This visa option for traveling to Australia is popular with students on a gap year as well as many young travelers alike. Bringing enough funds is recommended by the Australian government (the immigration states 5,000 AUD to be sufficient). Finding work within the first month of your arrival in the Oz is what a lot of people do when they are on a working holiday visa. What do you need to do or prepare when you’ve decided to pack your bag and leave for the land down under?
Get your CV or resume ready
Don’t pile up all of your experiences into one huge CVs. Just like when you’re applying to any other job, only list relevant experiences on your CV. Have separate CVs or resumes for each type of job that you have experiences of.
These are some of the most common CVs many travelers usually prepare, according to the types of job:
- Hospitality CV or resume (this often extend to jobs in retail)
- Office temp jobs
- Labor work (housekeeping, farming, etc.)
It’s better to print your CVs back home. This will save you so much headache from trying to find a printer or a copy machine when you’ve just arrived, jet-lagged, and basically just need to settle down first. Have at least a couple of physical copies of each of your CV ready and have the digital file ready on your phone or on your flash drive.
Research the types of jobs that you can apply to during your travel
Some people are stuck in awful jobs below minimum pay just because they don’t do any preparation or prior research. Most people end up with fruit picking and got stuck there simply because they didn’t know better or did not network better.
Some research before you arrive in Australia will let you know the types of jobs you can apply to, even though you may not be able to land such a job straight away. It’s noteworthy that most employers would prefer someone who’s already in Australia. But it never hurt to research your options. You can also visit your hostel’s message board. They usually have something for the travelers and even their own job opening that would let you have free accommodation and sometimes, meal.
Internet is still going to be your best friend
There are all sorts of place people post their job ads to. From a dedicated website for headhunting to social media. Utilize what you’ve got to get the best out of your backpacker job search. Join facebook groups relevant to your area. This will not only yield you jobs but possibly give you a networking opportunity with fellow working holiday makers.
Some of the sites you can try are as follows:
- Gumtree
- Working Holiday Jobs
- Seek
- Backpacker Job Board
- Au.Indeed
- Hunter Labour Hire
- Airtasker
- Harvest Trail
Sometimes it’s not what you know, but who you know
This cliche old saying still applies. So it never hurt to network, network, network. You’re not the only traveler looking for work here in the land down under. Loads of people are in the same boat as you. While that sometimes mean more competition, it also means that a lot of information is usually flying around. It’s up to you to catch a wind of it.