Careers Hub | The truth about working abroad

I look to my left, my colleague is from England. I look to my right, my colleague is from Scotland. I look down at my shoes, and I bought them in my hometown, in Canada. At Pulse Recruitment, we have a stacked roster of multicultural members. Scotland, England, Denmark, Canada, and of course Australia. And we’re only talking about 10 employees. This is the one thing I love most about working at Pulse Recruitment. There’s a variety of cultures, ways of thinking, and funny accents.

Have you ever considered working abroad? Well, we did too. At one point, we were exactly in your shoes. We had the itch, the burning desire to pack our bags and move to the other side of the world.

Now, if you’re reading this and want to work abroad (especially in Australia), there are some tips you should consider.

1. Research, research, research. Know the approximate salary ranges for the country you’re going to (they likely won’t be the same as home). Know your worth and what the market rate is.

2. We want to meet you once you’ve arrived. If you’re being proactive and applying for jobs before flying to your new destination, kudos for the effort. However, we want to meet you face-to-face. The reason being is that most jobs fill within 1-2 weeks, so if you aren’t able to interview within a few days of us calling, chances are the role will be gone.

3. List your Visa Type and Expiry Date on your CV. For example, if you have a 1 year Working Holiday Visa and you still have 11 months left on it, then put that. It’ll show you still have plenty of time left on your Visa and helps the recruiter/employer understand any working restrictions you may have.

4. Be direct in your objective. This one may be a question that you may have to really ask yourself. “Am I just going for a fun year away, or am I looking to stay in that country long term?” For example, if you want to get sponsored and work in a country for a significant amount of time, allow that to be clear in your CV so we know your intentions.

5. Going blindly into a new city with no contacts can be intimidating. Here in Sydney, there are tons of expats from all over the world who are looking to have coffee ‘meet and greets’, but chances are, unless you have an “in” – this may not be as easy as expected. This is where recruiters can be a nice lead into landing the right job. Plus, hint hint, we often know which jobs can offer sponsorship!

Although working abroad can be stressful, it has an incredible amount of positive aspects.

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