My own country doesn't seem to give a shit so thinking about emigrating

[McSnail]

I'm a bit pissed off with the Scottish Government just now. I'm a teacher. For years government has been training far too many teachers, to the point where there's years worth of qualified teachers unable to secure a job. Add to that school closures, budget cuts and a stupid amount of new PFI schools being built, there are no (well, very few) teaching jobs. For every position advertised there are usually about two hundred applications (probably more now) The competition, even for two days a week contracts, is enormous.

Anyway - have just spent the day researching emigrating to New Zealand, and teaching there. I love Scotland and Britain, and never saw myself as someone who'd want to leave, but I'm so angry with the way things have become. I know it's not just teaching - the police force have put a freeze on recruitment, and even the army is cutting jobs.

Am I being unreasonable to want to get the hell out of dodge, and is anyone else in a similar position?

When you live in NZ, your holidays are in Fiji, Vanuatu, New Caledonia, Tonga, Australia or Tahiti.

Rather than the crammed and dirty Costas, Canaries, Balearic Isles, Portugal and Greece.

You can go skiing there and the mountains are so much taller than in Scotland.

Just a thought.

Thanks for all the replies.

Yes - those of you who suggest trying it first are sensible. It's a long way to go on a one-way ticket.

Anyway - thanks again. I need to go and do something mindless now.

There's a good reason why so many young New Zealanders are over here.

NZ is geographically very isolated. It is therefore inevitable that people in their 20s who've graduated from university will want to spread their wings and see a bit of the world.

It's easy to base yourself in London, work and earn money, and then travel in your spare time.

Some people do end up staying and staying, but the majority do return to NZ.

The state education in NZ is also very good.

One of my friends who is a teacher emigrated to NZ last year. She absolutely loves it, has lost about a stone from having such an outdoor lifestyle and fallen in love. :)

that's encouraging, her falling in love :)

You don't have to leave NZ to hae a holiday you can drive or go by bus around the counrties two main Islands

The weather is generally better in the summer than we get in the UK

A colleague emigrated to teach in NZ last year, he said the school system was old fashioned compared to ours but that suited him fine though!

He had more job offers than he could handle and did his interviews over the phone. Finding a job wasn't stressful at all but absolutely everything else was. I think it's all been worth it though as he's vvv happy now.

Good luck!

There's a thread in the Teaching Overseas section of the TES which deals with going to teach and live in NZ.

i know a british ex pat teacher in hong kong and she said teachers are treated like royalty. she teaches at an international school and is invited to pupils houses for dinner every week gets fantastic presents at christmas and teaches how SHE likes. she is a single parent and earns enough for a 3 bed appartment, in HK thats luxury and a live in maid.

just a thought snobear4000 ? those holiday destinations are ace, but not affordable to the average kiwi earner? ski passes are also beyond many average earners, unless something else gives?. most kiwis holiday at home either camping or baching it? flights back to europe which seem a reasonable price when earning £ are hideously expensive if you're not on an amazing $nz salary? most brits in nz i know only manage it once every 6 or 7 years? (and of course it takes around 40 hours constant travelling too)

surf is fantastic though, and free once you've got your gear, tramping is also free?

cost of living is costly compared to income, and housing costs form a MASSIVE part of your outgoings?

most houses are poorly built when you're used to UK/European standards?

good luck op? but don't necessarily expect that nz will be so much better than here - they've got a recession too, and a mass of kiwi's are returning home from abroad with unemployment levels going up and non-kiwis viewed with suspicion and sometimes even hostility if you've 'taken' a kiwis job? (and NZ experience counts waaay over and above experience from outside NZ) the job market is much more who you know rather than what you know too

oh, and biculturalism takes a bit of getting used to?

emigrating is a massive step to take, and not for everyone, but i guess you only know if you give it a try - good luck!

Actually, your thread title worries me if you are thinking of emigrating.

Don't think any other Country will care about you either, necessarily.

I lived in Australia for two years. I was over on a work visa, pre DD, but I lived and worked in a very Australian town, and it was only there I realised I'd never live there, and was glad to come home.

It's very easy to get caught up in what you think it will be like, and what you imagine it to be. The reality is, it's not.

mugglewump you're absolutely right - same sh*t, different bucket and 12,000 miles from 'home' (if you feel that the uk is 'home' of course)

McSnail, I moved out to NX permanently this year, having lived out here previously. It is a wonderful place to live.

But, it is not without its problems. High house prices, gang violence, and all the same credit-crunch problems as in the UK. There are currently protests going on over here about extending 90 day trial periods for some new employees to all employees - which will make the move much riskier for immigrants.

Anyway, listen, I love NZ but I do so recognising that it is far from perfect. Come and try it out before you decide to pull up your roots.

'NZ' obviously.

We have been NZ for 3 months. We want to go back home! OH is an engineer. He is very worried about losing his job as they don't have much work to do.
Renting is relatively cheap where we are but you have to sign for 6-12 month lease and we don't want to commit to that just in case OH's job disappears.
Food is expensive - about a third more than in the UK.
Everything else is expensive as well. Health care, for example. Although under 5's get free care unless you want an appointment quickly. DD got bad eczema since we have been here and it has cost us a fair bit to see a dermatologist.
Housing is quite different to in the UK, houses can be horrifically damp in winter. We were lucky and found a house that has a ventilation system so is dry.

OH has tried really hard at work, but the NZ'ers in particular are really unfriendly, going on rude. Perhaps it is the job uncertainty at the moment.

We have found some pretty parts of NZ, quite scandinavian.

The people I have met at playgroups are lovely though. And they do, as a nation, seem to love children.

The drivers here drive fast, don't give way much, if at all, and will beep you a lot if you are slow even on country roads which are very windy and on the edge of mountains (the ones I have been on anyway).

We are going to stay two years and then definitely come home.

The grass is always greener . . .

Having lived all over the world myself, and over 9 years here now, I can say it's usually a very bad idea emigrate out of anger.

It's definitely worth investigating, it always is, but mugglewump raises some good points.

It's best when it's a situation where there are more pros than cons, significantly more or the pros are major issues in your life, than giving a country the two-fingered salute because, as pointed out, countries never really give a shit.

i have lived overseas,and it has pros and cons.isnt always necessarily better,it is different.leaving in a rage isnt best way to plan a new life.

before uprooting overseas would you consider other parts of uk?

I'd also advise anyone thinking of emigrating to really seriously consider the implications for all of your family relationships.

Yes foreign visits (one or both ways) might seem like a nice idea, but the reality is often expensive and difficult. There's no more 'just popping in for lunch' etc.

Also, what happens if you or close relatives become ill / old and can't travel? All worth considering if you are thinking of going permanently.

It's funny isn't it, how different different travellers/emigrants experiences can be. I found NZ to be very unfriendly with a real small town mentality. It was beautiful but I couldn't live there. It felt very remote, very divided, (quite racist at times) the wages aren't good compared with the cost of living and there is a lot of depression there. I suppose it depends where you go and why you go. I did adore travelling there, there are some brilliant bits about it but it has its good and bad like anywhere.

I can see it must be shit though not being able to get a job that you have trained hard for where you are.

The NZ economy and job situation isn't great at the moment, and I have heard from expats out there that it can be quite parochial. I'm not sure that leaving the family and friends that do give a s**t about you to live 40 hours flight away from them is necessarily the best solution.

That said, YANBU to consider it and do some research, it might be right for you even if it is for a few years rather than the rest of your life.

NZ isn't the promised land, anymore than anywhere else in the world.

In fact, as a British citizen I think UK is more likely to care for you to a better standard in the long-term than NZ.

Plus, remember that moving to the other side of the world will change (and quite likely weaken) your most cherished family relationships and friendships forever.

After a few weeks, phone calls from family and friends will start to dry up, visits from them will be few and far between, and visits for you back to the UK will - at a cost of thousands, plus 40 hours traveltime - will difficult too.

As ScottishMummy said, why not think about moving to England where there are more teaching jobs?

(Speaking as an expat currently living in Europe, who has lived in Australia, Africa, America in the past). I wouldn't go further away than Europe now. Flights are only getting more expensive...

I've read all the posts, and am feeling less hard done by today. Thanks very much for all the considered replies.

To the person who said emigrating in anger would be a mistake, yes, you're absolutely right, and I think anger HAS been my recent motivation. I'm at the stage where I just don't know what else to do - I'm in my mid-thirties, have considered re-training (yet again) and after researching the job market for the job I was thinking about, changed my mind because it's no better than the current teaching situation in Scotland.

I probably will go back to the drawing board. Maybe my luck will change soon and I'll secure a permanent full-time teaching job in Scotland. If not maybe we'll move down south.

Where's nice in England? :)

england has great parts,depends what you like.urban city or large town or smaller.being trained in scotland you are fortunate,and can work emgland/wales

all depends on you what you like.where in scotland are you at the mo?town?city?what social stuff you like doing.and what market is like for your post.why dont you look at websites etc

def give england a go before stropping off in a huff

easy travel
still see friends/family
great experience

How about a smaller (or larger) northern city, where accommodation wouldn't match south-east prices?

Liverpool, Chester, Manchester, Leeds, Carlisle, Sheffield...

Or just go where the jobs are, which is probably the easiest way to start: map out any job adverts, then start researching their locations. Maybe discuss with your family a wish list of places you'd give a go, and any no-go areas you're not prepared to move to (ie. rural villages, city centres, London, Cornwall - as too far from Scotland etc etc)

I'm sorry about your situation, and really hope it all works out for you - best of luck.