Many years ago, a good friend of mine who was then in his
second year of med. school, organized a term working in a
small rural medical clinic in Kenya. At the time, there was
not a lot of support for that sort of thing and it was quite
an undertaking to make all the necessary arrangements - but
he did it.
When he returned to Canada, he told me stories about delivering
babies, performing spinal punctures and all sorts of other
things that until that time, he had had little experience
with.
But what I remember most was him telling me that the experience
gave him a whole new perspective on why he was studying medicine,
and what was really important to him, both as a doctor and
as a person.
The opportunities to broaden your horizons while studying
at a college or university don't stop at the edge of the campus.
In fact, the possibilities of combining your education with
work-abroad experience are virtually limitless, and the only
difference between the people who do it and the people who
don't, is a bit of determination and planning.
Likely programmes
Some university programmes will lend themselves to overseas
work that is directly related to your area of study. If you
happen to be studying engineering, geology, computers or telecommunications,
you're in luck.
According to Jean-Marc Hachey, author of The Canadian Guide
to Working and Living Overseas, professionals in these fields
tend to have the best chances of finding work outside of Canada
at the moment.
Finance, accounting, medicine, agriculture, law and teaching
also offer good opportunities, and programmes like business
and international studies often groom students for international
work experience.
If you are enrolled in a co-op program, or your studies involve
mandatory work placements or a practicum, check with a faculty
advisor or co-op coordinator about the opportunities that
they know about. A bit of digging could see you travelling
on your work term!
Other options
Not in one of these high-demand programmes? Don't count yourself
out just yet. According to Kate Jennings, Education Abroad
Advisor at Queen's University, success often depends more
on the individual than on the programme one is studying. A
person who is flexible, resilient and willing to put in some
time stands a very good chance of finding something that suits
them.
There is an absolute raft of options out there - everything
from working in a pub in the UK, to teaching English, to assisting
on archeological digs in South America. "The resort and
tourism industry is a great place to look for short term international
work," says Jennings, "Especially [for people who
speak] multiple languages."
Where to start - Self Evaluation
A good place to start is by doing a bit of self-analysis to
determine what type of opportunity is best for you. How adventurous
are you? Can you be flexible and adaptable? Can you be organized
if you need to be? Where would you like to, or be willing
to go - and for how long?
It's also important to sort out what your expectations are.
Is this purely an opportunity to travel and experience another
culture? Are you hoping to develop or improve your language
skills? How important are the salary and the job's relevance
to your field of study?
The number of possibilities, once you start looking, can
be overwhelming and it helps to have a sense of what you would
like to do. Often it's a process of elimination, Jennings
observes. Where do you not want to go, and what do you not
want to do?
"Ask yourself 'What is my ideal work-abroad experience?'
- what would you really like to be doing and where?"
suggests Jennings. "Some of the hardest people to place,"
she laughs, "are the ones who say, 'I want to go anywhere
and do anything, I don't care.'"
Start now
Don't be fooled. Organizing a work abroad experience can be
an involved process and it takes time.
"I get a lot of students who have just graduated and
are wanting to start work in September," says Jennings.
"They've given themselves two months to do a job search
and everything else. If people think they're going to apply
[for an overseas job] and move within a couple of months,
it's usually not going to happen."
Jennings recommends that people allow themselves six months
to a year in order to properly research the options and make
all the necessary preparations for a successful experience.
Incorporating an international work experience into your
college or university studies can be one of the best things
you can do for yourself. There are few better ways to broaden
horizons, learn about yourself and get a glimpse of the big
picture.
Not all work abroad experiences are as dramatically life
changing as my friend's was, but any opportunity to learn
more about the world by living and working in a new place
and getting to know another culture is a pretty good start.
