There are many of you who are working in India after completing their Bachelors’ degree, and looking to get a job abroad. But they do not want to study there. They want to work abroad without studying abroad. Let me start off by saying that it is very difficult to get a job in another country without having a physical presence there. This is because employers have hired people who were not local before, only to have the employee cancel because he was not willing to move. This has happened so many times that a lot of companies have a policy against hiring people stationed outside of the country.
The only exception to this is if there is a complete dearth of talent in a particular field. Even then, in a lot of cases the workers are given a permit to move to the country and search for a job. The “blue card” program in Germany is one such example of this.
The employers are more willing to hire someone who has already moved. However, if you are not willing to take the complete your higher studies abroad, you will not be able to physically interact with employers. There are two paths that people generally take to achieve this objective:
Work in a Multinational that will post you abroad
This career advice is the best path forward as you already have a job in line. Look at the employers in your field who have bases abroad in your country of choice. Then talk to people who are working there, and check on your chances of being posted abroad. If there is a history of employees being posted abroad, then you have your company. Companies like Ford and Opel in automotive engineering have a decent record of placements. There are several more in the IT field that are open to placements abroad.
If the people you talk to say that it is difficult to get placed abroad, then move on. You can use LinkedIn or ProfessionGurus to find the relevant professionals. You can use the LinkedIn search to find the relevant professionals, and use ProfessionGurus for career advice. For example, if you are a mechanical engineer, Ford and Opel have a history of posting people in America.
Apply for a green card or permanent residency
Countries like Canada, Denmark and Australia offer permanent residency based on a points system that considers your age, education and work experience. Check out their immigration website and see if you qualify for a permanent residence. Germany has a blue card program which lets you search for a job for 6 months. Once you have permanent residency status, you are in a great position to get a job. You do not require sponsorship and have a leg up on the others who are on a student visa.
The only downside of this approach is that you are not on campus as a student, so you don’t interact with employers directly. You will have to work hard networking with employers at professional events, professional associations etc. to make this advantage work for you. You may have to take a part time job (that you may not like) before you get your full-time job.
I would like to list a few tactics that have been tried before that may hurt you in the long term, and I would not recommend you use at all.
Use a tourist or business visa: I do not recommend this piece of career advice as this violates visa policy of the countries involved. However, I thought it would be useful to mention several individuals have used it to meet companies and interview for a job.
Go through work abroad consultancy
There are several of these that have mushroomed across the globe that may get you onsite, but these are very risky and fraudulent. Some of them ask for money to process your h1b visa (this is an illegal practice). No individual should pay for this. You may be on the bench abroad, with no pay and no work. I would avoid using these consultancies at all cost. They suck your money dry and waste years of your life, just so you can say that you did work abroad and live abroad.
At the end of the day, your best bet is to obtain a permanent residency (green card) and then start a career in an interesting field that has fast growth. That would give you strong access to most available jobs, and you will also be eligible for a lot of the local scholarships. That is the best way to work abroad.
If you are reading this post, however, you do not want to study; so I would suggest that the best option is to work in a multinational company that will post you abroad and let you work abroad.
Tags: career advice, work abroad, work abroad without studying
Note:
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