Hey there!

I finished my A-levels at a commercial college in Austria. Since July 2004 I have been working for a large industrial company in the financial accounting department.

I'm considering moving to Enland, especially to Sheffield, and I am wondering about the job situation for non-native-speakers of English. My mother tongue is German by the way.

Has anyone any ideas or tips for me, or would you say that it's impossible at all??

Thanks for your help,

Beatrix

What kind of work would you be seeking Beatrix? Your written English seems excellent to me, I'm guessing your spoken English is also?

K x

Hello Kristian,

first of all, thanks a lot for your prompt reply.

Well, my English is good enough for Austria, but I’m not sure, if it’s good enough for England. However, the reason why I would like to go to the UK is to improve my English. As I cannot afford a long-lasting English course, I would like to work there.

I would appreciate a job in an industrial company or in a hotel. I would do any kind of clerical- or assistant job. No matter if it’s in the field of marketing or finance or in any other economical field. But I’m not sure, if that’s possible for someone like me.

I’ve already tried to find a job in the UK, via the most famous homepages like thetimes and the guardian and fish4jobs, etc. But they don’t really offer jobs for people who aren’t already in the uk. Besides that, the potential employers expect the applicants to have perfect English skills, which I do not have.

I don’t expect to earn loads of money, but I want to be able to survive with the money that I’d earn there. Concerning the duration of my stay, I don’t plan to return to Austria within a year or two.

As I do also have some kind of “experience” as a waitress I would also do such a job, although that’s not exactly what I’m expecting. I would also like get some kind of valuable experience and not only getting better English skills.

Have you still some tips for me??

I would be really glad if you’d have!

Beatrix

Beatrix,
have you thought of applying to the language departments of universities/schools and colleges.
Native German speaking classroom assistants will be required in some classes for students doing GCSE, AS and A2 qualifications in German.

In case you don't know AS + A2 = an A level.

I am not studying German myself, but I am studying another language and we have a 21 year old native speaker who comes for an hour in our class to help with our presentations and prepared topic areas. And those things which only a native speaker could know.

While this work takes advantage of your native tongue, you will be able to meet lots of people in a College / School, and participate in English life and improve your English language.

I don't know of any vacancies but it is my suggestion for you to try.

Good Luck

In know that there are a few businesses in Sheffield with German and/or Austrian parent companies. They may look for bi-lingual staff.
I would think that a bit of internet searching should come up with their names.

I can think of many places in the service industry that would hire someone who did not have English as their first language; many shops, restaurants, care facillities, etc within Sheffeld already employ people such as yourself.

I think my best advice would be to look for work when you get here; it's easier to get jobs such as these if you can start and be interviewed right away.

K x

Beatrix

Your best chance of employment is probably with a hotel. In my travels around the UK I tend to find that the vast majority of staff in hotels are from other european countries.

Regards

Mark

I don't know if they're recruiting at the moment, but SDL are a big translation service company who have a base in Sheffield. See www.sdl.com

<I've just checked the jobs page of their web site and they seem to have quite a few translator positions up for grabs>

Cheers, Carrie

Hey there,

thanks a lot for those many answers!! I'll probably stay a little longer than planned here in Austria and accumulate some money, so that I can go to England even without a job in my pocket. That's probably the best thing that I could do. Unfortunately I'm not a "no risk - no fun" person.

However, I'm pretty confident that I'll go there some day.

Thanks a lot for your ideas.

Beatrix

I am sure your English spoken language is a lot better than the Indian call centres that british companies use.
I cannot understand a word they say and i just hang up.
And before you high and mighty start, i am not being racist, it just frustrates me.

I've seen quite a few vacancies lately for bilingual call centre operators! Especially the 'non-romantic' languages (their term, not mine!)

K x

Originally posted by Kristian
I've seen quite a few vacancies lately for bilingual call centre operators! Especially the 'non-romantic' languages (their term, not mine!)

K x

Oh you're BI-lingual now Kristian. You obviously like to keep your options open:hihi: :hihi: :hihi:

Originally posted by slimsid2000
Oh you're BI-lingual now Kristian. You obviously like to keep your options open:hihi: :hihi: :hihi:

It doubles the chance of a date on a Saturday night! :D Kidding!

Sid, what's that new Avatar about? Is that cat showering me with hearts, or is it just bleeding :huh: :D

K x

If you're still reading this reply, I'd just like to add that Sheffield isn't the ideal place for foreign workers. In southern cities, they have more job vacancies than in these parts. Edinburgh and Cambridge have more job vacancies than unemployed people!

Originally posted by meer
If you're still reading this reply, I'd just like to add that Sheffield isn't the ideal place for foreign workers. In southern cities, they have more job vacancies than in these parts. Edinburgh and Cambridge have more job vacancies than unemployed people!

Edinburgh is only south when I hold my atlas upside down. What am I doing wrong? :D

K x

I don't believe my reply implied edinburgh was in the south.

Ant Marketing's international department are always seeking bi-lingual staff so please call 0114 2011345 !!