I just want to share my experience, to give a bit of a levelled understanding and expectations for those who didn't have any friends and family member, moving into Australia. My case won't be particularly the same with most of the guys here, the things that I'm gonna talk about are based on my experience.
I’m a Mechanical Engineer in the Philippines with about 10 years of experience in field of Geothermal Drilling and Powerplant operations and Water service before I decided to apply for a migrant visa in Aus. All I know was Australia was a good country where everyone can have a good work life balance.
For Engineers like me, we need to be assessed of all our credentials for our visa. I can say that it can be hard to immediately align and find an engineering role once you get here. I’m not saying it’s impossible, but you should have the right network and specific skillset for you to be considered in any engineering role.
Engineers here works mostly in the design aspect or positioned high in decision making. You will notice here that majority of the technical people work as a tradie/ technician (trade certified) this is equivalent to our TESDA certificates. Only a small percent of the population chooses to get a degree in the Uni because they already can earn good money as a tradie. And let me tell you, some tradie jobs here can earn up to $100+ an hour. For some, it’s quite difficult to veer away from your current specialization. So, I have been here for 1.5 years and I’m on my 3rd Company now. It may sound bad but looking back to where I was a year ago, It’s a lot better.
You just simply need to adapt on your surroundings, depending on the demand and number of opportunities you see available to you. Don’t be afraid to take risks, 9 times out of 10 its gonna work out and its all worth it. I’m currently working as a field service/calibration technician/engr for conveyor belt weighing systems. I travel to all major mine sites across WA during shutdowns to do the servicing. Before that, I was an offshore drilling service technician and a fabrication plant machine operator.
Life here has been good so far; I didn’t expect how far the standard of living was compared to the Philippines. For those of you still processing your visa application, push it hard and wait for it. All will be worth it once you get here.
Cheers,
Robo