Big Ears

I am new member of this web forum and have found most of the postings to be very useful and informative.

As someone who is still undecided about giving up on the UK and moving to Oz it has been very useful to hear the positive and negative stories.

Sometimes the negative comments are more useful, as they make you realise that things won't all be plain sailing.

Having said that I am still left asking the question, "If OZ is so bad why doesn’t PB move back to the UK?

Please accept my apologies if this subject has previously been discussed, but as a new member I am struck by how much he seems to hate the place

karawara88

Oz is the same as everywhere else in the world, it has good points and bad points.

Some people go out thinking its all bells and whistles and as you have found from some posts, its not.

BUT

You need to make your own decision and weigh up what you want from the move, at the end of the day you can always come back.

Big Ears

Our views on moving change from day to day.

Some days we wake up thinking we know we want to move to Oz and it's the right thing to do. Others day we wake up thinking it is too big a move and we’re better off staying with what we know.

In our heart of hearts we would love to give it a go but I guess it comes down to whether we have the bottle. I have been accredited by the Australian Computer Society for skilled migration so that part is done, but we are stuck at the stage of should be apply for a visa.

The biggest concern is the job issue, there seems a lot of posts suggesting that the job market is not good. Obviously you've got to expect to be out of work for a while but it seems people are experiencing real problems finding work.

Big Ears

Houdini

I'm sure PB would like to respond himself and you're right, this topic has been covered many times before.
I often groan when I see PB's name on a thread, just as I grin when I see someone like Baldbutts, but I still read them.
He expresses an opinion very openly that most people don't like but at the end of the day he's just one person and he's as entitled as the next person to express himself. I also hate to say it but very occasionally I agree with him! Not very often, though!
I also enjoy reading the forum and have found it invaluable. I also found meeting up with people from the forum recently in Essex very useful and I recommend people in other areas doing the same (I see already are).
Anyway, enough of this!
I have a Visa to apply for.......
Lizzy

karawara88

Thats normal !!

If you get paid well here in the IT field you will struggle to find work paying well in Oz. More so depending on where you want to end up living.

The IT situation is bad enough here, Oz is twice as bad.

Stoney

Its not the negative comments I have a problem with it is being insulted by someone who is hiding behind the anonimity of these boards.
He is probably right under the thumb at home or work, and can only say what he thinks here without being shouted down.

bored_bean

I disagree. Talking to my cousin who works in IT in Melbourne, he thinks that things aren't too bad. They're not great by any stretch of the imagination, but after the .com crash things can only go up. Yes things got silly then and wages rocketed, and currently times are hard, but people need computers and those of us who have training and experience will be needed. The people who jumped on the bandwagon however will have a big shock. It's the same for any industry that boom/busts.

mrladyboy

Big Ears - my advice (for what it's worth) is to apply now and decide later.

Don't forget that the application takes 12 months or more usually. Get the ball rolling while you soul-search.

Even when you get your visa (assuming you do), you don't have to make a decision then. Go and validate your visas, enjoy 2-4 weeks holiday, and that will help. Even if you're still undecided, you've got a 4-5 year visa to come and go as you please. I.T. jobs may be scarce now, but in 2007 things may be very different.

Plus, we're not getting any younger, and we don't know what will happen to the points system. What if you wait 6 months, decide you want to go, then find the points requirement has gone up and it's out of reach?

OK, the application isn't cheap... but if you don't do it now and miss the boat, how will you feel then? It's a long time to wait for a retirement visa...

Our plan is to go for a year and either come home knowing it wasn't for us, or to stay 2 years and get dual nationality. At that point we can travel unrestricted forever.

Of course you may disagree, but in the grand sceme of things, I think £1,000 to £1,500 spent on a choice of vastly different lifestyles is money well spent.

Gary.

ems

We were in the same position before we applied. After getting the skills assessment from ACS we hummed and haahed for a while, then my dh's IT specialisation dropped off the MODL!

We applied back in Sept and are going for medicals in a couple of weeks, so things are progressing now, but we kicked ourselves in the beginning !

HowardB

I was worried about the IT situation too . I have a 'well paid' job here in the UK but I have had a look at reasons for moving and not one of them involves jobs or money. Sure it' s great having a bit extra money, but whats more important ? It will be a big drop in purely fincanial terms but we are hoping for a rise in the quality of our life. I don't want to have to work weekends and night shifts and miss seeing my kids grow up ( although sometimes it is a bonus ) Whats important to me now is going for a walk in a nice park, not having to scrape ice of the car in the morning, being able to sit in the back garden etc

Sorry this is getting of the original thread. Yeah PB has his own views, we are all entitled to views, whether they are right or wrong is up to the individual to decide.

Perhaps we should start up an IT thread ?

karawara88

Having been in IT for 16 years, I have never known it this bad, was in Perth 3 years ago situation was bad then and has not improved any.

Also have a mate in Melbourne who has spent the last 3 months worrying about his job and he is working in IT for a major banking organisation. Said work situation in Melbourne was bleak. !! (hence the worry).

Look on job boards, IT work is scarce or low paid compared to UK.

My intention is not to work in IT, sick of it and too old. !!. If I was going to OZ (Perth) and needed to maintain lifestyle etc through IT work I would be sadly disilusioned.

kizkat

PB is mostly just taking the piss. It is funny if you dont take it too seriously.


I read recently that in a study of 90 yr olds, the times of their lives that they remembered most vividly were the times that they took risks.
Best of luck to you whatever you decide.
KK