jobs.ac.uk - Great jobs for bright people
  • Find a Job
  • Find PhDs
  • Career Advice
  • Jobs by Email
  • Recruiters
  • Your Account

  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to secondary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

career-advice.jobs.ac.uk

Secondary Sidebar

jobs.ac.uk Career Advice

  • CV and Cover Letter Advice
    • CV Tips
    • Free CV Templates
    • Cover Letters
    • Personal Profiles
    • CV Resources
  • Jobseeking and Interview Tips
    • Jobseeking Tips
    • Academic Interviews
    • Professional Interviews
    • Jobseeking and Interview Resources
  • Career Development
    • Academic Careers
    • Research Careers
    • Professional Careers
    • Working in Industry
    • Career Development Resources
    • Global Careers
    • Working From Home
  • Women in Higher Education
  • Resources
    • Academic Case Studies
    • Professional Case Studies
    • Interview questions tool
    • Job Profiles
      • Health and Medical
      • Engineering and Technology
    • Blog
    • Vlogs
  • Webinars
  • Country Profiles
    • Africa
      • Egypt
      • Ghana
      • Kenya
      • Nigeria
      • South
    • Americas
      • Canada
      • United States of America
    • Asia
      • Bahrain
      • Brunei
      • China
      • Hong Kong
      • India
      • Japan
      • Kazakhstan
      • Malaysia
      • Qatar
      • Saudi Arabia
      • Singapore
      • South Korea
      • Turkey
      • United Arab Emirates
    • Europe
      • Belgium
      • Denmark
      • Finland
      • France
      • Germany
      • Ireland
      • Italy
      • Netherlands
      • Norway
      • Russia
      • Spain
      • Sweden
      • Switzerland
      • United Kingdom
    • Oceania
      • Australia
      • New Zealand
  • Studentship Advice
    • PhD
    • Studentship Resources
    • Vlogs
  • Sections
    • CV and Cover Letter Advice
      • CV Tips
      • CV Templates
      • Cover Letters
      • Personal Profiles
      • CV Resources
    • Jobseeking and Interview Tips
      • Jobseeking Tips
      • Academic Interviews
      • Professional Interviews
      • Jobseeking and Interview Resources
    • Career Development
      • Academic Careers
      • Research Careers
      • Professional Careers
      • Working in Industry
      • Career Development Resources
      • Global Careers
    • Resources
      • Academic Case Studies
      • Professional Case Studies
      • Interview questions tool
      • Blog
      • Vlogs
    • Country Profiles
      • Africa
        • Egypt Country Profile
        • Ghana Country Profile
        • Kenya Country Profile
        • Nigeria Country Profile
        • South Africa Country Profile
      • Americas
        • Canada Country Profile
        • United States of America Country Profile
      • Asia
        • Bahrain Country Profile
        • Brunei Country Profile
        • China Country Profile
        • Hong Kong Country Profile
        • India Country Profile
        • Japan Country Profile
        • Kazakhstan Country Profile
        • Malaysia Country Profile
        • Qatar Country Profile
        • Saudi Arabia Country Profile
        • Singapore Country Profile
        • South Korea Country Profile
        • Turkey Country Profile
        • United Arab Emirates Country Profile
      • Europe
        • Belgium Country Profile
        • Denmark Country Profile
        • Finland Country Profile
        • France Country Profile
        • Germany Country Profile
        • Ireland Country Profile
        • Italy Country Profile
        • Netherlands Country Profile
        • Norway Country Profile
        • Russia Country Profile
        • Spain Country Profile
        • Sweden Country Profile
        • Switzerland Country Profile
        • United Kingdom Country Profile
      • Oceania
        • Australia Country profile
        • New Zealand Country Profile
    • Studentship Advice
      • PhD
      • Studentship Resources
      • Vlogs

Working Abroad as an Academic

working abroad

A career as an academic often comes with the opportunity to spend some, or all, of your career working abroad.  But what should you consider before making the big move?

  1. Institutional Reputation
    It is important when considering such a big move that you carry out thorough research, especially when considering a country you are not as familiar with. Check out the QS world university rankings at topuniversities.com which you can filter by country and compare against similar institutions worldwide.   However, don’t forget to consider new universities – there may be more job opportunities and the chances to make an impact, for example in setting a research agenda, may be more readily available.  You may also wish to look at satellite universities of institutions based in the UK.   There may be opportunities for a job swap arrangement which can help you to see if this is the right decision before you fully commit to a permanent move abroad.
  2. Country Research
    One of the biggest steps is to decide which country you are interested in living in. You can also assess how far your potential salary will go as well as finding out visa requirements. Don’t assume that your standard of living will be better – this may be true in some areas, such as China and the middle east, but perhaps not on the west coast of the US where the cost of living is significantly higher.
  3. Visas
    This is one of the biggest issues you might face when considering working abroad but as an academic you are in a much stronger place than most people considering a move overseas. Often the institution you are applying to will work this out for you – but if you are taking a family with you it can be more complicated.  It might take several months to work out the paperwork so give yourself plenty of time.
  4. Is it the right decision?
    It can be very tempting to head off for the sunshine but you need to carefully consider the implications of moving abroad. Some things to consider:

    1. Many universities work on a tenure system and this may have an impact on your career progression.
    2. You may find you miss your academic network of colleagues in other UK institutions and it may take some time to build this up again.
    3. Will language be a barrier? English is widely spoken at internationally focused universities and many lectures will be in English – however, chat in the hallways and at department meetings is more likely to be in the local language and you may struggle to create a new network if you are not proficient.
  5. Where are the jobs advertised?
    One of the most obvious places to look is on the jobs.ac.uk job listing boards but don’t forget to check the websites of the institutions you are most interested in as not all opportunities will be advertised globally. Be very wary of using a service that charges you a fee for connecting you with potential employers – remember that head hunters charge the employer not the potential recruit.
  6. How do you get the job?
    Presenting yourself as an internationally focused employee is crucial. Consider where you are submitting papers and which conferences you speak at – ensure you can present a global CV.  Make sure your online presence is up to date – make the most of LinkedIn and academic research sharing sites.  Remember that different countries have different formats for their standard CVs.Good luck with your job search!

Share this article

Lucie Johnston

Lucie Johnston has worked as a Careers Adviser in Higher Education since 2004 following a successful career running a graduate training scheme. She has particular interests in enterprise within industry, portfolio careers and career changers. Lucie has been published in Prospects and also writes for national features magazines as part of her own portfolio career.

Reader Interactions

You may also like:

How and Why CPD courses can help you
What You Should Include in a Personal Statement
How to attract the right PhD candidate

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Follow us

Latest Jobs

  • Head of the Provost's Office

    Imperial College London

    Location(s): London

    Salary: £61,549 - £70,461 Professional Services, Level 5


  • Programme Tutor - Access To HE In Health

    Oldham College

    Location(s): Oldham

    Salary: £28,316 - £31,883 (FTE) pa, pro-rata


  • PhD Studentship: Hypoxia Signalling Pathway in Vascular Cognitive Impairment

    School of Pharmacy and Bioengineering, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Keele University

    Location(s): Keele

    Salary: Stipend value: £19,919, £21,542, £23,298


  • Postdoctoral Training Fellow in Statistical Genetics / Genetic Epidemiology (492)

    Genetics and Epidemiology, The Institute of Cancer Research

    Location(s): London

    Salary: £40,107 - £46,724 per annum


  • Lecturer in Primary Education (Health and Wellbeing)

    University of Stirling

    Location(s): Stirling

    Salary: £35,333 - £42,155 p.a. (Grade 7)


  • EDI Consultant

    EDI Unit / Human Resources Division , University of Sussex

    Location(s): Falmer

    Salary: £35,333 - £42,155 per annum, pro rata if part time


Footer

jobs.ac.uk - Great jobs for bright people
  • Find a Job
  • Find PhDs
  • Career Advice
  • Jobs by Email
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Terms of use
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Accessibility Statement

Copyright © jobs.ac.uk 1998 - 2022

  • Find a Job
  • Find PhDs
  • Careers Advice
  • Jobs by Email
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Terms of use
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Accessibility
jobs.ac.uk - Great jobs for bright people

Copyright © jobs.ac.uk 1998 - 2022