We are very fortunate in the health industry that our skills tend to be in demand in most countries, and New Zealand is no different. With lots of health professions on the Government’s Skills Shortage List and availabilities all over the country, use this post to help land yourself a Kiwi job you’ll love.
It’s a good idea to start job hunting before you arrive in New Zealand so you can develop a good understanding of your prospects, start the application process and sure up a little financial security before making the big move. But with so much info out there (from authors of varying credibility) where do you even start?
An awesome first step is the careers.govt.nz website. A quick search for your profession will provide a reliable (Government sourced) snapshot of what you can expect in terms of pay and job opportunities around New Zealand.
Armed with this knowledge you can use websites such as WorkHere, Working In, Seek, Indeed, Jora and TradeMe to start searching for advertised positions. Check out your organisation’s website (e.g. Physiotherapy New Zealand) for a classifieds page or Facebook special interest group where lots of employers post vacancies (bear in mind though, because there are so many Facebook groups out there it can be difficult to know if you’re in a reputable one. It’s a good idea to go through your organisation’s website to link up with these pages).
Pretty soon you’ll find yourself inundated with options, so how will you know which job to apply for?? You’ll need to make some decisions about the lifestyle you want to live, the amount of hours you’d like to work, the clinical competencies you have to offer, and how much money you can afford to live off… The answers will be very personal and unique to you – choose what’s important, find the advertised jobs that suit, then nail that application!
Whether there is an “apply now” button, an online form to complete, or an email address to reply to, hopefully it will be obvious in the advertisement how to get in contact with your potential new employer. They should be very clear in letting you know what they require but expect to provide a Cover Letter and a Curriculum Vitae (CV).
These documents can be a little bit different from country to country, so what does a Cover Letter or CV look like New Zealand style??
Fortunately pretty similar to an Aussie application, which I’ve written guides to here and here (fortunate for me, so I don’t have to write them twice!!)
If you’d like a little more info, the careers.govt.nz website also has some great step-by-step guidelines for helping you put together an awesome New Zealand specific application.
Prepare, prepare, prepare that’s what.
This could be anything from a formal panel to an informal phone call. When you get the good news that they’d like to interview you, be sure to ask how they plan to do that so you can prepare to make a good first impression.
Again you can read through my Aussie-specific advice on interviews here or go through the careers.govt.nz website to target your preparations.
Congratulations! Now it’s time to carefully read through the job description and the terms of the contract. Are you an employee or a contractor? (If you don’t know what these terms mean, read up on them in my post on Understanding Employment in NZ).
It’s important at this time to know your employment rights and to negotiate the conditions of your employment (head to the Employment New Zealand website for all the helpful info).
Essential things to consider are your employment type, employment length, and whether you’re paid a salary, wage or piece rate (which I explain in detail here).
How much can you earn in New Zealand? I’m working on a guide now, stay tuned for the details.
Then all that’s left to do is to sign on the dotted line and get to work!