stevegallagher

Exciting times!! Well we booked a wedding venue yesterday as well as getting the IELTS today so it feels like the ball is well and truly moving now! Thanks for the tip I'm sure I can get a colleague to sign things off for me. Did you also provide employment history for the CPA assessment or does that bit come later? Thanks for the tip I'll definitely give the CPA London office a call!

Also when you did your CPA assessment did you provide employment history? I see on their website that it says: "If you are applying for an assessment of your employment claims for skilled employment purposes, you need to include workplace testimonials. Ensure that your testimonials are written on the official letterhead of your employer and include:" I was just wondering if we provided work details at this stage or if that would be further down the line when (if!) we get invited to apply for a visa?

Hi Morana, How is your Oz planning going? Did you get a response from the recruiter I recommended? I got my IELTS test results today 8.5 overall so got the points for that I'm now just looking at the CPA and what I need for that. Quick question for you... who did you get your transcripts, certificates and other documents certified by? Thanks, Steve

Hey guys how did you all get on with the IELTS?

Well I managed to get 8.5 overall in the IELTS so that's the points in the bag for that! :biggrin:

Hi Ginge, After having spent a short time living in both Adelaide (~4 months) and Melbourne (~6 months) I can say that they are both great cities! Personally I preferred Adelaide for the fact that it was not as crowded, very relaxed and I have some friends living there. However my partner did not find a job there which is why we ended up in Melbourne. The Australian's like to say Adelaide is like a "big town", it's certainly bigger than most UK towns however there was certainly a lot more happening in Melbourne but then again SA is considered the festival state so it's not like there is nothing going on there! Unfortunately we do not yet have kids so I'm unable to comment on suitability for families but I'd imagine that both places will cater for families. I guess climate and jobs will probably be a big factor when deciding on both places? Best of luck! Steve

Congrats mate! That sounds like a plan just remember the beauty of the WHV is to be able to travel around and experience all the different places Australia has to offer, even if you are going over with a work focus you will only be able to work for the same employer for up to 6 months so it's a great excuse to jet off once you've finished. We picked up a camper van to travel with and managed to sell it for the same price we bought it for so the only costs were petrol and day to day costs such as food, drink and the odd camping site fee although we did have to pay the rego before we sold it. We also tried to apply for jobs whilst we were travelling but didn't really get much of a response until we were properly set up with an address and could meet up with people for face to face interviews etc although I think people have managed to secure things from afar and it varies between industries. We just tried to do as much research as possible and tried to get a feel for places as we were travelling even though the loose plan was to originally finish up in Adelaide. Unfortunately we didn't make it over to WA as the van we had wasn't quite up to it but I didn't generally see crime to be an issue, certainly no noticeable differences to the UK - I guess you just try and be as aware and sensible as you are back home and fingers crossed you aren't unlucky. I could definitely go back and do the whole year again! PS. if you are planning on hitting any other places before you get there I recommend Trail Finders as we managed to get some very reasonable around the world tickets from them.

Well if there are any questions about either feel free to PM me and I'll answer the best I can from my short experience of being there! Thanks and good luck with your plans too I hope you find a way.

Both my Mum and my Sister have moved to Cullingworth in the past couple of months, I've only been up there once but it seems to be quite nice. Have you looked at the WHV? We went out on that but I'm not sure if you are able to do that if you have kids plus I think you have to be under 30 but if you did qualify it would give you a great chance to get out and meet some employers and see some of Australia. A couple of friends of mine went out on the state sponsorship 4 year visa and are now living there permanently so it can be done. We spent some time living in Adelaide which I really liked, I found it to be a really friendly place (I did have some friends from Bradford who emigrated there though), laid back and really spacious! However my partner didn't like it as much and then found work in Melbourne so we headed there. It took me a while to take to Melbourne, maybe because I liked Adelaide so much but there is so much to do there and although it's a bit more crowded than Adelaide I found it to be more cosmopolitan. All in all I found both places to be excellent to live in and would be very happy living in either but because my partner liked Melbourne so much I think we will head back there if all goes well. The loose plan is to apply for a visa, get married in the UK and head over there some time in 2014 (the sooner the better!!).

Good luck with the house sale! Makes you wonder if there are people in Australia currently considering a move to Bradford doesn't it...:biggrin:

Nice one mate keep us updated especially if you go to Melbourne as that is where we will end up going back to, if they let us in of course!

Ah right I went to Bede's. Happy birthday for Monday! Happy to stick around for the time being but I'm taking the IELTS on Saturday as we'd love to head back for a spell if we can secure a visa. How about yourself?

Hoping to return myself providing I get offered to invite and can secure a visa... where in Oz are you based?

Well I currently live in Earley if you know it? Where do you live now?

No not far at all. Which school did you go to then? Reason I ask is if the 1985 in your name is the year you were born that would make us the same age. Good luck with the calls hope you secure something!

I get what you are saying and to be honest if it wasn't for family and a couple of close friends I would stay away. I used to live in Shipley and worked on the Euroway so probably had a similar drive! So are you planning on the big move? Where in Australia would you fancy moving to?

Not knocking Bradford of course... it's just not for me anymore, although I quite like Bingley!

I found it took a long time to get feedback when I was over there but now I'm back in the UK I've just set a new personal record by receiving an email notification that I didn't get a job I interviewed for in October. My advice... continue to search, apply and interview in the meantime. Good luck!

Best of luck for your results! I'm doing the IELTS on the 23rd but at least I have a cup final to look forward to the next day...

No secret but as I was responding to somebody living in Bradford I thought mentioning a large town rather than the small area/road I live in would make more sense. I tend to do that with my own family too as they don't really know the area down here. Apologies for not naming my street!!:tongue: So is the interest because you live local?

Yes just outside of Reading... what's wrong with that?

Where abouts in Bradford do you live Davey? I used to live there but now live down South just outside of Reading but having been to Australia I'd highly recommend Australia when comparing to Bradford (although I didn't get to Perth so can't comment on that).

I think what people are saying above is that a partner does have to get a skills assessment which is also what VETASSESS confirmed when I emailed them: "Your partner will have to get her skills assessed to be able to apply for a points test advice. She cannot apply for a points test advice if her skills are not assessed by an assessing authority." From my research though although proof of English skills are required this does not have to be in the form of an IELTS test as a British passport is allowable. This info is on the Immi.gov.au site somewhere (not being lazy but I'm currently on the phone!).

Hi, I know for us we did not need to bother because in order to get the skills assessment for my partner a passport would suffice. I am doing the IELTS not just for the extra points but also because I can't get my skills assessed without one so I guess it depends on the assessment body.

Thanks for the reply. That's what we were thinking we would have 75 points without these 5 points providing I get 8's or above across the board on the IELTS.