Canadian Looking for UK Job with Working Holiday Visa

[MicheleCDN]

Hi everyone,

I am a Canadian citizen, and will be graduating with my BA this summer. I am looking to come to the UK for at least a year to work. Unfortunately I do not qualify under the HSMP category because I have not been working for 12 consequtive months (full-time student for past 4 years) and therefore, have not made that magic number. So, I think I will have to apply for the working holiday visa, which will restrict me to work full-time for only one year, but live in the UK for up to 2 years.

My question is: What do you think my chances are for finding timely employment in London? I have relevant office work experience and will have a degree, but I am concerned that I will be disqualified for good jobs because of the one year restriction.

Has anyone else been in this situation, and can you share your experiences? What kind of employment were you able to find? How long did it take? Do you feel that employers discriminated against you for consideration because you're not British and don't have UK work experience??

Ideally, I would like to make at least £23,000, so that if I really would like to stay, I would then qualify under the HSMP (or new Tier 1) category. This is something that I would really like to do, but am concerned that I might have a difficult time. I really don't want to waste my time and money by applying for the visa, going over there, and finding myself up against a brick wall for finding decent employment.

Thanks in advance for your opinions.

[Cosmopol]

Unless you are an outstanding graduate, it's always a risk to seek work in another country. If you believe your skills / knowledge are competitive in a busy labour market that the UK is, it's certainly worth to try the WHM -> HSMP route. If you aren't confident you'd be able to compete, perhaps you'd want to get some experience after graduation first before considering relocating?

[smacky123]

i do not think it should be a problem finding work as long as you speak english. i know people with the working visa and the employers do not insisit that they work partime.

[sakura]

If you're a recent graduate, you will find it quite hard to find a good job that pays well. Most starting salaries are £23k+ but it is a really competitive market. It depends on what type of job you are looking for. If you are in finance, business or marketing, you might not find it too difficult. But the fact that you have no work experience might count against you. You would also be competing with new UK and EU/EEA graduates, who can offer more than a year, in the professional world.

Best thing is to start looking for jobs whilst in Canada, and possibly send some applications off and see where you end up. There's no point waiting until you get to the UK to find a good job.