Working Holiday in Australia / New Zealand

Im going to visit Australia/New Zealand sometime in 2007 and planning on staying there for 12 months to travel, work, and live. I need some advice from someone who has done this before. I don't know if I should get my visa and find a place then just find work when im down there OR try to get something set up beforehand. What are people's opinions on this?

Hi
I'm not sure about New Zealand, but I know that in Australia it really depends on what kind of work you want to be doing/the industry you are in. For example, if you are teacher or a nurse you could easily set up something before you arrive because they are so in demand, but if you just want to do temp/admin work, hospitality or something like fruit picking, a lot of recruitment agencies want you to already have a visa and be in the country before applying. To apply directly to any jobs, I would say you would definitely have to be in the country to apply (temp work can easily be picked up in Australia once you are there). And if you register with any recruitment agencies, they will at least want to know a definite date of arrival and when you will be available to work.

A website you might find useful when searching for jobs is called Jobaroo. It's got lots of job opportunities and visa information for working travellers in Australia.

hey- im in Darwin, working in hospitality is super easy, and the pay is good. if your around here drop me a line!
christine

If you haven't already left, it is EASY PEASY to get a job once you are here. No need to look for one before you get here.

Oh yeah? How easy is easy peasy? I need to know cause I set up a job for me already in Wollongong but I'm concerned about my girlfriend. I would really like for her to have a job when she gets down so she doesn't get too much cabin fever too quickly. She's got a degree in Human Resources but not much experience. She's got a good seven year of experience in Insurance claims and stuff like that. Anyone think there's opportunity for her to start in insurance in Oz? Visas taken care of by my company she just needs to find somewhere to work. Ideally it would be in wollongong but worst case scenario is she'd have to take a train somewhere for 20 minutes big deal.
Anyone got any input in that?
Thanks!

Professional positions are always harder to gauge. Hospitality position you should be able to find easily. But jobs that requires a degree may be harder with just a temp visa.

So, having said that. if she doesn't have any luck before you leave then it should be easier once you're in the country.

Make sure it states very clearly on the resume that you have a work visa and the date you're arriving.

Once you get here, I would take all that off and just have your name and contact info.

I’m a student living in BC with duel citizenship in New Zealand and I’m planning to spend some time in Melbourne. I don’t need a visa and I apparently have some distant family in the city so I keep questioning: is it worth laying down what seems like a lot of money for the security of a program like SWAP or is it plausible to go on ahead and adventure forth by my lonesome?

Hi
I'm not sure about New Zealand, but I know that in Australia it really depends on what kind of work you want to be doing/the industry you are in. For example, if you are teacher or a nurse you could easily set up something before you arrive because they are so in demand,

Teachers and nurses have to be registered with the state before they can legally work. So unless you fork out some money, jump through hoops and apply months before hand you won't be doing that kind of work.

For example, we moved here in June (permanently). I decided I'd like to go back to teaching so submitted my registration to the QLD college of teachers. It's expected to 2-3 months to hear back and I can't work as a teacher until I'm registered. I only applied in September so I'm still waiting to hear.

Teachers would be unlikely to have a job lined up before hand unless they wanted to live in very rural areas (outback). Nurses on the other hand would be much easier to find a position. They are also more likely to get temporary work visas too.

since we're on the topic of work.i was wondering if anyone knew anything about the engineering field and what the job prospects are like? the reason i ask is because i'm heading to aus next year and my b/f will be coming. he's a mechanical engineer and he'll have one year's worth of experience by the time we leave. would this be another one of those fields where you would have to with the state in order to work?

Is it just elementary teachers that are in demand?