move abroad

You are currently browsing articles tagged move abroad.

Cost of an English University Education

November 5, 2010 in Education Abroad, Expat Locations, Living in Britain by Paul Allen | 3 comments

For any parent contemplating a move abroad, picking a location that offers their children a better quality of life now, and good opportunities for the future, will be a prime consideration.

On those criteria, the UK government’s newly-announced plan to increase university tuition fees has to be a black mark.

Under the policy, universities in England can charge as much as £9,000 per year in tuition fees – a steep rise from the £3,290 at present.

With the government having slashed funding for universities in its October Spending Review, it means many students are set to bear most of the cost of their courses. And that is in addition to the living expenses they already have to pay.

Some, inevitably, will be put off from attending university at all. Those that do go will either need affluent parents able to finance their education, or face a pile of debt at graduation.

Spanish Lessons

The comparative cost of university was a hot topic with some English friends we have just seen on a recent trip back to our former home in Spain.

Their daughter is due to finish her baccalaureate next summer, and is now weighing her options. If she were to go to the local university in Spain her parents would only have to pay for her books – approximately €1,000 a year. Back in the UK, by contrast, they could not afford to give their daughter the advantages a university qualification brings.

Mind you, there is a flipside: the countries’ relative job opportunities.

With unemployment soaring to over 20%, there is a big question as to what career prospects she would have in Spain post-graduation.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Nadine Coyle and the Secret to Moving Abroad Happiness

October 12, 2010 in Dream Lifestyle, Moving Abroad Tips by Paul Allen | No comments

Girls Aloud are hardly my cup of tea, so I’ve never paid them any attention before. Aside from the marital woes of Cheryl Cole, and her subsequent stratospheric rise to ubiquitous media princess, I had never even heard of any of the band, let alone knew anything of their backgrounds.

Today though I saw an article on the BBC News website about band member Nadine Coyle, discussing the release of her first solo album, Insatiable[1].

Not that I’ll be dashing out to buy it. But what did interest me were the references she made in the interview to her family.

A native of Northern Ireland, since finding fame Nadine has moved to Los Angeles. Crucially, her parents and siblings also went with her. Together they now run a bar, Nadine’s Irish Mist, on the Pacific Coast Highway at Sunset Beach.

Her family, she said in the BBC interview, are at the centre of her world, providing her with the foundations she needs to build her career and achieve success.

Yet for many people who move abroad, leaving family behind is the sacrifice they must make to fulfil those dreams of a life overseas.

Which is most important? Is it your family and friends, who will give you the necessary support from which all else becomes possible? Or is relocating abroad the key to achieving your personal and career goals, and finding happiness?

It’s a tough choice … unless, like Nadine, you can get all your nearest and dearest to come with you!

[1] Nadine Coyle: ‘I recorded my album in the bathroom’, By Mark Savage, 12 October 2010, http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-11494183

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Moving Abroad for Love

July 23, 2010 in Living Abroad Pros and Cons, Moving Abroad Tips by Paul Allen | No comments

There was a documentary on British TV last week called Living with Brucie[1].

For anyone who hasn’t heard of him, Bruce Forsyth is a showbiz legend in the UK, a mainstay on Saturday prime time TV for the last 40-odd years.

And for the last 27 of those, Bruce has been married to Wilnelia, a Puerto Rican former Miss World who is 30 years his junior.

For me, what was interesting was the story of two people from different countries and cultures coming together to forge a life, and what it takes to make it a success.

Despite her fame on the Caribbean island, and the family and friends she has there, it is Winnie who has given up her homeland to be with her husband. OK, so she now lives in a mansion on the Wentworth golf estate in Surrey, with all the trappings that come from being married to a multimillionaire entertainer. But still, it must be a sacrifice.

Expat love

And it is a common tale. A survey earlier this year by health insurer Bupa International and expat web resource Expatica found one in five respondents had moved abroad for love[2]. It was a bigger reason for relocating than lifestyle choice (cited by 8% of expats), retirement (4%), weather and culture (1% each). 

There is a suggestion it may be a growing trend as well. According to the survey, only 14% of expats who moved abroad 10 years ago did it for love, whereas the figure was 22% for those who relocated in the last five years.

 

In these situations, one member of the couple will always have to be away from home and all it embodies: family and friends, familiar landscapes, its customs and culture.

Homesickness may strike, but – short of breaking up the family – one person will have to live with the consequences.

So how do you cope?

If anyone has any personal experiences from moving abroad for love, or tips and strategies on how to make it work I’d love to hear them.

[1] Living with Brucie, Channel 4, http://www.channel4.com/programmes/living-with-brucie

[2] One in five expats moves abroad for love, expatica.com, 11 February 2010, http://www.expatica.com/be/news/community_focus/One-in-five-expats-moves-abroad-for-love.html

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Elections and Moving Abroad

May 6, 2010 in Dream Lifestyle by Paul Allen | No comments

Democratic elections seem to bring out the best and worst in a society, as the current campaign in the UK has shown.

Of course, the right to have an equal voice in the governance and future direction of your country should be a source of pride, something to be celebrated and embraced. Let’s not forget what life would be like without it, as many people around the world have to endure. Be grateful, and exercise that privilege.

Unfortunately, elections also have a flip side.

There is all the negativity: the schoolyard name calling and finger pointing that so often characterises the grab for votes.

There is the veneer politicians put on their campaigns, for fear some small blemish, some sign of human frailty, might wreck their electoral hopes. With that comes a tendency to rewrite history, for politicians to claim that all the decisions they have taken – or would have taken, if they don’t happen to be in government – have improved the country, while their opponents’ ones have been a disaster.

Worse, I think, are the overblown promises for the future. “Vote for me and we will have huge and sustainable economic growth, a wonderful education system, transformed healthcare, no crime, a clean environment, congestion-free roads, great public transport, bounteous pensions …”

Unfortunately, the underlying message each time an election comes around is that the country in question has gone to the dogs, but that a gilded future is on the horizon.

As I read expat forums and articles on emigration, or talk to people considering a move abroad, I see a similar mindset: “My country is on the road to ruin and so I’m getting out to someplace where the sun always shines and all my problems will be solved.”

Instead, we need a balanced, honest approach to the debate – both political and expatriate. The situation isn’t all terrible now, and won’t be perfect when we change government/country.

We should recognise, and strive to appreciate, the good we have at the moment, as well as being open-eyed to what needs changing. And we should have hope for a better future, without pinning it on some quick and easy fix.

For changing political leader, or your country, isn’t the magic answer. One cross on a piece of paper or a new stamp in the passport won’t solve everything. We must bear that responsibility ourselves – to make our lives better, wherever we choose to lead them.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The Beauty of a Portable Career

March 19, 2010 in Working Abrod by Paul Allen | No comments

So, you want to move abroad?

Times were when the best option for many people was to get posted overseas by their employer – you got to experience life in a new country but without the risk of leaving your job. Oftentimes it was a great way to ascend the career ladder too.

However, the global recession has seen many companies cut back on the number and generosity of their international assignment programmes. Moreover, a foreign posting is no longer a surefire career progression path.

As a 2009 report by the IESE Business School at the University of Navarra[i] noted: “Expatriates have extremely high expectations, largely due to the considerable demands required of them. However, companies cannot guarantee that there will be a vacancy to match these expectations upon their return, say in three to five years’ time.” The report added, “In general, repatriated employees hold positions similar to what they held prior to leaving.”

With the advent of the Internet, mobile communications, videoconferencing and the like though, a myriad of income-earning possibilities have opened up for the budding expatriate.

For such technologies are giving people the freedom to become independent freelancers/contractors or small-scale entrepreneurs, selling their products and services from wherever they happen to be, to customers across the world. Better still, such work opportunities are portable. And that makes moving abroad – and even multiple relocations – a whole lot easier.

For more on portable career possibilities take a look at Megan Fitzgerald’s excellent article on the topic, at http://jobsearch.about.com/od/careerdevelopment/a/portablecareers.htm. For more information on how to start a portable career or business you can also check out her website at www.careerbychoice.com.

In addition, I recommend reading Jo Parfitt’s seminal book, A Career in Your Suitcase, which includes a wealth of advice on creating a portable career.

It could offer you a whole new gateway to the world.

 

[i] Expatriation: More Than Just Knowing Languages, José R. Pin Arboledas, P. García-Lombardía, IESE Business School – University of Navarra, http://insight.iese.edu/doc.aspx?id=1006&ar=20&idioma=2

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Credit Crunch the New Incentive for Emigration?

June 6, 2008 in Leaving Britain by Paul Allen | No comments

Last summer it was the record floods impelling people to flee Britain in search of a better life abroad. This year’s headline incentive it seems will be the global credit crunch.

 

According to new research conducted by YouGov for Legal & General, and reported in the Scotsman, 19% of Scotland’s five million population would be prepared to move abroad to escape the sharp rise in living costs stemming from the credit crunch. And an estimated 550 people a week are thought to be leaving Scotland for a life overseas already.

But while the UK is undoubtedly an expensive place to live, it isn’t the only nation to be hit by escalating living costs.

 

Food prices around the world are soaring thanks to a combination of forces, including long-term droughts in Australia and more US farmers turning their crops over to biofuels. Meanwhile, oil continues to trade around $130 per barrel, compared to an average of $20 – $30 over the past 60 years, which has caused petrol and fuel costs to rocket everywhere. And because oil powers so much of the world’s manufacturing it has fed through into price rises for a welter of other goods.

 

As a result, inflation is once again rearing its head on a global scale.

 

In response, the European Central Bank raised eurozone interest rates to 4% last Wednesday, double what it was just 18 months ago. ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet indicated further rate rises could follow too. Not got news for borrowers.

 

And with the euro remaining strong against the pound, any money transferred from the UK to Europe will not go nearly as far as it once did. Popular British expat destinations like Spain, France and Portugal are no longer such cheap alternatives then.

 

In addition, while you may find moving abroad gives you a lower cost of living, you also need to consider what your earnings are likely to be in your new location. Yes, your living costs may go down, but if your income decreases by a similar amount how much better off will you really be?

 

Of course the expense of UK living is a concern for many people. But it is a global phenomenon. Better therefore to think before you jump. So if you’re considering a move abroad, make sure your decision is based on a real heart’s desire to experience life overseas, rather than in response to external – and potentially temporary – factors.

 

Tags: , , , , , , , , ,