Personal experience: A designer from Belarus worked in the US for nine months and decided to return home.

Having become a designer in Belarus, Alexandra Kavtaskina worked in her field in Minsk for about three years. Then her life took an unexpected turn. Alexandra spoke to the publication about how she moved to the United States, the pros and cons of life in America, and why she returned home. DEV.by. Next - from the first person.

How did I end up in the US? I won a green card on my first try. My mom suggested I apply, and I was the only one in the family who won. Eventually, in January 2025, I ended up in New York. My dad's childhood friend lives there, and he was a big help to me at first. While I was looking for work, I lived in his parents' apartment in Brooklyn.

It's hard to compete with English speakers

I looked for a job through LinkedIn, Indeed, and various other small job search platforms. I found one two months later thanks to a tip from a girl on TikTok who recommended checking LinkedIn for recent job openings. I searched for posts from the last 24 hours for the search term "we are hiring graphic designer."

When searching this way, you face less competition. I had three interviews during the entire period. They were made more difficult by my level of English (B1): it was difficult to compete with English-speaking competitors.

Eventually, a full-service marketing agency in Minnesota made me an offer requiring me to relocate to my place of work. So I moved there with all my belongings. Everything was more expensive in New York, and I wasn't tied to the place.

I worked in the American outback for about seven months. It was incredibly difficult, as I left the metropolis and found myself in the tiny town of Sartell, with a population of 10,000 and absolutely nothing. My life at that time consisted of home, work, work, home.

I planned to go to the US for about six months to see if I liked it there. I ended up staying for almost nine months—completely alone, with people of a different mentality and language. It was very challenging, but I managed it.

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American work experience

Living and working in the US has definitely allowed me to grow professionally and personally. The US market is very different from the CIS countries. They seem to have a different understanding of design. More old-school, perhaps. For example, Americans like to use up to five fonts of different sizes in a single design.

One of my bosses was also a designer, and we shared various jobs. For example, she designs an email newsletter, hands me the source code, and I animate it. However, her designs are the kind I would never create. They like busy layouts with lots of elements, illustrations, gradients, and so on. If you look at signs or banners around town, they're all messy, too.

They give me the edits, and I'm absolutely furious at the lack of taste. At first, I offered alternatives, but then I gave in. I simply did as they asked, because I understood I was working for a different market; this was their territory.

Another characteristic is that they're big fans of their state (as far as I understand, this is true for all states). Minnesota, for example, is famous for kayaking, rafting, patios, and fishing (there are lots of lakes there). And any design is drawn to this. And Colorado is famous for its mountains—and they incorporate them into everything there.

I didn't have to get used to any new American work processes.

We hardly communicated with each other, as everyone had their own office, and tasks arrived via email. But during brainstorming sessions, I had a hard time explaining my ideas. In such cases, I used a translator without any problems. On Thursdays, we had meetings to discuss projects and deadlines for the following week (Thursday was because Friday and Monday were "remote" days, and we didn't meet again until Tuesday).

Expectations vs. Reality

Unfortunately, my expectations of living and working in the US weren't met. I've heard many immigrants talk about how they first came to the US and immediately knew they wanted to live here. That didn't happen for me.

As soon as I left the airport, someone asked me, "How's the air? Different?" No, it's the same! I've never had that "Wow! I'm in the USA!"

In these nine months, I've been to five states. They're all different. But in some places, America is very unsafe. There are drug addicts, psychos, and gangsters. Guns are allowed. It's scary, especially when you're a lonely young woman. I was very anxious there, especially in New York.

For the first two weeks, I lived near New York City, in New Jersey. It was a suburb—a nice, wealthy area where my dad's friend lives. You can't live there without a car, but it's safe and clean. My second time in New Jersey was in Hoboken, a town separated from New York by the Hudson River. It's absolutely beautiful there, with views of Manhattan, clean, and cozy.

In Colorado, I spent a week visiting a friend of my mom's in the small town of Longmond. I really loved the state; they took me to some really cool places. We went to the mountains, and I went to an electronic music concert at an amphitheater in the rocks. It was a unique experience, and I'm so glad I went.

I went to Chicago, Illinois, for two days. And I absolutely fell in love. After Sartell, where I lived and where there wasn't a soul, I was simply delighted by the concentration of young, happy people. And everyone was very athletic, contrary to the myth that everyone in the US is fat.

Chicago has great architecture; it really touched my heart. But I've often heard, and the girls at work have said, that it's a very crime-ridden city, with many ghetto-like areas—with guns and gangs. So, downtown, it's great, but the rest is questionable. And supposedly everyone from there moves to Minnesota.

New York City is incredibly unsafe. I've felt it myself, and many have mentioned it. I've spoken to older locals, and they've told me this has never happened before. It's scary even just riding the subway, so I carry a small bottle of hairspray instead of pepper spray, just in case.

But New York has a lot of museums and parks. There's always something to see, and I really like that. But everything is very expensive.

Minnesota was a relatively cheap state. The town of Sartell, where I lived, looked like a typical Belarusian suburb, like Zaslavl. There were fields, crops, houses. And roads, roads, roads.

Minnesota also has its own unique climate. It doesn't have disasters like floods or fires, and there are no dangerous animals like alligators in Miami. But it does have frequent storms. My phone would alert me to a state of emergency almost every day, and sirens would wail across the city almost every week. Once, we even sat in a windowless room at work, waiting for the hurricane to pass. While I lived in Sartell, there weren't any tornadoes there, but I know they've hit neighboring towns. And there are also huge wasps there, the size of two of our hornets. Once, two of them flew into my house at once, and I barely managed to get them out.

Besides, the girls always scared me about the harsh winter. But I never experienced it in Minnesota.

The job didn't live up to my expectations either. Americans are stingy and unwilling to share a cent. Because I'm an immigrant and didn't know how things worked here, I had to settle for worse conditions than I could have had.

Of course, everything comes with experience. But ultimately, exactly half of my salary went toward rent and utilities. And then there's food, shopping, and travel around the US. Perhaps if I'd gone to the US with someone, things would have been easier. Both in terms of basic needs and having company nearby.

I rented a two-bedroom apartment in a multi-family building for $1100, plus $50 for electricity. I wanted to rent a one-bedroom apartment for $980, but I simply didn't have time—it was snatched right under my nose. So, over the course of my entire stay in the US, I overpaid about $700 because my second room was empty.

My American salary was $3500. $700 of that went to taxes. Rent and utilities were about $1200. Grocery costs were $300-500 (including various deliveries). Travel costs were about $500-600 a month (for tickets and food). I didn't spend much on clothes. The maximum I spent on them during my entire time in the US was $300-400.

I tried to save $1000 every month, but sometimes I had to travel and it was less. Two-thirds of my budget went toward basic expenses.

As for the car, I didn't buy one. I started getting my driver's license in New York, but since I knew nothing about it, there was a lot of confusion and the process dragged on. While all this was going on, I got a job offer and moved to Minnesota. There I realized I couldn't stay in Sartell because I'd go crazy with boredom. There was no point in getting my driver's license and buying a car anymore.

The food in the US is terrible, unnatural. And if it's organic, it's expensive. The potato selection is poor. I understand there will be "ha-ha, a typical Belarusian looking for potatoes." But yes, it's very starchy there.

Very greasy fast food. For example, Domino's Pizza is completely different. It's like they roll it in oil after it's baked. McDonald's is the same. Greasy fat.

I tried to eat the way I was used to. Scrambled eggs for breakfast. Cottage cheese. Potatoes. Pasta. Salads.

The one delicious American food I miss is the burrito. And most importantly, kani salad. I've never seen it anywhere in Minsk. It's an Asian dish found in places like sushi bars. The ingredients are very simple: mango, cucumber, crab sticks. Everything is cut into strips and dressed with light Chinese mayonnaise. It's a very tasty and very popular dish there.

I don't eat meat and thought the US was a country of all cuisines, including vegetarian. To my disappointment, there was very little suitable for me. There were some processed foods, yes, like vegan sausages or soy patties. But you rarely find such things in restaurants. Americans love meat: steaks, beef.

Making friends in the US was really, really difficult for me. I made some acquaintances who helped me out at first. They were elderly people, relatives of my dad's friend. We talked on the phone occasionally. Plus, my cousin lives in New Jersey, and he helped out too. And then there were the girls from work. One follows me on Instagram, the others on LinkedIn. But we haven't spoken since I returned.

Return:

плюсы

As it turns out, I'm a person who's very attached to my homeland. I thought it would be easy for me to be alone, since I lived alone in Minsk too, and I'm comfortable being alone. But it turned out to be a completely different story. When you see loved ones celebrating holidays, or important events in their lives, and you can't be there, it's very difficult.

It was funny when I arrived in Minsk: I was driving through the city at night, sleeping. I woke up as I was passing Pushkinskaya station. A song with the lyrics "time to go home" was playing in my headphones. It was very symbolic.

I arrived and everything was so clean, so nice. I'm so happy to be back home. I ate delicious food. I walked around my favorite places and with my favorite people.

…and the downsides

I suddenly discovered that it was hard to find a job here. Having to overcome so much on my own, I grew mentally and realized I wasn't ready to settle for less. I came to Belarus with great enthusiasm and pride in my experience. But I found myself being offered a very small salary for someone with my experience and skills.

Even after asking for 2300-2700 rubles, some people immediately refuse, others say it's beyond their means. I understand that wages in the US and Belarus differ greatly. But given how prices have risen in Belarus, it's incredibly sad. In the US, living on such a low salary by American standards, I didn't deny myself anything. I saved up some money for travel, and a good amount at that.

In Belarus, I want a salary of $1300-$1400 with room for growth. I understand that my expectations are higher than what the market offers. But given my skill set, international experience, and ambitions, it's still not that much.

Besides, I know people, my friends, acquaintances, who earn even more than I want. So, it’s possible.

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In my ideal worldview, I'd work for the US and live in Belarus on an American salary. Even with the $3000 I was earning in Minnesota. But that's not happening yet.

When I returned to Belarus, my company in the US initially agreed on remote work. Then they spent a long time considering how to do it legally. In the end, they offered me freelance work at $10 an hour, where I would pay my own taxes. And with the stipulation that they wouldn't guarantee me permanent employment. These were very poor conditions, even disrespectful, since their argument was that I was moving to Belarus, where wages are lower. But what difference does it make where I'm located if I'm working for the US market? It all comes down to the fact that they really love money (in their own pockets, of course). So, unfortunately, we couldn't reach an agreement. It really hurt me at the time.

I'm not currently considering moving to another country—only the possibility of working in a foreign market. I'm also thinking about creating something of my own. Perhaps I'll create my own courses.

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