My New Zealand Jobs

The basics of working abroad

So you’d like to work in another country? If you are European or part of the British Commonwealth, you have a lot of options. If you’re an American, you’re options are limited.

In general, if you want a real job in another country, you need to be sponsored by a company in the host country AND get approved by their immigration office. Countries typically want to reserve their best jobs for their residents, most noteably, their native residents. So, if you’re an American and want to move to another country and get a job that pays enough to make a living, it might be an uphill climb. Fortunately for you, countries have shortages of qualified workers in some industries. When I was in New Zealand a few years ago, they didn’t have enough qualified workers in education and IT, which means the path through immigration would be much easier.

Getting a job in another country is going to be easier if you have a contact over there or if you are actually there to apply in person. So, that isn’t unlike finding a job in the US. If you are remarkable, someone may hire you from a distance. If you’re one of many resumes, there may not be a compelling reason for them to give you a second look.

In some countries, there are volunteer opportunities and/or seasonal work opportunities (such as fruit picking) that are fairly easy to get and allow you to ‘work’ in some capacity in that country, which is a good place to start.

There are short term work opportunities through organizations like BUNAC, most of which are for current or recent college students. Most opportunities are for students, because student work supplements their labor pool while not providing competition, as it’s transitional by nature. Going to school in another country is a related way to get temporary work abroad. What if you’re not a college student?

There are a few organizations, most noteably BUNAC and CCUSA that offer work abroad programs to Australia and New Zealand, with the upper age being 30 or 35. Since I went through BUNAC, I’ll focus on them in later posts.

My New Zealand Jobs website

This website will be a continuation of a travelogue I kept while in New Zealand in 2003/2004. The primary focus will be on what it was like to live, work, and travel in New Zealand, and how others can do the same. I learned quite a bit along the way, and look forward to sharing.

Cheers,

Seth

Back in the USA

I flew back to the USA on July 16th. A friend picked me up at my hostel, and I flew from Christchurch to Auckland. The flight was delayed, so I bought Peter Jackson’s biography to read while waiting. Took 12 hours to fly to LA. Watched Hidalgo and Miracle on the plane. Once I arrived back in LA, it was hot and muggy. Made my way to US Airways, only to be told that Air New Zealand didn’t correctly change my ticket, and that I had no ticket. That was a frustrating moment. However, they just charged me a $100 change fee and got me on the plane. Whew (though still wasn’t happy about it all). Another 4 hours or so and I was in Pittsburgh. Met my brother there and headed home (by car this time). It was about 32 hours of traveling in total, a long, long day.

Christchurch

Christ Church Cathedral lies at the heart of Christchurch, an ode to the religion of the English settlers in this region. The church itself is quite the tourist stop nowadays, and includes a gift shop and cafe. Christchurch is the city of gardens, with a 30 hectare garden in the middle of town. In the summer, I hear it is quite beautiful. New Zealand’s 2nd largest city is flat, with the alps far in the background if you are in the suburbs. Central city is nice, with a lot of cool coffeeshops and souvenir shops. I spent time at the Canterbury Museum and the Art Museum, both of which are free and quite informative. This is the gateway to Anarctica, and the exhibit at Canterbury is very cool (yes, that is a pun). There is also an Antartica center near the airport, which I don’t plan to go to, but it’s the home of the Antarctica program here. Spent time today with a friend here, which is good, to see a familiar face. Tomorrow I fly off, three times to be exact. It’ll be a long day, my journey will finally come to an end. It will be good to see my brother at the airport. Kia Ora my friends!

Lake Tekapo

Lake Tekapo is a glacier-formed lake north of Mount Cook National Park. The lakes in this region contain rock flour from the nearby mountains, giving them a beautiful turqouise color, making the very clear sky and the water almost the same color. The YHA in Lake Tekapo has a large bay window onto the water, making it a real pleasure to sit in the lounge. Someone told me the Mt. John walk was a good view, so I went for it, the long way around. It was amazing, as the photos I took should show. Three hours later I returned and made dinner. Read for awhile. Finished the night in conversation with a few Brits and Aussies. Only one more stop left on the south isle.

Mount Cook

Mt. Cook is the highest mountain in Astralasia, at 3755 meters. After hearing stories of wind and rain, I arrived on a sunny day. Not a cloud was to be seen, and the wind was nonexistant. I had to find the best way to see it all, and photograph it for posterity. The YHA receptionist recommended a ski-plane flight, and I took it. A ski-plane is a plane with wheels and skis. It was a small plane, so small in fact that I had to sit next to the pilot. Know what…it was cool to sit next to the pilot. Up we went, and the view of the southern alps was spectacular. We passed by Mt. Cook from a variety of vantage points, then toward the sea, before landing on the largest glacier in New Zealand, Tasman Glacier. There I stood, at 7000 feet, on top of a 600m thick glacier, Mt. Cook looming in the background. Sweet as (as they say here). We then flew off and finished our journey. Many photos were taken. Afterwards, I visited the most famous hotel in New Zealand, The Hermatige, and had hot cholocate at their coffee shop. I also spent a few minutes on their indoor climbing wall.

\r\nThe next day I hiked to Hooker Lake. It was cool, as the four hour hike took me over two suspension bridges to the frozen lake. The Alps were close enough to touch. Very cool. Watched Pulp Fiction later that day. Got to relax the rest of the time, and chat with my English roommates and such. Amazingly, it was sunny all three days I was there, with only the faintest of clouds on the third day.