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How to find Expat jobs?

PacificstarPacificstar Registered User regular
Hey guys, has anyone found/currently has an overseas job? I'm not looking for one of those "teach English" programs, but something more substantive. I've got about 6 years of work experience and a M.S. Finance, but don't want to work in a Finance only function. If you all think it's worthwhile, I'll anonymize my resume and post it someplace.

Posts

  • Limp mooseLimp moose Registered User regular
    Ive lived overseas for the last 5 years 3.5 in Japan and 1.5 in Australia. Most of the expats I meet tend to fall into one of several categories.

    Dual language with a specialty. You do banking. Learn a language well enough to do banking in that language and then work for the host countries bank. (these people tend to work the least and make the most.)
    Dual language no specialty. You just translate things and make work on a day to day basis. Money isn't as good but doesn't require the special skill sets.
    Computer work. CCNA/higher level certs are valid all over the world. A great buddy of mine in japan had the highest cisco cert and was making fat stacks doing US contracting work in japan. Find out what certifications you hold in your field and then find who is using them in the country you want to live in. Computer skills are not the only things that translate internationally.

    Anything else is mostly chicken feed in regards to money. Those english teachers don't make diddly squat. Most expat jobs that are unskilled don't pay well. The skilled ones tend to pay really well. I haven't met many people in between. Find some skill that is marketable everywhere (welding/finance/computers/big machinery operation/mechanics) and then learn as much of a local language for where you want to go as you can. If you can find a job in america you should be able to find one overseas using similar methods. It helps a TON if you find a US company that is willing to hire you to send you overseas. Instead of looking in the host country without living there. That is way tougher.

  • PacificstarPacificstar Registered User regular
    Limp moose wrote: »
    Ive lived overseas for the last 5 years 3.5 in Japan and 1.5 in Australia. Most of the expats I meet tend to fall into one of several categories.

    Dual language with a specialty. You do banking. Learn a language well enough to do banking in that language and then work for the host countries bank. (these people tend to work the least and make the most.)
    Dual language no specialty. You just translate things and make work on a day to day basis. Money isn't as good but doesn't require the special skill sets.
    Computer work. CCNA/higher level certs are valid all over the world. A great buddy of mine in japan had the highest cisco cert and was making fat stacks doing US contracting work in japan. Find out what certifications you hold in your field and then find who is using them in the country you want to live in. Computer skills are not the only things that translate internationally.

    Anything else is mostly chicken feed in regards to money. Those english teachers don't make diddly squat. Most expat jobs that are unskilled don't pay well. The skilled ones tend to pay really well. I haven't met many people in between. Find some skill that is marketable everywhere (welding/finance/computers/big machinery operation/mechanics) and then learn as much of a local language for where you want to go as you can. If you can find a job in america you should be able to find one overseas using similar methods. It helps a TON if you find a US company that is willing to hire you to send you overseas. Instead of looking in the host country without living there. That is way tougher.

    Thanks, I have a finance and banking background now... but don't know if I want to continue doing that kind of work. Lot's of food for thought! Appreciate it!

  • mumbly_piemumbly_pie Registered User regular
    I've lived outside of my birth country for most of my adult life, and several people I knew from college ended up in finance in foreign countries. From my own history, finding jobs in other (developed) countries is very similar to finding jobs in the USA (NOTE: I'm not American, but have lived there for several years). If you want to do X (where X is finance, or graphic design, or whatever), you should probably look for jobs the same way locals do. In my area, that normally means specialist websites with job postings. In the bits of finance that I'm familiar with, it can also mean going directly to the bigger companies and going through their `usual' procedure, or going through a headhunter if you are worried about your ability to present yourself.

    Of course, there are plenty of exceptions - the biggest that I know of being expats who take jobs that explicitly trade on their knowledge of their home country (e.g. teaching English), or those who are sent away by work in their home country. But it sounds like you're not interested in the first category, and you're not in the second category yet. If you're interested in the second category, there are certainly lots of options in banks. Some other big categories that I've encountered include the US military, engineering firms that specialize in doing construction work in other countries, etc. It would help to know which sorts of things you're interested in getting into!

    I think I'm mostly echoing Limp moose here. If you want a (good) job in the USA, the usual advice is "pick up a skill." If you want a good job somewhere else, you should pick up a skill and be able to talk to people.

  • PacificstarPacificstar Registered User regular
    Thanks mumbly, I'm not really worried about my ability to get a job in the U.S. I have a good network and good relationships with recruiters for my field. It looks like I should explore the usual suspects and see what happens.

  • ceresceres When the last moon is cast over the last star of morning And the future has past without even a last desperate warningRegistered User, Moderator mod
    Limp moose wrote: »
    Ive lived overseas for the last 5 years 3.5 in Japan and 1.5 in Australia. Most of the expats I meet tend to fall into one of several categories.

    Dual language with a specialty. You do banking. Learn a language well enough to do banking in that language and then work for the host countries bank. (these people tend to work the least and make the most.)
    Dual language no specialty. You just translate things and make work on a day to day basis. Money isn't as good but doesn't require the special skill sets.
    Computer work. CCNA/higher level certs are valid all over the world. A great buddy of mine in japan had the highest cisco cert and was making fat stacks doing US contracting work in japan. Find out what certifications you hold in your field and then find who is using them in the country you want to live in. Computer skills are not the only things that translate internationally.

    Anything else is mostly chicken feed in regards to money. Those english teachers don't make diddly squat. Most expat jobs that are unskilled don't pay well. The skilled ones tend to pay really well. I haven't met many people in between. Find some skill that is marketable everywhere (welding/finance/computers/big machinery operation/mechanics) and then learn as much of a local language for where you want to go as you can. If you can find a job in america you should be able to find one overseas using similar methods. It helps a TON if you find a US company that is willing to hire you to send you overseas. Instead of looking in the host country without living there. That is way tougher.

    Haha yes well. If you have a CCIE you can walk into pretty much any large company in the world and say "Pay me six skillion dollars" and they will say "Right away, sir." It is an extremely difficult certification to get and hard to maintain, and it's expensive, but if you can do it you can go anywhere you want to.

    And it seems like all is dying, and would leave the world to mourn
  • PacificstarPacificstar Registered User regular
    So let me be a little bit more specific. After undergrad I worked at a startup PE fund that focused on the U.S. Hispanic market. I was there about 1 1/2 years, and then went and got my MS Finance. After that I worked 4 years in a business valuation/options valuation/consulting type role at a big 4 accountancy working in their financial advisory division. After that I turned down various job offers to continue doing the same work at a manager level, which is about midway to Partner in that industry, to work on a business I started with some friends from grad school. That did not pan out the way I had hoped and while the business is continuing, I need to move on to something else.

    Would love to join another startup, or go back into corporate world in a role that is a bit less hard-finance focused.

  • Limp mooseLimp moose Registered User regular
    Where do you want to go?

    Asia/Europe/Australia/South America/Africa?

    In Asia doing something without speaking the local language will probably mean working for a US company in asia. You would apply for this job the same way you apply for any other job. It helps if you search out specific things you want to do. There are start ups all over China/SE Asia that need management and oversight. As you would know there is plenty of growth in those areas.

    I don't know much about Europe.

    With your back round you could probably get a job in Australia working for any number of finance companies/banks You only need to learn new legal rules and they will use you as an expert on the US system.

    Africa. Man don't go to africa to live. Visit maybe.

    I don't know much about south america.

    I hope that is helpful.

  • DarkewolfeDarkewolfe Registered User regular
    Do you want to work in southwest Asia?

    What is this I don't even.
  • PacificstarPacificstar Registered User regular
    I would totally go to Asia or Australia. I'll look into Australia, I have one really good contact there. @Darkewolfe when you say southwest Asia, where do you mean? I'm Indian, but don't speak Hindi at all (and I really don't want to live there).

  • DarkewolfeDarkewolfe Registered User regular
    I was mostly thinking of Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, as there's quite a few ex-pat jobs there if you know how to look.

    What is this I don't even.
  • PacificstarPacificstar Registered User regular
    Darkewolfe wrote: »
    I was mostly thinking of Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, as there's quite a few ex-pat jobs there if you know how to look.

    Would be interested to hear more!

  • UrQuanLord88UrQuanLord88 Registered User regular
    I don't know about other places in the world but I do know that you'd probably fit better in one of the financial hubs like HK or Singapore if you're looking for a Finance related position and if you're looking to relocate to South East Asia. Language barrier shouldn't be an issue in those cities because of international trade, i.e. English is the common language. Maybe start looking at overseas branches of the big firms and leverage your previous experience in the big 4?

    In any case, you should definitely prepare good reasons as to why you are relocating and research your intended industry in that particular region.

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  • GrifterGrifter BermudaModerator mod
    edited August 2013
    I'm from Bermuda. I have several friends that I've met over the years who were expat workers there. Check out this recruiter.

    http://www.squiresresources.com/home.aspx

    And these people are good too. But only for Bermuda.

    http://www.expertise.bm/

    Grifter on
  • PacificstarPacificstar Registered User regular
    Thanks Grifter, I will definitely check it out!

  • astronautcowboy3astronautcowboy3 Registered User regular
    Don't knock teaching English; those jobs do have some good aspects too.

    1. They can help you pick up the local language.
    2. You can develop a new skill in your free time (which many of these jobs have).
    3. They relocate you, often at their expense.
    4. They get you a visa, which are usually easier to adjust to a new status than to get flat-out.

    You could teach for a year and hit the pavement job-hunting while your there, or if you intend to switch industries work on some new skills as well.

    I'm not saying you should look for a job like that, but they are easier to find and have certain benefits that would even apply to your situation.

    The JRPG Club: Video game reviews, vocabulary lists and other resources for Japanese learners.
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  • MagicToasterMagicToaster JapanRegistered User regular
    Pacific Star, what kind of visa will you have when you move?

    I was going to tell you about my experience, but it might not be relevant depending on what kind of visa you have.

  • PacificstarPacificstar Registered User regular
    Pacific Star, what kind of visa will you have when you move?

    I was going to tell you about my experience, but it might not be relevant depending on what kind of visa you have.

    I don't know, I have been thinking that I would have whichever company that hired me help me with the visa as well. It definitely would not be some kind of student visa.

  • a5ehrena5ehren AtlantaRegistered User regular
    I know you said you kinda want to get away from specialized finance jobs, but I think you'll have a hard time getting someone to sponsor your Visa for a more general position. You're going to have to leverage all your experience to make it worth their while.

  • PacificstarPacificstar Registered User regular
    a5ehren wrote: »
    I know you said you kinda want to get away from specialized finance jobs, but I think you'll have a hard time getting someone to sponsor your Visa for a more general position. You're going to have to leverage all your experience to make it worth their while.

    Yeah, that's the realization I've been coming to as well. I think I'll start pushing out resume's and see what kind of response I get.

  • MagicToasterMagicToaster JapanRegistered User regular
    Pacific Star, what kind of visa will you have when you move?

    I was going to tell you about my experience, but it might not be relevant depending on what kind of visa you have.

    I don't know, I have been thinking that I would have whichever company that hired me help me with the visa as well. It definitely would not be some kind of student visa.

    I tried going that route for the longest time. Companies would not give me a job because I did not have a Visa, but I needed a Visa to get a job.

    I had success with military bases. Some positions grant SOFA status which allows you to stay in that country and work with the US military. The sucky thing is that it's basically like living in the US.

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