How To Get A Job In Another Country

Looking for a job can be tough as it is, but it can be even tougher when looking for a job in a different country. In 2014, I was looking for opportunities to uproot my life and move to Ireland, but I didn’t know where to start. In this article, I’ll walk you through my journey and what helped me when looking for a job in a different country.

1.) Visa Sponsorship

- First things first, before looking into roles I looked into what type of sponsorship I would need in order to work in that country. This is vital as you might be qualified for the role you're applying to, but might not have the visa sponsorship in the country the role is located in. In order to learn more about sponsorship I encourage you to check out my article “Do you require sponsorship to work in the U.S.?”

2.) Networking

- One of the things I did before actually applying to jobs is I built a network of professionals who lived in Ireland, more specifically in my case, Dublin. This helped in two ways: They were able to tell me about the city I was going to move to AND I would have a solid network once I moved there. Start by reaching out to people on LinkedIn; whether it’s a message introducing yourself and mentioning your plans on moving or ideally, if you’re able to find someone who made the move themselves. Here is an example of what I sent “Hi I noticed you made a move from the U.S. and I’m looking to make a similar move. Do you have 15 minutes to tell me a little about your journey?” I reached out to 25 people and received 7 replies to set up meetings and was able to build a solid network in Ireland. As you’re building these connections and keeping in contact with them, you’re establishing a network with them to make the transition to the country easier.

3.) Your Leverage Point

- Your Leverage Point or LP is what makes you unique to the employer. Think of it as a skill you possess that makes the employer want to hire you. If it was the case you were applying for a job in Latin America or Germany your LP could be that you speak Spanish or German. Your LP could also be your knowledge in market data in a particular field. For instance, If you work in Software Sales maybe you could provide your knowledge of Software Sales in the U.S.

4.) Checkpoints

- Lastly, I would set up milestones. Make a list of checkpoints of where you would like to be in the 1st year of your new role and then another checkpoint at 5 years. An example would be “I want to be promoted to a Senior level role in the 1st year and in 5 years I would like to manage a team.” Goals are personal and they look different for everyone. Setting goals will help you stay on track and allows you to stay accountable with yourself.

By following the steps above it gives you a starting point on how to make your transition to another country less complex. Ultimately, I didn’t make the move to Ireland but still found I was able to utilize steps 2 - 4 for my own professional development.