Like Tree5Likes
  • 1 Post By Apprehensive
  • 1 Post By Scousebanana
  • 1 Post By Apprehensive
  • 1 Post By Scousebanana
  • 1 Post By jimbo

Moving to the UK after graduation

Closed Thread
  1. #1

    Join Date
    Dec 2018
    Posts
    2

    Unhappy Moving to the UK after graduation

    Hi all,

    I am planning to move to the UK after graduation but having a second thought, and would like to have some opinions from who may have gone through the same thing and have more life experience.

    By the end of this year, I will be graduating and leaving for the UK in January (with Tier 5 Visa prepared, flight booked and room rented). I have been sending job applications around and almost all of the replies said they do not hire people holding a short-term visa (2 years at most for Tier 5) or simply do not consider non-EU nationals. I do not know if it is a good idea of moving there without securing a job first, or at least knowing that I will get one, even with not so decent pay.

    I choose to stay in Canterbury because I lived there for almost 2 years as a student and my partner (of almost 2 years as well) works there. I know it is a small city (strictly speaking, a town), but did not realize it is so hard to find a job in the Southeast or even London if I commute. And I pretty much know that my partner would not want to move anywhere near London nor Hong Kong (more like a family/country type), and does not want to do the long-distance thing any longer (we have done it for 4 months so far).

    So given the information above, is moving to the UK a good idea, especially at the start of my career.


    Sorry for the long post and many thanks.


  2. #2

    Join Date
    Oct 2005
    Posts
    14,414

    Moving to a small town like Canterbury will heavily restrict you in what jobs are available.

    Timing I guess is also bad what with the still uncertainty of Brexit and how the economy is going no firm would want to commit to anything right now.

    I’d start looking at opportunities in london and see if you get anywhere then make a decision based on your marketability etc Don’t let your partner hold you back from your career either.

    ktnave likes this.

  3. #3

    Commuting from Kent to London is perfectly do-able, particularly if you live near either Ebbsfleet or Ashford with access to the High Speed rail line into London (though it is quite pricey).

    You don't say what subject your degree is or whether you have certain skills. Still plenty of work in certain specialised areas such as finance, for example. Your best best is probably get work via agencies, most likely on fixed term contracts.

    By the way, you also don't say what passport you hold. If HKSAR passport, then I assume you know you will need to get a Certificate of Sponsorship and you can only apply for these at certain periods in the year.

    ktnave likes this.

  4. #4

    Guess it's family/ relationship vs finance.

    If you see a long term future with your current partner, you'll have to live in the same place at some stage. So, ultimately, there are only three options - HK, Canterbury or some other location. Unless you can persuade your partner to move somewhere else, it doesn't look like you can avoid moving there. While it might not be the best time to be moving there from an economic point of view, it might be the right time in terms of your relationship (or, of course, it might not).

    Is your partner willing to support you financially while you're looking for a job?

    Depending on train access, commuting to London from Canterbury might be a viable option. (Alternatively, you could live in London/ elsewhere during the week and go to Canterbury on the weekend if you end up finding a job that is too far to commute from your partner's house on a daily basis.)

    It's often easier to find a job (esp for more junior positions and when where are plenty of suitable local candidate around) once you're in the country. Without knowing your qualification, and career aspiration, it is hard to give you any specific suggestions. However, you might wanna look into graduate programs (although the next intake might be for September 2019). Or else, looks for temp jobs once you get there as a way to break into the market and get some experience. Alternatively, you could always take up some non-professional work (e.g. working in shops and cafes) while you wait for something better to come along.

    Assuming you don't have a job in HK, why not just go there to test the water and see how you feel/ how the job situation unfolds? If it doesn't work out, you can always come back/ go somewhere else.
    ktnave likes this.

  5. #5

    Join Date
    Dec 2018
    Posts
    2

    Hi, thanks for the reply.

    I have a degree in politics and public administration, and geography (double major). It indeed is more a relationship vs finance type of situation. Personally, I'm not the biggest fan of the UK and my partner is kinda the main reason for me to move. I know it's a love-blinded move, so finding a GOOD job is just to rationalize it. The job searching makes me think that I may miss out on opportunities in Hong Kong, or it will leave me with no concrete working experience when I return. I think it all comes down to if I want to roll the dice. Sorry if I turn the expat forum into a relationship one.


  6. #6

    In that case, your degree isn't really going to help you get a decent job. You will find work, but most likely it will be relatively unskilled, unless you can find something via your other half or through other contacts you might have.

    You should note that once your Tier 5 visa runs out, it is unlikely you will meet the points requirement for a visa in your own right, so you would probably have to go through the spousal visa route if you want to stay on.

    ktnave likes this.

  7. #7

    Agree with Scousebanana that you degree doesn't really automatically land you in any sought after job in particular. Having said that, it's general enough that you might be able to get into a number of industries with it (basically any sort of office based work and work your way up from there).

    At the end of the day, you've gotta understand that employers are unlikely to offer permanent position to someone who's there on a working holiday so you should aim for more casual/ contract type employment to start off with (and who knows, it might lead you to something better further down the track).

    More questions for you to think about:
    - What is your dream job?
    - If you're to stay in HK, where do you think your degree will take you?
    - What sort of work have you been applying for?
    - Are you willing to undertake vocational training (e.g. to become a teacher)?
    - Do you have any other passion/ skills that you can turn into a career/ that'd make you more employable?

    Well, it sounds like you should talk to your partner so that they understand your struggle (it's so easy for the one who's staying put to overlook/trivialize the struggle faced by the one who's relocating). It doesn't sound like your partner is making any compromise on this topic. (There might be very good reasons for that - e.g. they've already got a good job, your both prefer that lifestyle, etc. - I don't know.)

    It's not very often in life when all the stars align. Sometimes you just have to trust your gut and take the plunge. (In your present dilemma, it's a huge gamble either way.) You're, presumably, only in your early 20s and the future is full of possibilities that you don't know yet. Even if it doesn't work out, you'll gain valuable life experience from having gone on working holiday. Lots of young people goes on working holiday these days and it's not necessarily going to be detrimental to their career after it's over.
    ktnave likes this.