Culture Shock on Work and Travel USA: Stages, Tipping and Getting Help

The program is built around living in American culture, and culture shock is a normal part of adjusting to it. This page gives the three phases of culture shock, then tipping, then the steps to take when stress builds. The living hub holds the rest of daily life.

The short version

1. Expect culture shock; it is normal and has three stages.
2. Get to know people at your workplace.
3. Find a local person to talk to about your frustrations.
4. Walk 30 minutes every day to boost your mood.
5. Get professional help if severe symptoms last 2 weeks or more.

Why culture is part of the program

Summer Work and Travel has a cultural purpose in federal rules. Its purpose is to give foreign students chances to interact with US citizens, experience US culture while sharing their own cultures with Americans they meet, and travel in the United States. Students come to the US to share their culture and ideas with people of the United States through temporary work and travel, and to be exposed to the people and way of life in the United States.

Sponsors have to deliver on this:

• They must select applicants who show an intention to join the cultural aspects of the program.
• Pre-arrival information must explain the cultural component, including how to best experience US culture or the cultural opportunities the sponsor arranged.
• Participants must have chances to work alongside US citizens and interact regularly with them during the workday.
• They must also have chances to take part in cultural activities or events outside of work.
• Host employers must provide opportunities for regular communication and interaction with US citizens.

As an exchange visitor, you are also an ambassador of your country, and you will help educate Americans about your home country and culture. The 1961 law behind the program promotes mutual understanding between the people of the United States and other countries through educational and cultural exchange. You are encouraged to take part in activities where you can share your language, culture and history with Americans.

What culture shock is

At first everything is unfamiliar, from weather, landscape and language to food, fashion, values and customs, as the State Department’s guide to adjusting puts it. Culture shock is a normal part of study abroad. Its symptoms can include homesickness, depression, feeling lost and out of place, frustration, irritability and fatigue.

How hard it hits depends on tolerance for ambiguity, the degree of difference between home and host culture, prior experience abroad and expectations. The pace differs: one person moves through the process quicker and with less stress, while another finds it difficult to adjust.

The three stages

Everyone goes through three similar stages when adapting to a new culture.

In the rejection stage you may:

• Study or work for hours, longer than colleagues, because of language differences.
• Experience minor health problems and disruptions in sleeping and eating patterns.
• Feel your motivation fade and want to withdraw from new friends, which is a natural reaction to living in a new culture.
• Be angry at not finding what you had expected.
• Think about going home early before the program ends.

The third stage does not erase the first. Your feelings may improve, but you may never get back to the high of the first phase. Earlier misunderstandings and mistakes become easy to understand and resolve. As time passes you will be better able to enjoy your new surroundings.

Tipping: one custom you will meet at work

For its tip-reporting rules, the IRS treats tipping of food or beverage employees by customers as customary. Tipping generally is not considered customary in a cafeteria-style operation, or where at least 95% of sales have a service charge of 10% or more.

Under federal law, an employer must pay a tipped worker at least $2.13 per hour, in the Department of Labor’s 2026 fact sheet. Only tips actually received count in applying the tip credit. The employer must show that tipped employees receive at least the full federal minimum wage each workweek. See the pay and wages page for the rest of the rules.

Your sponsor is responsible for assisting and advising you on all matters regarding your program.

Ways to ease culture shock

Steps from the State Department’s adjustment guide:

• “Plunge” into the host culture and wrestle with the differences.
• Keep an open mind. It is natural for preconceived ideas to come into question while abroad.
• Get to know others at your workplace.
• Find a local person with whom you can discuss your frustrations and encounters.
• Learn as much as you can about your host culture.
• Keep a support structure with others who are going through the same thing, but do not retreat into a clique.
• Take walks or join a team sport.
• Keep a journal of your impressions and how you are changing.

The first week checklist helps with the practical side of settling in.

Stress, sleep and your body

Stress is the physical or mental response to an external cause, such as a heavy workload or an illness. Anxiety is your body’s reaction to stress and can occur even if there is no current threat. The National Institute of Mental Health lists habits that help:

• Walk. Just 30 minutes of walking every day can boost your mood and improve your health.
• Keep a sleep routine and get enough sleep. Blue light from devices and screens can make it harder to fall asleep.
• Avoid excess caffeine such as soft drinks or coffee. Pay attention to how caffeine and alcohol affect your mood.
• Decide what must get done now and what can wait.
• Reach out to friends or family who help you cope in a positive way.

When to ask for help

If the self-care activities above do not help or symptoms worsen, talk to a health care provider. Seek professional help if severe or distressing symptoms have lasted 2 weeks or more. For concerns about your mental health, talk to a primary care provider. The health insurance page covers what your program’s coverage includes.

Three places to turn:

• 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. Call or text 988, or chat online. Using it is free, and your conversation is confidential. People do not have to be suicidal to call, and reasons include loneliness, culture and identity, and depression. Text and chat are in English and Spanish only, while voice calls are available in many other languages. To reach a Spanish-speaking counselor, dial 988 and then press 2.
• Your J-1 sponsor. The sponsor is responsible for assisting and advising you on all matters regarding your program. If problems arise, your sponsor is there to help you.
• The J-1 Visa Emergency Helpline. If your sponsor does not resolve your concern, call 1-866-283-9090.

Read the health and safety page for the full list of emergency contacts.