Probus

Hi all,

Have just joined the forum and thought I might try to draw on some of the wide expertise available here.

I'm flying to Oz on a working holiday visa in November. The idea is to gain some new experiences while sitting out some of the economic blues in the UK, not to mention negotiating a career change. I'm hoping to get some temporary admin work, preferably in the public sector, and have been thinking about which city might offer the best prospects. On the one hand I'm conscious of the recent signs of weakening in the economy and the fact that Perth is somewhat insulated by its mining sector. On the other hand I'm also aware that if I get nowhere in Perth I'm somewhat marooned, whereas it's easier to zip between the east coast cities.

It may be relevant that I'm 30, at the upper end of the WHV age-limit, and that my prior experience has been in UK academia (not that I expect or want to do the same thing in Oz).

Many thanks

Probus

Bermudashorts

To be honest I would base your decision on your instincts and whichever city you feel the biggest pull towards. Because the next four answers could all recommend a different city based on the posters preferences. If you feel inclined for Perth then go to Perth, you won't be stranded, if you want to leave you just get a plane out.

A WHV might not be conducive to changing careers; change in career means learning curve and as you would only be able to stay with one company for six months they would probably only take on a WHV holder that can hit the ground running.

Probus

Thanks for your response. If only I had a strong instinctive pull towards one city over another! My instinct is really to base my decision on hard economic logic, and it’s that I’m trying to fish for basically.

I take your point about the career change and will keep it in mind. I should say that I’m not expecting to transition into my chosen career while on the WHV so much as towards it, by whatever tiny steps I can achieve. I do have admin-relevant skills and experience, and while I’ve not worked specifically in office support I suppose I had assumed that I’d be more likely to be hired in such a capacity on a temporary than on a permanent basis, even if they are still picky. In any case, I do not think the picture is much rosier in Britain!

asprilla

If I were you, I'd travel between the east coast cities from Cairns down to Melbourne, exploring the coast. Meet other backpackers, go out drinking, laze on some sunny beaches and (hopefully) hook up with a nordic (or maybe french) female backpacker or five.

goldchoccycoin

A lot of public sector work requires the applicants to be PR or citizens - just be aware!

Best of luck!

Probus

tking – thanks, yes, I realised just recently that this was the case with the APS. Scratched an earlier plan to go to Canberra for this reason. Thanks for your wishes!

HelenTD

When I did my WHV thing, I was doing admin work and had several casual jobs in various govt offices/departments, so you might find that you can still do that via an employment agency. I started off in Sydney for 3 months, travelled around Tasmania for a month, worked in Melbourne for about 4 months, travelled across to South Australia, then across to Perth via the desert, holiday in SW for a couple of weeks, then worked in Perth for about 2 months, then travelled north, across the top, down the Queensland coast, ending up back in Sydney for the last 2 weeks (WHV were only 12 months at the time).

rajendrantst

I have worked in Melbourne for about 4 months, travelled across to South Australia, then across to Perth via the desert, holiday in SW for a couple of weeks, then worked in Perth for about 2 months...great city...


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Probus

Thanks: encouraging to hear. I too am currently planning to do only 12 months, so it's nice to know that short contracts can be had.

nicolac34

If it helps I'm currently in Perth on a WHV and working in the Public Sector!

The Governement over here usually uses temp agencies to recruit there office support staff, so if you do have some admin/secretarial experience you will find it fairly easy to get something over here. The going rate seems to be about $30-$35 p/h which is easy money for very little. My husband has just got a new 6 month temp contract as a 'Program Document Controller' (sounds dull as anything) and that's on $40 p/h which seems a lot for controlling documents - but hey, we aren't complaining!

Personally this isn't what I want to be doing, so once we got ourselves established a bit more (rented a flat, got a car, some savings etc) I sent my CV and a Covering letter out to some prospective employers - I got a call the next day and I'm in the process of starting with them next week. It's all about making the opportunities work for you.

And why we came to Perth? My brother lives here, so for us it was easy to just live with him until we found our feet. Given the choice again we'd rather be on the East Coast I think, but we intend to stay here the 12 months and save, save, save before travelling the world, and despite the high cost of living we should have $40k in the pot by the end of it.

jimbo_d

If you're on a WHV you should be aiming to visit ALL of the cities, don't just camp in one and miss out on the rest

Probus

Thanks for the advice, everyone. Still not quite decided whether to head for Perth or search for work in Melbourne, where I'm staying with some friends for a while. I guess the point is my plan doesn't have to be too rigid!