How Expats Can Build an IT Career in the USA: Insights from Viktor Bogutskii

Breaking into the U.S. tech industry remains one of the most rewarding and competitive career moves today. Ranked byU.S. News & World Reportas the #5 Best Job for 2025, software development offers high salaries, strong job security, and long-term growth prospects. We spoke withViktor Bogutskii, a talented Software Architect, Team Lead, and Full-stack Developer, to learn how he built an IT career from scratch in a new country.

With over 15 years in tech and an IEEE membership, Viktor Bogutskii has co-founded PASV, a Silicon Valley programming academy with thousands of learners, and led major projects for global companies such as Apple and Equinix. Today, he focuses on building AI-driven tools that transform how apps are created, and shares his perspective on what it takes for expats to start an IT career in the USA.

Specialize Early and Build for Depth

In the tech market, depth of expertise often outweighs breadth of skills. Professionals who focus on a clearly defined niche can showcase stronger portfolios, stand out to recruiters, and adapt more quickly to specialized roles.

My professional journey began with projects for small businesses and participation in local tech conferences, where I was first introduced to the world of open-source and modular architecture. When I entered the U.S. market, I recognized that competing as a generalist would be challenging, so I focused on frontend development, delving deeply into JavaScript, responsive design, and modern UI frameworks. Choosing a specific focus allowed me to plan my learning, build targeted projects, and prepare for interviews with confidence,”says Viktor.

This approach allowed Bogutskii to join Apple as a Senior Software Engineer, contributing to strategically important projects. There, he worked on implementing GDPR compliance, an ambitious, large-scale initiative that required a complete overhaul of the user account architecture to meet new European privacy regulations. His contribution focused on designing and integrating features into the account management interface, enabling millions of users worldwide to control access to their personal data and strengthening trust in Apple’s products. Another key achievement was the modernization of an internal HR tool. By migrating its frontend to a modern architecture, the system became significantly more user-friendly and adaptable, with maintenance fully transitioned to Apple’s internal team.

Tailor Your Profile Like a Product Pitch

In the U.S. job market, a résumé, LinkedIn profile, and GitHub are powerful marketing tools, not just career records. Their impact depends on how precisely they match the target role, using the right keywords, highlighting measurable results, and demonstrating value in terms that employers care about, such as speed, efficiency, or revenue growth.

“I would suggest thinking about social profile as if you are a product manager,”says Viktor.“You are the product, and your résumé is your product pitch. U.S. recruiters often spend less than 10 seconds on the first scan, so make sure the most relevant skills, tech stack, and results are visible right away. If a job description says ‘React’ five times, make sure ‘React’ appears in your résumé exactly that way, and backed by measurable results.”

This advice is particularly relevant in a landscape where algorithms and AI-driven filters often act as the first barrier for candidates. To pass this robotic screening, résumés are reshaped to mirror keywords from postings and copy specific phrasing, sometimes including skills that play only a minor role in actual work. Job descriptions themselves are frequently overloaded with “insurance” requirements, long lists of technologies that look impressive on paper but are not always essential. Automated systems treat these lists literally, which can lead to strong engineers being filtered out while others advance by simply cataloging buzzwords.

“The same pattern applies to achievements,adds Viktor.“The U.S. market expects every position to be presented as measurable wins, optimizations, growth metrics, and innovations delivered. Yet, many IT roles involve critical yet routine work, such as maintaining systems, fixing bugs, or ensuring stability. Engineers who do not practice self-presentation risk being overlooked, while those who deliberately polish their résumés and interview skills can create the impression of a star engineer.”

Following this method, Bogutskii was invited to one of the world’s most prestigious digital infrastructure companies, Equinix. There, he worked on designing experimental systems for managing server configurations across global data centers, initially as prototypes before moving them into full-scale production.

Drawing on his expertise gained at Apple, Equinix, Bogutskii integrated real-world engineering practices and high-quality standards into his original educational platform, which is built on thousands of tasks and tests developed by experts over many years, making it a unique environment for skill development. Today, Viktor mentors aspiring specialists through online programs and in-person lectures in different cities, combining theory with real production practices. Thanks to Bogutskii’s leadership, more than 28,000 users have been trained on the platform, and hundreds of graduates have gone on to work at prestigious international firms, including Google, Amazon, Microsoft, Meta, and Apple.

Adapt to the Local Work Culture

Success in the U.S. tech market lies in understanding how teams communicate, make decisions, and manage projects. Engineers who adapt quickly to workplace norms build trust faster, collaborate more effectively, and position themselves for leadership opportunities.

“While working in major corporations, I kept learning and expanding my expertise through personal initiatives. In a corporate role, the scope is often limited; side projects gave me the breadth of technologies that later became my competitive edge. In the U.S. tech market, showing the ability to deliver production-ready solutions outside your core job, whether through open-source contributions or high-quality side projects, signals initiative and adaptability, traits highly valued by employers,”adds Viktor.

Drawing on years in high-pressure corporate environments and his own journey navigating the U.S. tech market, Bogutskii has distilled those lessons into a practical training framework that mirrors real-world challenges. He has personally created thousands of exercises and project-based tasks on his platform, each designed to build the skills that matter most in competitive hiring environments. By focusing on applied expertise and industry-standard practices, he has helped many newcomers to enter the field and compete on equal footing with seasoned professionals, a reminder that in the American market, technical ability matters, but the ability to apply it effectively is what truly sets candidates apart.

Practical Lessons for Engineers

Beyond the shifting hiring landscape, there are timeless practices that can make engineers stronger candidates and professionals. These are lessons Bogutskii has applied in his own journey, and they continue to prove effective for others:

Solve real-world problems.

“Inside a corporation, it is easy to spend years maintaining internal systems or tools that are never seen outside the company. Building a large personal project with the goal of reaching the market forces engineers to go beyond their primary role, explore adjacent areas, and understand how technology connects to business,”says Viktor.

Practice every day.

“Even small, incremental progress matters if it is consistent. Writing a few lines of code or making a minor improvement daily compounds over time, keeping skills sharp and confidence high,”Viktor adds.

Prepare for coding tasks and interviews, but don’t forget soft skills.

“Companies often make decisions not only on technical ability but also on whether someone is approachable, collaborative, and positive. Becoming the kind of person others want to work with can be just as important as solving the hardest algorithmic challenge,”shares Viktor.

As Bogutskii notes, today’s hiring environment often rewards the art of presentation as much as the practice of engineering itself. For expats seeking to break into the U.S. tech industry, success lies in combining both: mastering technical skills while also learning how to present them in a way that resonates with employers.