What's this? Australia? G'day Mates! And other stereotypes...

As most of you know, I'm not currently working in a paid position, but was planning to return to work in the spring after getting some writing completed. I had been thinking of working abroad in the UK for many years, as they have been recruiting for years, a shortage of social workers. I signed up for one website's emails to keep me posted on things for when I might be in a position to work abroad. Last week I updated my resume and registered with a few sites through this website. One of them called me today to offer me an interview for positions in Australia. They are hiring over 130 social workers with new budget funds and the push is on to fill them. The agency will help me work on all of my paperwork to work abroad and pay all of the fees for the work visa and any other permits. They will also pay my flight to and from, and to ship up to 15 boxes of personal effects. The wage is as high as I made in Yellowknife, if not more. There is an annuation of 9%, 6 weeks paid holidays, plus national holidays. The terms sound reasonable. What I have to find out is if I can work in the environment - both social and physical. 


I don't particularly like the heat, humid heat being the worst. However, I have learned how to live with it when I have to. The apartments I checked out all had air conditioning, which would definitely help, and is necessary in the heat of the summer (our winter). I checked a few websites for weather information and the temperatures are not as scary as some might lead you to believe. Their record high is around 45C, and the average is in the 30's and that's mostly in the summer (our winter), while in the winter, it is more like 10-20C. Today it's 22C. The coast is very humid, but the inland is of course, rather dry, and there have been droughts. The community we talked most about today is Alice Springs, which seems to have reasonable weather, and a dry climate. Phew.


Rental housing prices are high, much like in the north, but with a high paycheck, no car payment and nearly no student loans, I can make it work easily. Many folks share accommodation, something I am not opposed to. They offer 3 months free accommodation while you search for your own place, so that's cool. They also offer a rental car for a month so you can check out the area.


There is quite a process involved in working abroad, paperwork that takes a few months to process, gather, etc. They are calling me again on Monday to go over what we discussed and see if I have any questions. I have to work on my CV, something I haven't done before, but will be a great opportunity to do my first one. They will also help me with that, and showcase my skills in the best way. I think I'm going to go through the process anyway, and in the meantime do as much research as I can about the job, area, and how it all works before signing on anyone's dotted line. At least they offer you the job quickly if they are interested, often at the interview, or the following day. That will be a relief and then I can make plans accordingly. I won't have much to ship...