My Future

Why Finding Work Overseas After Graduation Is A Very Good Idea

If you want to start working, but you don't want to say goodbye to your youth just yet.

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For a large chunk of us, graduation is looming. Come October or November, we’ll be abruptly ejected from the cosy life of a student and thrust into the throws of adulthood. Frankly, it’s kind of rude. We can’t be blamed for wanting it all to just slow the fuck down.

If you want to start working, but you don’t want to say goodbye to your youth just yet, we have a solution. Why not work overseas?

Here are five reasons why moving O/S after uni is probably the greatest idea in the world.

#1 There’s No Better Time For It

You’re in your early 20s with no responsibilities, no dependents and no one to answer to. You’re also probably still living at home with your parents so you have no lease to break or mortgage to pay off. In short, no one really cares what you do (in the best way possible).

Right now is the only time in your life you can drop everything and build a whole new life for yourself overseas. Adulthood will come one day, but it doesn’t have to be now.

You might be nervous, or scared, or worried that you’ll miss your crew, but we promise all of that will go away within a month of being over there. Yes, we know this sounds a lot like peer pressure. Think of it more as peer encouragement.

#2 It Looks Damn Good On Your CV

Employers aren’t only looking for someone who fits the job, they’re looking for someone with personality. Someone who has actually lived, and can handle all the things that life throws at them.

According to The Guardian, “Overcoming the challenges of living and working abroad (such as dealing with bureaucracy, accepting different working practices, and surviving without your usual support network of family and friends) increases your resourcefulness and resilience.”

In other words, if you can work overseas, you can handle pretty much anything. Especially very difficult work tasks.

#3 It’s Better Than A Postgrad Education

Navigating public transport, figuring out somewhere to live, making new social and professional connections, all while getting used to the culture, the weather, the mind-boggling customs of a brand new place? Hell, that’s a better education than any two-year Masters program can offer.

#4 It’s Super Easy To Get Started

We’re hardly exaggerating when we say that for Aussies, working visas in certain countries are extremely easy to come by. It’s why there’s a billion Aussies teaching snowboarding in Canada, and another billion tending the bar in English pubs.

To apply for a visa to Canada and England, all you need is a small fee, an application and proof that you’ve got a reasonable amount of money saved. Then you’re well on your way to two years of legal work in the country.

And seeing as you’re a new graduate, you can even score some work in the US. If you apply within a year after completing an undergrad degree, you can apply for the J-1 visa to work in America. The J-1 visa allows you to work in America for up to a year, meaning your Sex And The City/Girls/Friends/pretty much any twenty-something coming-of-age sitcom dreams can come true!

Of course, these programs are dependant on how old you are, or how recently you graduated. So there’s truly no better time.

#5 You’ll Have The Best Time Ever

You’re no longer worried about assignments, or what will happen when you graduate, or why so-and-so with the good hair hasn’t texted you back. You’re in another country, baby! With brand new friends, and experiences and oh god, so many challenges to overcome every single day.

There’s nothing like living somewhere new to put everything in perspective.

Josephine is the Editor of Uni Junkee. She never tweets here @josieannparsons.