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  • 2 Post By shri

Recent Grad - Visa Advice

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  1. #1

    Recent Grad - Visa Advice

    Hi Guys

    There is a tl;dr at the bottom of the post if you dont want to read everything

    I am looking to relocate to Hong Kong from Australia, my girlfriend and I have done long-distance for 2 years during Covid, so I have decided to make the move.

    I have just fininshed my marketing degree with around 2 years of experience, but I have found that the most of the marketing positions advertised require me to be fluent in mandarin / cantonese (unsurprisingly).

    I have looked into teaching native english teaching positions, but they require me to commit for up to a year and work 9 hour days. I'm not scared of long work hours, if they further my career, but I feel as though 40+ hours in a field I don't see myself getting into may be a waste of time.

    Also, I want to take language courses during my time at Hong Kong and many learning centre jobs do not offer consecutive days off, which may be difficult for me to work around. Do part-time positons often offer VISA sponsorship? or are full time positions my only option? Also, what would be the best website to find expat positions?

    In general, any advice about VISA sponsorship would be gladly appreciated!


    TL;DR
    What would be the best way to find a marketing position without fluency in chinese?
    Do part-time posions often offer VISA sponsorship or is full-time my only option?
    what are the best website to find expat positions?


  2. #2

    Join Date
    Dec 2002
    Location
    薄扶林
    Posts
    47,963

    Might want to look at the working holiday scheme to get here. Do your research.. Am not sure what the current state of affairs is.

    aw451 and needgoodwine like this.

  3. #3

    Join Date
    May 2021
    Posts
    1,733

    Junior level positions in generic job with 2 years experience are very difficult to justify for work visa sponsorship, easily fillable by local fresh grads so i doubt any employer would be even interested unless you have some niche area expertise and visa sponsorship for part-time jobs, forget about it.. IMO your best bet is to get and admission in local Uni and come on student visa, this will eventually open doors for IANG visa, this also fits well with your plan for part time language study..


  4. #4

    Join Date
    May 2022
    Posts
    5

    Why not do a business masters? That will get you a visa and potentially a better way to get into the local job market. You also will be able to apply for a separate work visa for local graduates upon finishing I believe.

    If there are financial constraints I do know that some of the local schools offer full scholarships. For example HKBU: https://www.hkbu-business-internationalscholarships.hk/


  5. #5

    Join Date
    Nov 2007
    Location
    Wanchai
    Posts
    5,063

    Pretty much every single industry has marketing teams.

    What industry specifically is your experience in or is it more agency work covering a broad spectrum of clientele.


  6. #6

    Join Date
    Sep 2018
    Location
    香港特别行政区
    Posts
    2,841

    Best bet is to either do a working holiday as @shri said or take up a course at one of the local universities. It's incredibly hard to sponsor visas for fresh grads at the moment, especially in non-STEM areas.

    There used to be a workaround using an internship visa but the salaries are appalling low and the immigration dept have gotten wise to it.

    Another thing to consider is whether you actually want to work here? Have you visited HK before or are you moving purely for a HK girl you met at university?


  7. #7

    A contact of mine from the UK had very similar circumstances.

    As a recent grad, he went took the working holiday route visa because the odds of getting a (proper) work visa were next to zero. The application process was pretty straightforward.

    There are certain conditions for Australian citizens, such as not having the same job for >3 months, so make sure you are happy on those aspects.

    Last edited by needgoodwine; 05-07-2022 at 07:50 AM.

  8. #8

    Join Date
    May 2021
    Posts
    46

    Do a masters at a HK uni in anything, graduate and get an iang visa.

    If you can't afford a masters, either keep working in Australia, or come here on a working holiday, and try to save up for a masters. If you're qualified (you probably are, you'd be surprised), you can also try to apply for an MPhil that would be government/university funded (so free) and come here on that.


  9. #9

    Join Date
    May 2021
    Posts
    1,733
    you can also try to apply for an MPhil that would be government/university funded (so free) and come here on that.
    And many MPhil program pays stipend as well (not sure if all pays), many overseas students come here for undergrad program for 4 years, enter into MPhil straight away for 2 years, can easily survive on stipend, apply IANG visa post Mphil, work for 1 year and get HK PR.. I personally know few students on this route..