Back to Europe - Living in London

Welcome Dustin!

£2,000 will be more than enough for a month. You should have a look to this other topic https://www.expat.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=626 it might help you a little bit

Sleeping in an hostel will cost you roughtly £12 per night (you can negotiate if you pay per week). Then £80 per week for a cheap flatshare is a common price (have a look to gumtree.com and the other websites mentioned in the other post).

You'll easily find an IT job (it took me 3 weeks to get a first IT job and 2 weeks to find another one when I decided to move). As you know, the first job may not find the perfect one, but it's pretty easy to change once you've found a flat. It's actually quite complicated to find a nice accomodation with people you'll appreciate.

The good thing in London is that employers will quickly give you the chance to work for them. If you've got diplomas, you're not 'unskilled'

There are several ways to find a job in London, try agencycentral.co.uk and send cvs, send cvs and send cvs again

You can also contact recruitment companies, leave your cv in the shops (there are quite a lot of IT shops between Tottenham court road and Goodge street)... try everything!

About your paycheck some employer will pay you after a week, or at the end of the month. Anyway, do not hesitate to explain your situation, your employer may help.

When you'll get a job try you should definitely try to get the national insurance number asap (you'll pay less taxes than with a temporary NIN)

You'll quickly realize that the turnover is very important in london. Employers are used to see their staff leave for a better job. There's no problem about that. But don't mention in an interview that you might quickly leave the job if you find a better position.

I sure other members will help you a little bit too

Best of luck in your projects Dustin!

All the best,

Julien

Thank you Julien.  I read your response to the other post before posting myself and found that to be quite helpful.

I was working under the assumption that unskilled work would be easier to get very quickly so I could support myself while looking for a programming job.  I'm starting to think that perhaps it's better to leverage my education even for a short term job.  Obviously I wouldn't say at an interview that I'm ready to jump ship at the next opportunity, but a reasonable hiring manager would probably be able to read between the lines and figure this out if I'm applying to positions that generally don't require a degree.

Are there laws regulating leaving your job in the UK?  In the US you're generally required to give two weeks notice, unless perhaps your contract stipulates something different.  I thought I read somewhere that in the UK this is a month - any idea?

Also, am I right in assuming that I can work immediately with JUST an EU passport, and no NIN, or other registration, etc?  Is there any sort of official registration I have to do to work (apart from the residency thing within 6 months, and possibly NHS?)

dustin wrote:

I was working under the assumption that unskilled work would be easier to get very quickly so I could support myself while looking for a programming job.  I'm starting to think that perhaps it's better to leverage my education even for a short term job.

Of course it would be easier but you might be able to quicky find a job in IT too... IT guys are needed everywhere

What's your level of studies Dustin? Are you a programer, a network administrator, a website designer?

Obviously I wouldn't say at an interview that I'm ready to jump ship at the next opportunity, but a reasonable hiring manager would probably be able to read between the lines and figure this out if I'm applying to positions that generally don't require a degree.

If somebody hires graduated people for a position that don't require a degree, yes, the employer should expect his employees to leave whenever they'll get a better job with a better salary. If often happens in London, and people who often change are appreciated;

Are there laws regulating leaving your job in the UK?  In the US you're generally required to give two weeks notice, unless perhaps your contract stipulates something different.  I thought I read somewhere that in the UK this is a month - any idea?

Yes there are employment laws. Generally you can leave in a week, but it's often one month if you're graduated. Read carefully your contract. For example, my last employer wanted me to give a three month notice, and I refused it (I've never seen a 3 month notice before).

Also, am I right in assuming that I can work immediately with JUST an EU passport, and no NIN, or other registration, etc?  Is there any sort of official registration I have to do to work (apart from the residency thing within 6 months, and possibly NHS?)

As long as you've got a EU passport you're European aren't you?
So you won't need any visa or work permit.

About the national insurance number, you should check this page: http://www.adviceguide.org.uk/n6w/index … nefits.htm

Actually the whole website of the citizen advice bureau is very interesting

have you read these other topics? Find a flatshare in London
Find a job in England

Thanks again Julien.

I have a B.S. in Philosophy & Computer Science from a private school with a good rep and a M.S. in Computer Science from a big public school.  My B.S. grades were above average, but my M.S. grades weren't so great.  I've worked the last two years (first while still studying) in my family's business - a small office environment where I was doing the typical sort of small office IT duties like network trouble shooting, phone systems, small scale web design, etc.  I need to get out of here.    I'm looking to be a programmer, but my programming experience is all academic and private, not professional.

I'm a German citizen by birth, so I have a German passport, enabling me with the dual stereotype of Kraut and Yank in England.

Thanks for the links - the flat links I was all familiar with, the rest of them I'll browse right now.

Hello Dustin, I am sam.... I am planning with my friend on leaving to live in london in around 10 months. I too have a IT Qualification...A+ certification from Comptia; My question is,  I am kinda in the same boat for the fact that I will be finding a job to bridge the gap till I get a IT job.  I am from missouri, if you could help me obtain a uk work permit/or EU passport or give me suggestions on how to...i'd be extremely grateful, basically I am trying to obtain anything that would allow me to work in the U.K I would be very grateful thanks much - Sam
- Reach me on these forums, or at scarysuperd@yahoo.com Thanks again m8!

This is a very helpful thread! Though I won't be moving to England until after I graduate college (4 more years.. ugh), this is definitely good information! thanks a lot!