5 Things nobody will tell you about finding design work in new countries.
Changing where you live is a huge undertaking, but thankfully finding a new design job can be relatively easy if you know what to do. Iâve moved to three different cities in three different countries over the past few years and while I was initially quite freaked out at the prospect of being without work. I've found some planning and forward thinking can hugely help you find a job before you land in the country you're moving to.
1. Update your portfolio as soon as possible
This might seem like an obvious one, but itâs amazing how many CVâs Iâve had come across my desk with either an outdated portfolio, or none at all. If you know youâre going to change countries or city, chances are youâre going to know a few months before you actually move. With this in mind you should update your portfolio, resumĂ© and create a cover letter template so when you do apply for jobs you donât have to waste months sorting all that boring adminsitration stuff out. Hiring managers donât want to hear how you plan on updating your portfolio - if anything, this tells them that you are lazy and youâre procrastinating.
2. Add recruiters from the area youâre moving to on Linkedin
Linkedin is a godsend for finding jobs. When I moved to Vancouver and Berlin I had jobs waiting for me as soon as I landed and both times it was because of the Linkedin/recruiter combination. If you donât know how to find recruiters, just google âcreative recruitment + where youâre moving toâ and you should get a list of companies. Then search for people who work there on Linkedin. You can usually just search for a company and see who works there. Once youâve done that, just reach out and tell them youâre moving to the area in a few months and youâre just connecting to see what opportunities are available.
Iâve found recruiters generally have the best jobs. The best companies donât want to waste their time posting ads on job boards so they usually use a recruiter, either internally or externally to find candidates for them. Cut out the middle man (the job board) and go straight to the source (the recruiter). This can often prevent the recruiter from having to pay fees to the job board so theyâll like you even more, because once they get you a job, you both get paid.
3. Learn the language of the place youâre moving to
Iâve found that memorising a few key phrases can really help potential employers that youâre genuinely interested in the place youâre moving to. It shows that youâre committed to spending time in this new place and that youâre not just moving around the world. This is important because companies spend a lot of time and money hiring new staff, so any indication that you might not be staying long in the country can look quite bad to a HR - Mitigate this by learning the language and by commenting on how exited you are to get to the new country youâre moving to.
4. Find local salary expectations
Youâre not going to get a job if youâre asking for 20% more than the competition. Do some hunting on Google to find out what the local pay is like. I was shocked when I moved from London to Berlin to learn that Iâd be making about 40% less in Berlin and Iâm sure this cost me a job or two, when in an interview, I asked for a London salary in a city that would never pay that.
5. Get your documents together
You need to be able to show the recruiter, HR and anyone else that you have a clear timeline of when youâll be in the country, how long it will take you to get a visa and how and where youâre going to live when you get there. Most companies wonât want to hire someone that canât work for another 8 months because their visa is still processing. On a more human side, a lot of HR staff will want you to be comfortable and have a nice place to live when you get there so you can do a great job at work when you finally do arrive.
Once youâve done this, youâve got a much higher chance of landing a job when you move to a new country. Itâs not an easy process, but if you can get a job in a city before you get there, youâll be much less stressed, youâll find it easier to get accomodation when you do get there and youâll have some fundamentally life changing experiences.