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Jobs in London |
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Why work in London The news is now official – London is the world’s career capital. A study conducted in 2005 by ‘Think London’, a London foreign direct investment agency, and Cranfield School of Management, showed that London was voted the best place to build a career. Especially, foreign executives believed that working in London enhanced their understanding of international work environment, polished their communication skills and etiquette and helped grow both as a person and as a professional. Most of them thought that career wise they were well ahead of their peers back home. As
the
cultural
and
financial
capital
Europe,
jobs in London is
considered
a
land
of
limitless
opportunities.
The
city
has
a
job
for
all
kinds
of
people,
whether
you
are
a
highly
qualified
professional,
a
traveler
looking
for
holiday
employment
or
student
searching
for
a
summer
job. It
is
truly
a
global
city
where
every
third
person
belongs
to
an
ethnic
minority.
With
residents
from
over
90
countries,
speaking
300
languages,
London
is
the
miniature
world.
That
is
why
many
believe
that
that
if
you
can
succeed
in
London
you
can
succeed
anywhere
in
the
world. Types of jobs available London is a big city with countless work choices – high-profile managerial jobs, fulltime, part-time, temporary or holiday jobs, internships etc. Before blindly taking up the first offer you get, do some homework about the opportunities available and where you stand in the job market. Depending on your qualifications and experience you can look for the position of CEO of a multi-national corporation to a part-time job as a bartender/waitress. Finance, media, hotels and restaurants, teaching, nursing, administration (secretarial), tourism, retail sector are some popular job categories. London is called the finance powerhouse. If you have a finance, accountancy or economics degree from a reputed institution, you can earn anywhere between £30,000 to £1 million per annum, excluding the perks and bonuses, as a Finance Analyst, Auditor or Investment Banker. But the hours are most demanding and competition is at its worst. Finance is often called a ‘dog- eat-dog’ world. Administrative jobs such as personal secretary, receptionist, and office manager are most popular with women. Excellent communication and drafting skills, type, and shorthand and MS-office skills are necessary. Depending on your qualifications and previous experience, you can earn £7 to £15 pre hour. Central London, Soho and Canary Wharf are the high-wages paying areas. Baby-sitting, nanny and governess jobs are also very popular with women. But you need good references and plenty of experience to get a well-paid job. Some recruiting agencies prefer only those with prescribed qualifications in child psychology, first-aid and childcare. Jobs in London has over 12,000 restaurants and there’s always job for those who want it. The most possible positions offered are chef, receptionist, waiter/waitress, housekeeper, porter, bartender, restaurant manager and maitre d'. Payment differs depending on the size of business and location. Central London houses the most expensive hotels, which are most likely to pay the best. But it’s very difficult to find a position with them. Jobs in London in retail sector can range from sales person to department head or store manager. Though no particular qualification might be required experience can fetch you more money. Abundant patience and good manners are the prerequisites for these jobs. Night hours and weekend shifts might fetch more than the regular shifts. Again, pay depends on the size of the business and location. Central London stores are the best pay masters. Public sector jobs are well-paid but non-citizens might not be eligible for them unless they satisfy certain additional conditions. Jobs in tourism and leisure industry require a combination of skills, among which people skills are the most important. Jobs such as teacher, doctor, nurse, lawyer, engineer etc. require prescribed professional degrees which should be recognized by specialized bodies. Of late, IT sector has become very lucrative. Searching for the job Before starting to search for London-based jobs, remember the cardinal rule that if you don’t belong to UK you need a working visa. However, if you belong to any of the EU countries you don’t require a visa to work in UK. The following tips are especially useful to those of you who don’t need a visa. How to Search The sure way to land a job is to keep your eyes always open and try all the possible avenues. Newspapers, magazines (especially profession related ones), local bulletins, recruitment agencies are the traditional sources. There are many specialist agencies that cater to a particular category such as nanny agencies, nursing, secretarial, temp job agencies etc. It is advisable to register with number of agencies instead of relying on just one. Of late, Internet has become the most popular choice to search for jobs; it is also the fastest. You can search either by job category or by geographical area. Using the right key words is the key to find the kind of job you are looking for. If you do not possess much qualification or experience or if you are not sure what you want to do or what kind of openings are available for your profile, you can visit general recruitment agencies that help you to assess your skills, figure out your interests and suggest you a suitable job. Alternatively you can try the various quizzes on the Internet to find out where your interests lie and what possibilities you can hope for. Due to high demand for some professionals like teachers and nurses, some UK employers/agencies go overseas and recruit people directly through job fairs. They even help with visa processing if you require one to work in London. Some agencies conduct such recruitments every year at a fixed time. If you do some research about such job fairs finding your dream job would be very easy. Where to Search An interesting feature of London is that certain areas are famous for a particular category of job. For example, Harley Street is synonymous with medical practice; Canary Wharf, West London and The City for finance jobs; The City for insurance; Central London for high-paid hotel jobs; and Fleet Street for journalism. You must first decide what you want to do so that you can narrow down the areas you should explore. If you are not sure what you are looking for you need to be more careful. London is an extremely large city and trying to figure your way out can be quite tedious. Public transport system is excellent; but the endless tube tunnels, lengthy bus time tables can be quite confusing and daunting for a newcomer. If you don’t plan the visits properly, traveling within the city can turn out quite expensive. Avoid driving since parking could be quiet a problem in London. Familiarize yourself with the public transport services and get a travel pass before you start exploring the various agencies scattered across the length and breadth of the city. When to Start Searching The question of ‘time’ is immaterial to a local but can be very crucial to an applicant from outside England. Unless you are a highly qualified professional or a specialist in your field it is extremely difficult to get a job in London before coming to the UK. The prospective employers prefer to meet the applicant before hiring. Studies show that around 95 per cent of the applicants need to go to England to get a job. However, for applying there’s absolutely no need to wait till you physically arrive in London. You can start applying from your home country even before you leave for England. You can directly apply to specific jobs or you can register with the recruitment agencies on-line who will line up suitable vacancies for you by the time you arrive. Experts advise to try both options so that you neither need to waste time nor miss an opportunity. Unless you are applying for a job that offers sponsorship, you need to apply to a specific job 1-4 weeks before your arrival and you should mention the date of your arrival in the application. If the time gap is too long the employer might not save the job for you. If you are trying for professional jobs like teacher, engineer, doctor etc. experts feel that you better register with recruitment agencies and also start applying for individual jobs on-line 1-2 years before you plan to come to London. Last but not the least remember that there’s no way of knowing how long it would take to get a job and what is the best option to search for one. The time varies from person to person depending on qualifications, experience and the position of the job market. It could be one day or one year.
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