Dorothy

What does he do?

margy

Well done Dorothy, really pleased for you.

Any tips you have on job hunting would be gratefully received. I've done my 60th application today and have had 5 interviews and 1 short list. Last Friday I had two interviews, the first one they had the advert on seek 1/2 a day and had 80 applications, the second had the advert on 2 days and had over 200 applications! I suppose given the number of applications I should be grateful to even get an interview. When someone told me that for every job there were 100 applicants I thought (naively) that this was perhaps exaggerating, they weren't!

Well done again, it's nice to hear good news.

M

Sally Simpson

Retail manager.

Apparently a year ago, he would have been fine but there is so much more competition for vacancies now. Que sera, sera!

bluekipper

Wonder if it helps that there are Australian jobs on the resume? Thats what I`m hoping, when I was living in Australia 2006-07 I worked for 2 different dept`s in Government (not at same time), anyone know if this is useful or not?

Bluekipper

Dorothy

Oh I don't know what to say for tips. I tried the 'just be myself' thing and that didn't work. I tried the 'corporate' thing and that didn't work. Finally, for the one I did get I just went with the attitude that either they want my years of experience or they don't.

The interview panel was 4 people, one of whom was the medical head of the department where I'll be working. He was reading my CV while the others asked me the questions and whenever it came around to his turn to ask something he would ask something off-topic as well as the standard question. I think he was interested because I had some really specialised experience in things that most people have no idea about - I used to do fundus photos during fluorescein angiography for retinal/macular conditions - and he seemed truly interested in what I had to say. I also had to do a typing test to rate my medical terminology knowledge, which I guess I passed.

I'll give you the details of the girls from the agency I used to work through when I see you Thursday. They have gotten me some great temp roles over the past couple of years here.

Darren-Debbie

I know, but what a mess, millions scrambling around for a few jobs in an area thats a quarter the size of Melbourne....

I'm a person, GET ME OUT OF HERE!!!

ossigeno

And two of the 3 in Melbourne are for the same job and the other is a fake. Most SharePoint roles in UK at present seem to be with NHS.

alipally

Finding work in Australia at the moment is difficult to say the least....

I'm lucky I have a job, but it's contract and will run out in a few months time, I'm not sure whether I'll get another.

OH is yet to have even a sniff 6 months in and he's still looking.

TBH, I think that I'd like to go back to the UK and try again in Australia a few years down the line, but this is complicated by the fact that I have a son who's at TAFE and may even have the offer of an apprenticeship in the next couple of weeks.... Dunno if he'll get a brickie apprenticeship in the UK at the moment as they're not building anything....

Practically, I know that the UK offers better options for us at the moment. Emotionally, we've invested so much it's hard to let go of your dreams, even if it isn't forever....
Financially, well, anyone who's ping ponged will know, it's crippling.... the money is a bit like sand running through your fingers, no matter how much you try to stem the flow it just keeps disappearing!!

Giving up the permanent well paid job was the real heartbreaker... Maybe I'll stay but I'll probably be going back for the meantime at least, unless, by some miracle, OH finds a job in the next few weeks, but I'm not holding my breath ifkwim!

bcworld

Well I guess I should update....I actually got a call on Tuesday from an agent who I had applied for another job with and got response, maybe a couple of months ago. Interviewed for a role next day and had the job about an hour later!

So I'll change my vote back to better off in Melbourne! Seriously though, it has been a real struggle.

Doesn't surprise me to hear about the NHS....I had a demo from a Microsoft rep here in Melbourne of what they are doing over there.....HUUUUUGE piece of work.

Dorothy

Congratulations on the job, BC.

louH

Yeah congrats BC love to hear of people getting jobs, so your good news give me a little Friday evening smile - thanks for that! Keep waiting for an agency to call me out of the blue, and waiting, and waiting......

Sally Simpson

Congrats on the job bcworld

ossigeno

Well done. Are you perm or contracting? There's a couple of SharePoint consultancies in Melbourne who have always got vacancies.

bcworld

Thanks mate.

I opted for perm as I think it's a better option right now.

Not sure which consultancies you are referring to but there is one pretty large organisation who places an ad on Jobserve every Tuesday without fail for SharePoint consultans and architects.....they have been doing so for as long as I can remember. I have a former colleague who works in their Brisbane office and he has always encouraged me to apply - even before I came to MEL - and I did - and never heard another thing.

Not trying to blow my own trumpet but I would've thought my background would at least have warranted an interview......so I put it down to a CV gathering exercise in case any work came in - I could be wrong though.

kim69

my oh just lost his job truck driving on tuesday but was back in work the next day he hasnt really found it difficult over here to get a job.
weve just had two lots of friends move over here both men construction managers both got jobs one wife nurse other a pa both straight into work..cud be look but i feel if ya prepared to get out n activaley seek work there is work out there,hubby was applyin on web sites when he first got here seek ect but was hearing nothing back so took to just walking into companys and speaking to bosses and has always got a job out of it.
i honestly wouldnt hesitate to move out here..wots left of england it saddens me to say but the place is a dump