The European Union stands for many principals and one of the most fundamental beliefs of the EU is that of ‘freedom of movement of people’ – this means that anyone who is a citizen of a nation within the EU can travel, live, work and study throughout the region freely.
As the European Union expands and embraces new and diverse nations, this broadens the scope of the community and means that it becomes an ever more exciting region to explore - if you want to discover the EU and plan to work in Europe this is our guide to the primary industry sectors seeking regular new recruits.
Naturally enough the diversity of EU nations such as Germany, Greece, the Czech Republic, Poland, Spain and the UK is obvious and means that certain skills required in one country may be of little use in another – but the following seven industry sectors are prominent in every single EU nation and those with suitable skills wishing to work in Europe should find it relatively straightforward to secure employment…
1) Teaching English as a Foreign Language
While English may only be the primary language of two out of all the current and future planned European Union members, it is the business language of the European Union community as a whole…this means that the teaching of the language to students of all ages in all EU nations is massively in demand. There are language schools in every single capital city, business centre and high population density community throughout Europe, and those who can teach English as a foreign language, who have professional TEFL qualifications, skills and experience can most certainly find work in Europe.
TEFL is often a way in to a particular country for those who may, at a later date, seek alternative forms of potentially better paying employment – but it is a good way in and one where a well qualified individual who wants to teach English abroad can almost certainly be assured of work.
2) Translating and Interpreting
Following on from TEFL, those who are bi or multi lingual and have a very high standard of fluency in each of their languages can get better paying work by taking on translation work and those who are exceptionally talented linguists can work as interpreters and secure a very good salary and career opportunity.
As Europe embraces many nations and many languages there are always requirements for those who can converse in multiple languages and as theirs is a difficult to acquire skill, they will always be well looked after.
3) Travel and Tourism
The European Union has a number of member nations that rank among the most popular countries in the world for tourism – think of Spain and France as the two main examples – naturally enough the scope for jobs in the travel and tourism industry in Europe is therefore incredibly broad. You could work as a holiday rep in Spain or a ski instructor in Austria, you could drive a coach around the Italian Lakes or show people the sights of London, you could be a hotel receptionist in Amsterdam or start up your own bed and breakfast in France…basically if you have some form of tourism related skill, you’re a friendly people person and you’re not averse seasonal work or anti-social employment hours then the world (or in this case, the EU) is your oyster.
4) Construction
A staggering 127 million people in the first fifteen EU member states are employed in the construction industry – just imagine how many in total across the EU now that it is continuing to expand! Construction is one of the fastest growing industries in the EU as well, but it is also one of the least well regulated. On every building site in every nation you find an incredible range of nationalities and if you want to work your way across Europe and don’t mind taking on an array of manual jobs this is one way you could do it. Alternatively, if you have key skills and good professional qualifications in architecture, engineering or even interior design you could find a way into the industry in any EU nation.
5) Banking and Finance
Banking and finance are growth industries; you have banking centers in London, Paris, Frankfurt and Luxembourg for example – all require front, middle and back office staff – you have a requirement for financial advisers in every nation in the EU facing both the local community and the expatriate community, there are jobs in accounting, international taxation planning, mortgage provision, insurance cover – and as an industry sector, banking and finance is one of the fastest growing and best paying for those who want to work in Europe.
6) Information Technology/Communications
If you have good information or communication technology skills then you currently have an employment passport to the world…you can work in the investment banks, back offices or near-shoring centers for the financial services industries, you can be fast tracked through any immigration controls if you don’t originally herald from the EU and you can be among the most well paid individuals in any company in Europe!
But, gone are the days when helpdesk contractors and first line support staff were earning silly rates of pay – today if you want to have a well paying and rewarding career in IT or ICT you need to have professional qualifications, you need to build up decent experience and you have to be prepared to keep up with changing technologies.
7) Management
Finally, well experienced business and management consultants as well as high level managers from all professional backgrounds are constantly highly in demand across Europe - especially in some of the more emerging markets where local expertise is catching up and requires some wider exposure to international techniques. If you fall into this category and want to work in Europe then get yourself headhunted and prepare to negotiate yourself an attractive employment package!
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