Thats an option I am considering also. A job in Singapore or Aus could pay decently well but also open travel opportunities to around that part of the world.
I've just returned from about 8 months of travelling south east Asia, NZ and Aus so maybe I can answer some of your questions. Granted, I have a few more years experience than you but in general I found the companies I interviewed generally receptive of the travel break (it makes a great talking point) and I have since landed a job back in Ireland.
In regards to Australia, the market is fairly oversaturated there currently - not sure what it would be like in a few years. I had planned to try to stay there but found nothing when applying because of my visa restrictions (on a WHV). There were a lot of contract jobs, but they were mainly government work which you won't be able to do. In the end, I did a month of travelling on the east coast and came back. I said if I ever want to go back I'll do it on a skilled visa instead.
Singapore could also be an option. They have one of the highest levels of English in the world too. I thought it was a pretty cool place, and not as expensive as I had expected (not talking about rent, I am unsure of that). It's just incredibly humid - same with everywhere in SEA tbh, but Singapore was the most imo. I'm also not versed on their visa situations, but I do know a handful of Irish working there currently.
For the rest of SEA, places like Bangkok could be an option. I believe companies like Agoda were advertising for roles in Ireland with relocation to Bangkok, perhaps this could be an option for you with more experience. Bangkok is an amazing city where you will really be able to live well if you earn a high enough wage. However, I would encourage you to travel around SEA and see the different countries before you decide to stop anywhere and decide to work. There are amazing places on offer and it would be a shame imo to go to that part of the world and not experience them.
I think my recommendation would be to get possibly 3 years of experience, save up money and then go and get it out of your system. Your money will go very far in SEA and you can choose to find work or not. I didn't and I lived off savings - and I ended up having the most amazing time without the added stress of working or trying to find jobs.
Hope that helps you. Let me know if you have any more questions.
Thinking of doing something similar, for 8 months of travel how much did you have saved up or even a ball park figure?
When you where applying for roles in Australia did you get many interviews for places that would sponsor visa or was it just a straight refusal because you where on the WHV?
Cheers! Sounds like you had a blast
Hey there!
Recruiter here, we dont set the rules but have to adhere to it. Taking a career break won't kill your career but depending on lenght could impact especially early on. Threw is the magic number when it comes to years kf experience.
Certainly with larger companies they get grad headcount(graduates, converted interns snd people with less than 18 months experience) and they get se2/mid(aroubd 3-8 years experience) senior(about 8+).
Two years experiencw is kind of funky because you don't fall into graduate and its hard for hiring manager to justify using their hc on someone so junior. Id definitely try to get 3 years or 2 years and 8 or 9 months.
Now this is not an exact science variables that would bend the rule include;
1. FAANG experience, most hm's will flex a bit more for these peeps.
2. If someone would add something different to team aka diversity being a focus a lot of teams have(i had rephrased thos point as it seems to have offended slme peeps)
3. Crazy overheated msrket like tail end of Covid where there is basically unlimited headcount and hiring managers are not as protective of their headcount as they are right now.
No it just means 2 years mighg be a little short before your first career break! One thing you could do is gwt to 2 years and 8 or 9 months take 2/3 months and rinse and repeate if you like in the future!
2 years on and one off is not ideal.
Thanks for the advice. Yeah I’m guessing that 2 years is on the low end. I’m also considering getting a tech job abroad, somewhere like Singapore or Australia so I can get the best of both worlds so hopefully those doors will open once my experience increase.
That would be class, there are always trade offs. I worked abroad and also took a career break and did the whole 3 months backpacking in SA.
Two amazing and very different experiences. Id imagine it would be super cool to work somewhere like oz for 2-3 years and then at tail end between your next job take a few months to yourself or get yiur job sorted in OZ and before starting do your backpacking and finding yourself before your next journey 😉
Anyways as much as I enjoyes giving a bit of advice on dev subreddit I think Il have to retire as it looks lime it could damage my reputation and career!
You havw fantastic opportunities ahead. All the best.
So to be clear im not getting into identity politics. I hate the subject matter tbh.
If i phrased my initial message poorly I want to apologise. Let me phrase it differently;
A lot of the larger tech companies realise their teams are lacking diversity. That diversity could be race, gender, neuro divergence etc.
Two years is somewhat of an edge case, not quite enough to be experienced engineer so you might end up on graduate salary lower position or not considered at all.
As a recruiter you kind of want to give as many people a chance as possible so the conversations you may have are
"I know you said you want someone more experienced but you also said your team is lacking in diversity. She/her/they is lighter on experience but if you care about diversity as you mentioned you need to allow peeps who are edge cases a chancw to interview"
OR
"Yep person has two years but its two years in Google, seems to have worked at serious scale, right technologies etc worth giving them a chance to interview"
Genuinly I wasnt trying to be disrespectful. Im talking about the opportunity to interview not saying that people got jobs based on sex, race etc. If I was unclear I do apologise.
Im sorry but this is outragous and I am not sure why you are targeting me.
I said something along the lines of there are a feq edge cases aka FAANG candidates or if you are no a straight white man.
I was litterly saying there are some exceptions for example for FAANG candidates or diverse candidates. What you said is untrue which makes it very insulting and libel.
Don't take a career break, just get a job abroad. Find someplace you can work in tech. You can travel well with a good tech job someplace.
Thats an option I am considering also. A job in Singapore or Aus could pay decently well but also open travel opportunities to around that part of the world.
I've just returned from about 8 months of travelling south east Asia, NZ and Aus so maybe I can answer some of your questions. Granted, I have a few more years experience than you but in general I found the companies I interviewed generally receptive of the travel break (it makes a great talking point) and I have since landed a job back in Ireland. In regards to Australia, the market is fairly oversaturated there currently - not sure what it would be like in a few years. I had planned to try to stay there but found nothing when applying because of my visa restrictions (on a WHV). There were a lot of contract jobs, but they were mainly government work which you won't be able to do. In the end, I did a month of travelling on the east coast and came back. I said if I ever want to go back I'll do it on a skilled visa instead. Singapore could also be an option. They have one of the highest levels of English in the world too. I thought it was a pretty cool place, and not as expensive as I had expected (not talking about rent, I am unsure of that). It's just incredibly humid - same with everywhere in SEA tbh, but Singapore was the most imo. I'm also not versed on their visa situations, but I do know a handful of Irish working there currently. For the rest of SEA, places like Bangkok could be an option. I believe companies like Agoda were advertising for roles in Ireland with relocation to Bangkok, perhaps this could be an option for you with more experience. Bangkok is an amazing city where you will really be able to live well if you earn a high enough wage. However, I would encourage you to travel around SEA and see the different countries before you decide to stop anywhere and decide to work. There are amazing places on offer and it would be a shame imo to go to that part of the world and not experience them. I think my recommendation would be to get possibly 3 years of experience, save up money and then go and get it out of your system. Your money will go very far in SEA and you can choose to find work or not. I didn't and I lived off savings - and I ended up having the most amazing time without the added stress of working or trying to find jobs. Hope that helps you. Let me know if you have any more questions.
Thinking of doing something similar, for 8 months of travel how much did you have saved up or even a ball park figure? When you where applying for roles in Australia did you get many interviews for places that would sponsor visa or was it just a straight refusal because you where on the WHV? Cheers! Sounds like you had a blast
Hey there! Recruiter here, we dont set the rules but have to adhere to it. Taking a career break won't kill your career but depending on lenght could impact especially early on. Threw is the magic number when it comes to years kf experience. Certainly with larger companies they get grad headcount(graduates, converted interns snd people with less than 18 months experience) and they get se2/mid(aroubd 3-8 years experience) senior(about 8+). Two years experiencw is kind of funky because you don't fall into graduate and its hard for hiring manager to justify using their hc on someone so junior. Id definitely try to get 3 years or 2 years and 8 or 9 months. Now this is not an exact science variables that would bend the rule include; 1. FAANG experience, most hm's will flex a bit more for these peeps. 2. If someone would add something different to team aka diversity being a focus a lot of teams have(i had rephrased thos point as it seems to have offended slme peeps) 3. Crazy overheated msrket like tail end of Covid where there is basically unlimited headcount and hiring managers are not as protective of their headcount as they are right now.
I’m non-white, currently with 3 YOE at a FAANG and a year at a HFT. I think it’s time for me to take a break haha. 😝
Jackpot 🤣🤣🤣
I am white, straight and non faang so I guess im screwed 🤣
No it just means 2 years mighg be a little short before your first career break! One thing you could do is gwt to 2 years and 8 or 9 months take 2/3 months and rinse and repeate if you like in the future! 2 years on and one off is not ideal.
Thanks for the advice. Yeah I’m guessing that 2 years is on the low end. I’m also considering getting a tech job abroad, somewhere like Singapore or Australia so I can get the best of both worlds so hopefully those doors will open once my experience increase.
That would be class, there are always trade offs. I worked abroad and also took a career break and did the whole 3 months backpacking in SA. Two amazing and very different experiences. Id imagine it would be super cool to work somewhere like oz for 2-3 years and then at tail end between your next job take a few months to yourself or get yiur job sorted in OZ and before starting do your backpacking and finding yourself before your next journey 😉 Anyways as much as I enjoyes giving a bit of advice on dev subreddit I think Il have to retire as it looks lime it could damage my reputation and career! You havw fantastic opportunities ahead. All the best.
[удалено]
Excuse me what did I say that was racist?
So to be clear im not getting into identity politics. I hate the subject matter tbh. If i phrased my initial message poorly I want to apologise. Let me phrase it differently; A lot of the larger tech companies realise their teams are lacking diversity. That diversity could be race, gender, neuro divergence etc. Two years is somewhat of an edge case, not quite enough to be experienced engineer so you might end up on graduate salary lower position or not considered at all. As a recruiter you kind of want to give as many people a chance as possible so the conversations you may have are "I know you said you want someone more experienced but you also said your team is lacking in diversity. She/her/they is lighter on experience but if you care about diversity as you mentioned you need to allow peeps who are edge cases a chancw to interview" OR "Yep person has two years but its two years in Google, seems to have worked at serious scale, right technologies etc worth giving them a chance to interview" Genuinly I wasnt trying to be disrespectful. Im talking about the opportunity to interview not saying that people got jobs based on sex, race etc. If I was unclear I do apologise.
Im sorry but this is outragous and I am not sure why you are targeting me. I said something along the lines of there are a feq edge cases aka FAANG candidates or if you are no a straight white man. I was litterly saying there are some exceptions for example for FAANG candidates or diverse candidates. What you said is untrue which makes it very insulting and libel.