LITHUANIA'S WORK AND TRAVEL PROGRAM

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 VILNIUS 001272

SIPDIS

STATE FOR EUR/NB, CA/VO, CA/FPP, ECA/EC/PS
FRANKFURT FOR RSC-RCO RBROWN

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: CVIS CMGT CPAS PGOV LH
SUBJECT: LITHUANIA'S WORK AND TRAVEL PROGRAM

REF: Vilnius 1226


1. Summary. Lithuania's Summer Work and Travel Program
(SWT),one of the largest programs per capita in the world,
sends 2,000 university students to more than 30 states each
year. Concentrated primarily in service-oriented positions
in tourist areas along the East Coast and Great Lakes,
Lithuanians participate in the program to improve language
skills, learn about American culture, and earn money for
their university studies. The 97 percent return rate in
2005 reflects strong Post oversight, including regular
meetings with organizers. Alumni respondents to a post-
generated survey tell us they return to Lithuania more
confident, self-sufficient, and appreciative of the
cultural diversity and natural beauty of the United States.
Respondents affirm that the program fosters very pro-
American attitudes among Lithuania's future leaders. End
Summary.

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Lithuania's Work and Travel Program
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2. More than 7,200 Lithuanian university students
participated in the SWT between 2003-2005. Students from
Lithuania's most prestigious 14 institutions of higher
learning participate in the program. Utilizing the
databases of the program's ten Lithuania-based organizers
as well as recommendations from alumni, participants flock
to service-oriented positions in traditional tourist areas
along the East Coast, Great Lakes, and Alaska. Though most
participants receive hourly remuneration above minimum
wage, wages for workers range from $2.00-$3.00 per hour
plus gratuities for wait staff and hostesses to $10.00-
$12.00 for those working in more physically demanding jobs
such as construction, moving, and housekeeping.

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Strong Post Oversight
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3. Post maintains strong control and active oversight over
the program by assigning a Vice Consul and senior LES to
directly manage SWT. Consular officers regularly meet with
the ten local recruiting agencies, as well as with American
host organizations. Post conducts a general meeting
involving all local agencies early in the recruitment cycle
to clearly identify program requirements and detail the
processing of SWT applicants to ensure they do not
interfere with normal NIV traffic. Local agencies have
impressively demonstrated that they do a better job of
reporting overstays than traditional Post-generated
validation studies. Post, however, continues to regularly
spot-check the veracity of these numbers. Post conducts a
comprehensive review of the program and its constituent
recruitment and source organizations at the end of each
program year. Agencies whose return rates fall below 85
percent risk being removed or suspended from the program.
Universities who likewise represent a cluster of non-
returnees are dropped from the program. Post has removed
one agency and two universities, and suspended a second
agency for two years for poor performance since 2002.
Aggregate statistics for the years 2003-2005 indicate that
92 percent of the more than 7,200 participants returned on
time following their program. Return rates for the 2005
program were 96.5 percent. Most overstays change their
status to that of a student (F1) or temporary worker (H2B).
One student who traveled to Maine as part of the 2003
program told us that his employer "invited" him to remain
in the U.S. after the program to manage a gas station.

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Promoting the Program, Study, and Visa Waiver Roadmap
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4. Post actively promotes SWT as part of its broader Visa
Waiver Roadmap outreach campaign to Lithuania's public
(reftel A). A common claim and criticism in Lithuania of
America's immigration law is that young adults are denied
nonimmigrant visas at rates disproportionate to the general
public. Regular speaking engagements by both Consular and
Public Diplomacy officers highlighting SWT and the myriad
of opportunities for students to travel legally to the U.S.
helps mollify these erroneous complaints. During a
roundtable discussion at Lithuania's parliament regarding
America's visa policy, for example, the Consul noted that
thousands of students each year receive visas for SWT.
(More than 12,000 Lithuanian students participated in SWT
between 2000-2005.). The Vice Consul manager of the
program recently spoke about study opportunities in
America, the visa process, and SWT to more than 100
students at the Embassy's American Center.

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The Program: In Participants' Own Words
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5. To better understand Lithuania's SWT program and its
impact through the eyes of the participants, Post created
and distributed a questionnaire to 5,000 alumni from the
2003-2005 programs. Through their responses to the
questionnaire's eight questions, nearly 350 alumni detailed
their experiences and the impact and utility of the SWT
program. Students told us that the primary reasons they
participated in the program were to improve language
abilities, satiate a sense of adventure and wonder about
America, and earn money for their studies. Most came away
impressed with the customer-service orientation and
friendly nature of Americans. Noting that Lithuania is one
of the most homogenous nations in the world, several
highlighted the cultural diversity of America and the
sensitivity most Americans showed each other.

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"The Best Experience of My Life"
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6. Though Lithuanians generally found Americans lacking in
knowledge about the rest of the world, they characterized
Americans as a patriotic, smiling group who enjoyed their
"super-sized" lifestyle. Most participants traveled during
their summer, with Niagara Falls, Boston, and New York City
the most popular destinations, though some said they
traveled as far as the Bahamas, Hawaii and Mexico.
Respondents noted that their best experiences included
halibut fishing in Alaska, a professional football game in
Buffalo, NY, seeing the skyscrapers of New York City,
visiting New Orleans jazz clubs, meeting Bette Midler and
Luciano Pavarotti in Connecticut, and, from a computer
science major, having the opportunity to eat lunch on the
"Google" campus. Some participants, however, particularly
those that worked two jobs to maximize their earning
potential, did not venture beyond their state of residence.
These students remark that this decision afforded them the
opportunity to become more economically self-sufficient
following their return. Others noted that they spent a
sizable portion of their income in the U.S. on things like
computer equipment and corrective laser eye surgery,
something not available in Lithuania.

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Program Benefits to Participants
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7. The impact of the program is, in the participants' own
words, profound. Students noted that their American
experiences made them more polite, confident, and self-
sufficient. Most immediately applied their improved
language skills to their benefit at school, noting higher
grades, particularly in fields such as law and
international relations where course texts are in English.
Others, noting that the experience reinforced the value of
a university education, cited improved TOEFL scores and a
desire to continue their education abroad, including in the
United States. One student, majoring in psychology at
Vytautas Magnus University, utilized her travel window
following the program to explore U.S. educational
opportunities. She later returned to the United States on
a student visa and will graduate this summer from
Pennsylvania State University with a degree in
industrial/organizational psychology, a specialty not
taught in Lithuania, and will return to Lithuania. Several
alumni told us the program helped give them the language
skills to secure placement in graduate programs in Europe,
such as Kaiserslautern University of Technology (Germany)
and Concordia International University (Estonia),and at
the University of Dortmund (Germany) as an Erasmus scholar,
as well as employment following graduation in the fields of
biochemistry and international finance in England. One
student said her experience at a special needs camp in
Illinois will make her a better doctor by sensitizing her
to the needs of the disabled. She noted that she hoped to
apply some of the treatment and mainstreaming techniques
learned in the United States to Lithuania.

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Long-Term Impact of Program
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8. Respondents universally affirm that the program gave
them a distinct advantage over other graduates when seeking
employment. Respondents note that Lithuanian employers
greatly value their American experience, particularly their
exposure to a multinational culture, language skills, and
familiarity with American corporate culture and management
styles. Recent program alumni, for example, have secured
leadership positions in both governmental and private
institutions, such as the chief legal specialist for the
Vilnius city administration, and a consultant in an
international management-consulting firm. Many alumni have
qualified for full-validity tourist visas shortly after
graduation.

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Comment
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9. The continued efficacy of the Work and Travel Program
will remain one of Post's most important objectives.
Competition from EU-funded programs and work opportunities
elsewhere in Europe has begun to affect the numbers of
Lithuanian students participating in SWT. By continuing to
work closely with both local and American-based program
organizers, and promoting the program through public
speaking events, Post hopes to continue to reduce the
incidence of visa overstays while increasing program
participation. That alumni had overwhelmingly positive
experiences during their formative years leads us to
believe that the program is cultivating a pro-American
attitude among many of Lithuania's future leaders.