Graduate Employment: Moving Abroad after College

How often do you think about what you want to do after college?

Dream of being a stuntman? Professional crocodile wrestler? Politician? Whatever floats your boat, with college over, it’s time to face the big bad world head on.

With graduation a hazy memory, parties disbanded and hangover in full swing, it’s time to sort out your resume, apply for jobs and ensure your parents don’t think you’re a complete disappointment.

Considering your college years were likely full of reckless abandon punctuated with occasional hard work, the thought of toiling in your home town for the next 50 years is likely an ugly prospect.

After all, college is a time for adventure, meeting people from different backgrounds and learning new and exciting things – and not just offensive words borrowed from your foreign peers.

With this in mind, it’s perhaps a good idea to consider moving abroad after college.

Not only will it offer you a fresh challenge, it’s important to expand your horizons and look beyond your own borders for the opportunity to work in an unfamiliar environment.

Evidently, some countries are more receptive than others to outsiders coming in and stealing their jobs – joking, of course – so it’s vital to conduct thorough research, lest you’re chased out of town by hordes of angry locals.

To avoid this, check out the countries below for an idea of how easy it is to rock up to the border and ask, nay, demand, to be shown to your new office …

United Arab Emirates

Fancy some sun with your new role? Figures from the Morgan McKinley UAE Employment Monitor have revealed professional job opportunities across the United Arab Emirates have increased markedly compared to this time last year. If you fancy dipping a toe in the water, take a look at recruitment sites from the area, GN Careers is a good place to start, to get a flavour of the various roles on offer.

United Kingdom

Although starting salaries for graduate jobs in the UK have dropped by 11 per cent in the last five years, opportunities to get a foot on the career ladder in a variety of exciting industries remain. For example, the tech sector continues to outperform the rest of the private sector in the UK. Promisingly, total employment in Britain now exceeds 30 million – and that’s a five-year high according to the Office for National Statistics.

Australia

The thought of working in Australia may throw up images of sunburned backpackers picking fruit, toiling in sweaty bars and avoiding throngs of deadly spiders, but the prospects for a well qualified outsider are actually remarkably rosy.  As if to demonstrate, the Australian government issues a list of jobs in demand, with each occupation given a score based on a points system. Typically, skilled positions such as those in the medical industry and trades are in great demand.

New Zealand

Similar to Australia, New Zealand employs a points system when choosing prospective migrant workers, with those equipped with the relevant skills in a better position to move to the country. If you’re under 55, healthy and speak good English, you’re already on your way. Again, skilled workers are highly sought after, with those qualified in medicine and related fields typically ushered through customs like royalty. Well, not really, but they’re certainly keen to recruit you.