Well we migrated to Oz back in 81 and could have been £10 Poms, but would have had to have waited until they (Aussie Govt) decided when they would offer us the transport, so we bit the bullet and paid our own way.

We had never been to Australia, there was no internet in those days, no forums, etc so it was all done on instinct and with the best will in the world, even if you could afford to visit first, doesn't mean the place you see then is the place you think it is.

We had 14 years there and loved it, only returned to UK for very personal reasons, but expect to be back in Aus any time soon!

sorry all CAPS hurts my eyes couldnt make it through reading the whole post lol

Are you bringing Max the butler and Freeway with you? Sorry, you're bound to have heard that once or twice

If you can run to it and have someone to have your children for a week or so, I would suggest the two of you do a reccie and do it properly, as Jad suggested. It's quite a tall order though so good luck.

Hi Jenny, welcome to the forum, I am a newbie to the Forum also but not to Australia. I also work in Health care, and although I am married to an Australian, and it naturally was easier for me, there are all sorts of opportunities within the Healthcare profession for you. You didnt tell us what your husband did, which maybe would make it easier for us to guide you in the right direction. There is The Down Under Expo in Dublin in September 2009
http://www.downunderexpo.com/candidates.html....sat and sun 26/27th september at RDS Ballsbridge Dublin. There will be medical stands there and hopefully something for your husband as well. When I looked at the exhibitor stands they annonce they will be showing closer to the date. This is probably the best avenue to go down taking into account you do have children and it is expensive to fly over there with a big family... There is another web site
http://www.ogradypeyton.com/Australi...Australia.aspx and sometimes they offer accomodation, or certainly will give concrete advice. WA have some good and generous projects see this websitehttp://www.nursing.health.wa.gov.au/working/regional.cfm. For instance Karratha where I am based they do provide accomodation as well, (although unless you like the heat and the bush this wont be for you!) it depends on many factors though and you have to do your homework..... their overseas website is....http://www.nursing.health.wa.gov.au/overseas/index.cfm and contains useful advice. I sincerely hope that this has given you a few leads and pm me if your require any further information best wishes Sam

Look, it's a great country, but it really depends where you go in the country. Be prepared for the heat if you come to Queensland, Sydney might be a little bit easier for you weather-wise (not as hot).

The people here are very friendly, however the schooling is not the greatest. Kazakstan (remember Borat), has better education than we do here in Queensland. Maybe it's cause everyone here is lazy! Im not sure how it measures up everywhere else in aus.

As long as your willing to give the change 100% effort. You will eventually fit in and love it here. Just do your research before heading over. As some other people said, it is pricey to fly back over. (but then again, you want to leave for a reason)

Plus all your mates will want to come and visit you.
If you need any help from an aussi, send me a message!
Peace


P.S - The capslock button is above the shift key, on the left of your keyboard!

Decisions decisions?Abit like trying to choose a new dress?Would/could you be happy if you had no choice but to stay here?

hi thanks for all your replies.
decisions decisions.
we dont have a bad life here in n ireland really, we just feel that we could probably offer our children more choices for their future if we moved. n
,maybe the grass is greener!!

my husband is sales manager so no chance of getting visas through him so it would have to be a job offer with immigration status for me as a nurse.

thanks for all your information, i think we have more researching to do.
we are looking at wa as we have friend there and husband has a cousin living there.

sorry about caps!
jenny

Hi Jenny, it is a huge decision, particularly when children are involved as well. If you were near a cousin/friend that would be a support line which is always lovely to have. Very best wishes in your research and yes you do come from a lovely country as well Sam

more researching i guess.
the more we research , the more we're not sure were we
should go. good aspects for all three big ones - australia, nz and canada.
and draw backs of course too. Going mad with husbands indecision. he knows he wants to go but can't make definate decision were. i guess its easier for me to accept as i know i can get a job as a nurse but he's more worried about his position .
jenny

Hi ......... I think it is a personal decision based on many individual factors as to whether you would emmigrate somewhere without going to check it out first.

We were originally looking at NZ ( and still very keen ) however the more research you do without the rose tinted ideologies the more you realise that whilst there are definite advantages - there comes with it a compromise on some things. We have visitied NZ and are now giving considering OZ with a reccie coming up in April.

Personally I think it depends on how high your bar is and only you know. For example we are a family of 5. OH is a fireman and I am a midwife both working and have job security here in the UK considering the current climate. We live in a reasonable sized house in a small community within walking distance of the coast, our kids are happy at school, and we have a super set of friends. We are by no means rich, posh or well off but we are doing OK and so I feel for us our bar is set quite high. However if our jobs were threatened, I disliked the area where we were living, had awful neighbours and the kids were unhappy at school the risk of leaving it all behind is much lower.............

This is only my opinion and I am well aware that many people have done the emmigrate thing for other reasons than above but maybe they are just braver than I am ...........

L x

Hi LouLou, how true is that!. As some poster said somewhere different shit same bucket, and laughed. I would never recommend any one to come over here, it is such a personal decision, which requires much thought, financial backup and a safety line. I knew as a doctor I wouldnt have problems getting a job and I am thrilled with my working environment. I have left both my mature sons abroad in their own vacations and that for me was a terrible wrench. Leaving friends and family behind is never easy, but its a different "door" I seem to see more of them now than when I was in Europe. All I can say is with my husbands family and set of friends (all Australian) I have been welcomed into the fold, and I couldnt ask for anything more. Tongue in cheek I wonder whether women are more resilient than men and if the boot was on the other foot, how hard they would find it if the cards were reversed hahaha

thanks for posts.
i wonder loulou what your reasons for moving are then ( if its not too personal)
like you, we both have good jobs, i only work part time and we have ssafety net of family should kids be ill etc but i guess the weekends news here in ni are only to guide one of our reasons for wanting to leave.

Hi Jenny - Yes exactly what I am wrestling with at the moment....... what are my reasons for moving

We will go in on my visa application as a midwife........ great but that makes me the bread winner with the financial responsibility of providing for the family which i am more than capable of doing . However.......... the roles will be reversed and my husband will be doing most of the running around after the kids.

I do love being a mum , I love walking them to and from school, I love being there when they get up in the morning, tucking them in at night, going to the park/beach with them etc. I work part time at the mo and thats fine cos I can still be a mum BUT if I will be working full time I am worried I won't be the mum for as much that I want to be....... even if we are OZ/NZ with the lovely climate, beaches, better opportunities, house etc. Or is that me being selfish

Tough decision eh x

as an add on to my last post.......... the reasons for wanting to go boil down to a long term dream we (me and OH) have both had for some time, believing there may long term be much better opportunities for the kids - and not wanting to be dribbling into my lap at a ripe old age wondering "what if " as you only get one dance on this earth and I don't want any regrets

Loulou x

hi
i am exactly in same boat as a nurse and i guess thats the real problem for us. husband worried about role reversal with the 4 kids.
we want to offer kids a better life but is it better or just different if you are reversing the roles just to get a visa?
stress!!!!!