Working Nomads: How Kiwis and Aussies Can Find Work Almost Anywhere

By Stacey Knott & Amy Ridout

The overseas experience is not only an Antipodean tradition - it’s a rite of passage. Kiwis and Aussies have done it all: from the tried-and-true London bar job to hostessing in Japan.
Working Nomads is an inspiring guide for any young Kiwi or Aussie who wants to get overseas, make money and have adventures.
Written by well-travelled New Zealand journalists Stacey Knott and Amy Ridout, they draw on their own experiences, skills and expertise in everything from getting the right visa, to landing a good job.
This is an excellent guide aimed at 18-30 years olds, from high-school leavers, to recent graduates.
From teaching English in Morocco to hanging out with American teenagers at summer camps to sailing the world on a cruise - this book has something to inspire any young Australian or Kiwi.
All you need to do is pick your continent, select a job, and off you go.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Stacey Knott & Amy Ridout
• Release date: Feb 6, 2015
• ISBN: 9781311401762

Stacey Knott & Amy Ridout

We are two New Zealand journalists, who have lived and travelled abroad extensively and want to encourage others to as well. Stacey Knott is a multi-media journalist who has worked all over the world from slinging sandwiches in New Orleans, to writing about funeral traditions in Ghana. She has freelanced for a variety of media, from covering the Occupy London protests to a Louisiana prison rodeo. Now back in New Zealand, she has written extensively on travel for Radio New Zealand’s The Wireless and is a journalist for the Nelson Mail. Amy Ridout is an established freelance journalist from New Zealand who has filed from London, Colombia, South Korea and Turkey, to name a few. She specialises in travel features and writes informative and witty pieces for a range of publications, including Bogota’s City Paper, the Bogota Post, New Zealand’s Dominion Post and science site BluDot.

Book preview

Introduction

The overseas experience is not only an Antipodean tradition - it’s a rite of passage. Kiwis and Aussies have done it all: from the tried-and-true London bar job to hostessing in Japan.

This guide shows you how best to go about finding a job abroad. Pick your continent, select a job, and off you go. Hear stories from travellers who have been there and done that - and have the scars to prove it.

Between them, Kiwi journalists Stacey Knott and Amy Ridout have lived in eight countries over five continents. They have had their fair share of adventures working a vast array of weird and wonderful jobs, making the most of the fact that their passports let them get into most countries without much hassle.

This easy-to-follow guide will help get you out into the world: helping you with visas, your job hunt and a little bit about what you can expect.

From teaching English in Morocco to hanging out with American teenagers at summer camps to sailing the world on a cruise - this book has something to inspire any young Australian or Kiwi.

Working Nomads user guide

This book was written with high school or university graduates in mind. For those who might not have a lot of work experience or a specialisation, but have a sense of adventure and a desire to see the world. Some jobs and visas will require you to have a degree, but the majority do not.

Written over 2013 and 2014, all information has been kept as up-to-date as possible. While we’ve aimed for thoroughness, it is meant to be a starting point for your adventure. You’ll need to do your own research - especially when it comes to applying for visas.

When you’ve picked your country, make sure you have a really good read through its visa information, usually found on its consulate website. For example - if you’re a Kiwi wanting to go to Germany, go to the New Zealand German consulate website. On the country’s local consulate site, there will be up-to-date information on the detailed requirements on how to get your visa.

Exchange rates are kept as close as possible, but a good bet is to use online exchange rate site www.xe.com/ucc

This guide also uses live links throughout, for everything from how to get a teaching job, to recruitment companies.

www.workingnomads.co.nz or over on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/workingnomadsnz or Twitter https://twitter.com/workingnomadsnz

Contents

I. United Ki ngdom

II. Europe

III. Canada and USA

IV. South America and Mexico

V. Asia

VI. Africa and the Middle East

I. United Kingdom

One freezing Saturday morning the boots were really cold and Mummy didn't want her boys to put their feet in cold boots, so she made me get the hairdryer out and warm the boots up before they could put them on. At this point I laughed and asked if she was serious, and when she said yes I burst out laughing. After this I knew I had to go. - Tracey, Au pair, London

Working visas

Citizens of European Union countries are free to work in the the UK. If you’re a citizen of Australia, Canada, Japan, Monaco, South Korea, Taiwan, or New Zealand, you can get a two-year youth mobility visa as long as you’re over 18 when the visa starts and under 31 when you apply. You must have funds in your account to show that you can support yourself. Currently this is GBP£1890 (NZD$3890, AUD$3450). You need proof of this when applying. More often than not, you will need this safety net when you arrive in the UK - rent is usually a month in advance, and bond is usually a month’s rent. Depending on where you go, that’s half of your funds gone before you even look for work.

Working in the UK

This traditional destination for Antipodean job seekers is still a fantastic place to live and work. For a small country the UK is incredibly diverse, with everything from small, postcard-perfect villages to sophisticated urban centres that are home to dozens of nationalities. And of course, Europe’s right on your doorstep - a huge attraction for most travellers who head here.

Don’t forget that London is just a small part of the UK - other big centres are also packed with opportunities for workers and travellers alike. Venture over the M25 and look for work in Birmingham, Manchester, Cardiff, Dublin, Edinburgh, or Glasgow.

Office work/temping

If you’re looking to make some money in your travels, office work can be the most lucrative way to do this. Despite the global downturn there are still jobs around - but you may find yourself having to knock on a few more doors than you would’ve done 10 years ago.

London is still a beacon for students and graduates looking to get impressive work credentials, or just experience life in such a bustling city. Plenty of people use London and the wider British Isles as a base from which to see the rest of Europe, and are content with an office job that will pay the bills and save enough for travelling.

If you find yourself drawn to England’s capital then registering with a recruitment agency is your best bet. Temporary and contract work will inevitably involve filing and making cups of tea but is a great way to earn some funds and get your foot in the door. Many jobs turn permanent, and larger companies are sometimes willing to sponsor non-EU citizens. Other large centres like Manchester, Edinburgh, Glasgow, and Bristol all have big recruitment offices that will be able to find you work, though it is best to wait until you are in the city before you start applying as you will need to go into the office to register and often take typing, spelling, and numeracy tests. Once you’ve registered you’ll need to keep pestering your agent.

Advice from recruiters and job seekers agree: you’ll need to smarten up your resume as well as your wardrobe. Keep your resume to two pages max and make sure your experience is relevant to what you want to do. As for your wardrobe: while looking charmingly scruffy may work for you in a bar job, in the often cutthroat race for temping jobs you’ll need to stand out - or rather - blend in with the other suits.

Above all you’ll need to persevere. Register with as many agencies as you can, and then call them every morning. Eventually you’ll either catch them at the right time or they’ll become so sick of the sound of your voice that they’ll find a place for you.

It would be a good idea to try and get some experience in your home country before you leave - even if you do some unpaid work experience in an office. There are opportunities for people with skills in areas such as secretarial work, administration, IT support, reception, and finance.

Be flexible with the kind of work you want to do. While it can be tedious doing tests to prove your skills and database entry roles aren’t really anyone's idea of fun, once you have your foot in the door with a recruiter better jobs should come your way.

Try these agencies:

Office Angels:http://www.office-angels.com

Covent Garden Bureau:http://www.coventgardenbureau.co.uk

Reed:http://www.reed.co.uk

Hospitality

Live-in jobs

The United Kingdom is one of the best European destinations for English speakers to find hospitality jobs. Live-in jobs are an ideal way to experience some of the UK’s most beautiful countryside.

Workers can find themselves living in the most unusual places - beside a Scottish castle, on a rocky Cornish coast, next to Loch Ness, or even in the Outer Hebrides. Expect to earn the minimum wage - about £6 an hour, doing 40-60 hours a week, usually with board included or deducted at a minimum rate.

While summer is without a doubt the best time to find live-in hospitality work, you should be able to find a job at any time of the year - so long as you’re flexible about where you go and what you do.

The majority