Work abroad | Pros and Cons about using an Agency #Travelhack
DO YOU WANT A NOMADIC LIFE? DO YOU WANT TO TRAVEL THE WORLD BUT DON’T HAVE AN UNLIMITED BANK ACCOUNT? DO YOU WANT MORE OUT OF LIFE THAN A 9-5 JOB? THEN THIS POST WAS MADE FOR YOU!
Here is the follow-up that I promised you in my last post about jobs abroad! I really hope you’ll like it and find some information that will help make your transition into this lifestyle easier. Last time I gave you information on how to find and score your first job abroad by yourself but if you, for whatever reason, don’t feel like you are capable of that then there are plenty of agencies out there that can help you! I have in the past used one of these agencies myself and thought we could talk about the pros and cons so that you get a better idea of what it is like to hire an agency and what you can expect if you decide you would like to hire one.
The agency I hired is called goxplore and is one of the biggest agencies in Scandinavia. They exist in Sweden & Norway and I used their Work & holiday all set - Australia package which meant that they helped with the visa, flights & helped me find a job with a 6months contract upon arrival.
Pros of hiring an agency
Additional Safety
I had a contact person in Sweden I could reach out to at any time and I also got a contact person in Australia + access to an emergency number that I could call 24/7 during my year abroad. We had flight insurance which was really helpful when we missed our connecting flight in Frankfurt due to delays. We were put in a hotel room for the night, got booked on the next flight + got a food voucher to use at the airport at no additional cost.
They also offered travel insurance at additional cost, but I already had insurance through another company so I don’t know anything about how good the one they offer is.
PROFESSIONAL help
You don’t have to do all the research yourself, instead, you can easily reach out to your contact person with all your questions. I always want to know everything and it felt so good to know someone with knowledge was only 1 email away.
Job guarantee
This is what lured me into using an agency, I loved the fact that I wouldn’t have to stress about money for the first 6 months as one of the terms was a 6-month employment guarantee!
Less stress
It is a lot less stressful to have someone who does most of the paperwork for you, no doubt there. The most stressful parts were the interviews and the visa application and they helped me and guided me through it.
Book now - Pay later
I only paid a small deposit when I first booked my program, as they call it, and then I paid the remaining amount 6 weeks before departure. If you need a little carrot dangling in your face then you can book it ahead of time. If you book, let’s say 1 year in advance, then you might feel more motivated to save up money for your goal!
tips
When I hired Goxplore, they provided me with tips on how to write a resume, how to fill in my Visa application, what to think of during a skype interview and many other things! There is nothing stopping you from using this information for your future job hunt!
Cons of hiring an agency
Expensive
Hiring an agency isn’t cheap.
What I paid: 32 240SEK (approx. 3200€ ) For guaranteed 6-month employment, help with visa & all the required documents, a return flight Sweden - Australia with a return ticket valid 365 days.
Trapped
I had to sign a 6-month contract while I was still in Sweden, without having seen my place of employment in real life. Just something to keep in mind. 6 months isn’t a long time, but if you end up somewhere you don’t want to be, it could feel like forever.
Hidden Costs
Be aware that there might be some hidden costs. One example for this is that when I booked my All set program with Goxplore I was told a return ticket valid for 1 year/365 days was included in the price. What they didn’t tell you was that you can only book a ticket 9-10 months ahead of time so even if you have a ticket ‘valid for 1 year’ your return tickets are booked for 10 months after your departure date and if you want to stay for the remaining 2 months you will have to reschedule your ticket and pay an extra fee.
24/7 helpline
Something definitely worth mentioning. Yes, there was a helpline we could call that was supposed to be available 24/7, but when we missed our connecting flight in Frankfurt, Germany we had no one to call because the 24/7 emergency number was limited to Australian borders and it was after office hours in Sweden so there was no one in their office either.
Human error
In the end, even the professional people in the other end are only humans and mistakes can happen. Usually, there is no biggie and easily corrected.
Real-life example: My TFN* number was never applied for after my arrival in Australia and I had some issues with my first couple of paychecks because of this. I don’t know what exactly happened, but it was easily fixed once it was discovered.
There was also the case of wrong information on their website. We saw an option to stopover in Hong Kong for a ‘‘holiday’’ before returning back to Sweden but when we asked to do so, we were told that it wasn’t an option for our program, even though the website clearly stated that it was an option.
I went to Australia with a friend on mine and on 2 occasions we noticed they had sent her information I never received and vice versa.
*TFN - Tax file number (TFN) is your personal reference number in the tax and super systems in Australia. source; ATO
Less choice
You have less to say in where you are placed + what company you will work for.
not being in the loop
For someone who likes to be in control it was super weird to not be in the loop of what was happening and some weeks I didn’t hear anything back from them which always made me a little nervous. After I had filled in all the papers and before the recruitment process began there were a few weeks of silence which felt very strange.
I feel like this the reason why most people might want to use an agency is the worry about not finding a job before the money runs out and I feel you, it can be super stressful to locate a job on your own, especially the first time when this is brand new territory. It was one of the reasons why I used an agency myself and I would never have ended up in the location I did because honestly, I barely knew what Tasmania was before I got there and now it has a very special place in my heart and I am always recommending this hidden gem to other travelers! So for me, hiring an agency had both pros and cons but after realizing how easy it is to find jobs on my own I doubt I will be using an agency again, but I totally understand people who do, seeing as I was one of them once. For me it’s just an unnecessary BIG additional cost, and I’d rather use that money for other things.
If you are going to use an agency, make sure it’s a trusted agency (trusted agencies are usually listed on the government website).
Now, If this post made you realize you don’t want to use an agency after all, then you should check out How to find and get jobs abroad. As with everything, in the end I believe that for you to be able to make the correct decision for yourself you need to listen to your gut and trust your instincts. No one knows you better than your own gut. I can only speak from my own experiences and beliefs and they might not align with yours, feel free to use my advice as guidance but do not let my experience shadow your own gut feeling. We are all different.
If you found this post helpful, please help me spread the message to more people around the world by commenting down below and Sharing it on Social Media! With that said, I hope too see you around the world somewhere! Best of luck, and remember - I Believe in you! xo Nathalie
