of the summer, the team ended up travelling to a couple of states and winning a league which was a great bonding session. I would recommend joining a GAA club abroad as a great way to get involved in the community you are staying in. Also, we spent most of our Sundays in Gaelic Park, watching the All Irelands matches at home.

Another way I met new people was attending local community events. In the area we were staying they regularly had evening movies in the park, arts and crafts festivals and yard sales. This was a great way to meet people in our community and loads of them were American college students who we got to know quite well. I think exploring what is on your doorstep in a new city is really important and a fantastic way to meet people who know a lot about the area.

Put yourself out there and try new things

One of my top tips for making new friends in any situation is to really put yourself out there. Go out and seek new activities and experience that you would not commonly do at home or find in Ireland. It can be really isolating in the first few days as everything is new and exciting. Finding people to share experience with is so important and doing it by putting yourself out of your comfort zone is even better. When someone asks you to go for a swim or they have a last minute ticket to a show, say yes and grab every opportunity! By putting yourself out there, whether you go on your J1 alone or with friends, you will not regret it.

My time in Chicago was one of the best summers I have ever experienced. It is a fantastic city with so much to do. One of my highlights is the people I met along the way and am still in contact with now I am back in Ireland. Chicago really has cultural activities for everyone and is a fantastic place to do a J1 and a city with extremely friendly people.

Thanks Niamh! If this makes you want to find some new besties across the pond then start planning your J1 summer.