How to get local experience in Australia?
Looking to get your career started in your interested field?
Have not been successful as yet?
Is not having local experience blocking you to kick start you career in Australia?
If you want to know the answers for the above, definitely this article will help you.
I know number of my friends, who migrated to Australia with valid job experience from major Multinational companies, are unable to find a job due to lack of local experience.
This can be due to many reasons; culture, language, resume preparation etc.
How can you overcome all the above and secure first job with Australian employer? There is a proven and legitimate way to secure this. It is through VOLUNTEERING. Yes it is!
This gives you an opportunity to understand the work culture within Australia. The experience is also being viewed so favourably by potential employers.
You may think ‘this really works?’ Yes it does.
A friend moved out to Sydney 3 years ago with her husband with no working background. She has applied for many jobs since then, nothing worked out for her. She almost lost confidence in finding a job. Meanwhile, she had to visit her country for a holiday. After her holiday, she changed her strategy of looking for jobs. Volunteered for a company for three months (without any pay). Based on her performance, she was offered a full time job with them.
I know another friend who did volunteering while she was in her final year of study. Later she secured part time job in a corporate company after her studies. She continued volunteering until she was full time. This really works if you have chosen the right field of volunteering.
Many view volunteer work is only undertaken by retirees or financially secure individuals. However, these days, volunteer work is becoming increasingly popular for students and grads alike. I have mentioned in my previous posts about the resume preparation and achievements to go on your resume. To achieve that, volunteering is a good option.
What is Volunteering?
Any help or services provided to an individual or an organisation for no financial gain is called volunteering.
How it helps me?
If you are an International student or new migrant or a fresh graduate looking to crack your first job in Australia, volunteering helps you to understand the Australian work culture and environment within a short period of time. Apart from this, you develop lots of confidence and gain new skills required for your upcoming job.
What sort of volunteer roles exist?
Many think volunteer jobs are only in the fields of fund raising or cold calling. This is not true. You can volunteer any job in the field of software coding, Accounting, HR, Civil and Administration. There are some charities and NSW Government that require people to sit on their Boards and Committees.
Is it easy to find volunteer work?
I don’t say it is easy but is achievable. I can say if you have right attitude to work and relevant skills for performing the tasks it is not hard.
How to search for volunteer work?
The volunteer work positions are advertised in
#1 Local newspapers
#2 Local councils (including their webpage and social media platforms)
#3 Community centre’s and noticeboards
#4 Social Media communities (Facebook, twitter etc)
#5 Contacting charities and registering your details on their websites
#6 Local Hospitals
#7 NSW Government Boards and Committees
Apart from the above, there are proper websites that you can apply as how you apply for paid jobs:
Some of them noted for you:
This is one of the major Charities incorporated in the year 1991. This operates across Australia. There are number of volunteer jobs advertised on daily basis in various streams of education. This is one of the good places to start your search.
#2 Go Volunteer
This is another volunteer job search website. It has jobs for students, seniors and professionals. It fits to everyone.
This organisation acts as a central online hub for not for profit sector companies. They have volunteer jobs advertised every day in various professions.
#4 Volunteer Services Australia:
This organisation is based in Gold Coast and serve the community around Gold Coast and Brisbane. It has started its operations in Tasmania as well. This organisation acts as a recruiter for the charity. Once they have received your expression of interest, they interview for the position. After this, they refer you to company you have chosen to volunteer for. Once accepted, you can start your work.
This is a popular and major website for searching jobs in Australia. It has volunteer section as well. The jobs are provided based on the skills and experience you have provided in your profile. How good is that? And also jobs are posted across various locations of Australia. This is another good opportunity to work in your local area.
How long should I undertake Volunteer work?
It all depends on your circumstance. You can go as short as for a week or longer than 6 months. Some jobs may limit you to work one or two days in a week. Some prefer to work part time in charity while searching for full time job.
If you are an international or a local student, this is a great opportunity to improve and gain new skills required for employment after your graduation. If you can allocate one day a week for volunteering work; this helps you in long term to secure wonderful paid job.
If you are a new expat, this is the wonderful opportunity to gain some local experience while searching for your full time job. Chances are your volunteering job may end up being your full time job.
Like my friends, any of you have attained job through volunteering work? Please share your experience in comments. This gives us more inspiration and motivation.
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How to secure first job in Accounting with no experience
