How is the job market in Melbourne?

maanrb · August 2012

Hi guys! I'm having a hard time applying for temporary jobs in Melbourne. Mahirap ba talga ngayong panahon or hindi lang tama ang diskarte ko? :-/

I'd appreciate any tips on things to do / not to do when applying for a job in Melbourne. OR where to look for temp/casual jobs.

Metaform · August 2012

Hello maanrb. Pwede maitanong kung ano ang profession mo? I'll keep an eye on this thread dahil kung palarin, sa Melbourne ang bagsak ko next year.

aldousnow · August 2012

I'm a computer programmer (.Net), heto plan / ganawa / pinagdaanan ko nun in applying for the job.
1. Tailored my CV (ginaya ko format ng cv sa previous company ko..which is good.)
2. Created my Cover Letter (importante to pag aaply, I just downloaded a format in internet)
3. Created my seek account (set the option na mag send sakin ng email automatically yung mga job prospect na swak sa skills ko at workplace. e.g. .Net, Melbourne -CBD)
4. Everyday check ako ng email then atleast mga 20-30 emails galing kay seek. Isa isahin ko yun then send application kung ok.
5. Agencies / companies started to call.. initial interview thru phone. (What do you do in your previous job, tell me something about this project in your cv, why did you move here in Melbourne? ... blah blah.)
6. Kung okay initial interview, they'll set a schedule for F2F interview. (usually manager or team lead, so discuss mo yung mga ginawa mo ulit sa previous company mo, tapos minsan medyo technical yung tanong)
7. *Some companies may psychometric exam (english, logic, math) -pa google na lang for detail
8. Technical / Hands-on exam (pinag program ako on the spot)
9. Job Offer na.

If I didn't get a job yet ang plan ko is palawakin ko yung pwedeng ibigay sakin na job ni seek.
How?
1. Una kasi .Net and CBD work ang hinahanap ko..
2. Kung hindi successful kay 1, .Net and CBD + Suburb
3. Wala pa din kay 2? .Net and CBD + Suburb + (for fresh grad)
4. At wala pa din kay 3, Any other work na related kay .Net
5. Any other work na pwede makapasok.

Yun lang. sana nakatulong to.

Good luck!

maanrb · August 2012

Hi @aldousnow. Salamat sa reply. I'm in IT too, SAP ABAP. Nong nasa Pinas pa ako, I got a few calls na rin from agencies. Kaya lang I was restricting my choices to Melbourne only kasi may mga kaibigan at kamag-anak kami dito. Kaya lang nong nandito na ako, napansin ko na medyo konti ang openings for SAP sa Melbourne compared to Sydney or ACT. Kaya wala na akong restriction ngayon.

Anyways, nag-uumpisa pa lang naman kaya madali na sigurong maka adjust kung saan makakahanap ng trabaho.

Nagawa ko na yung steps 1-4. Kaya lang bihira yung may tumawag. Baka medyo stiff din competition since kaunti nga lang ang openings. One tip I got is if they don't call, we should try calling them to check if our resume got thru. Paminsan daw kasi it goes to junk mail or sa dami ng applications sa seek, natabunan na. It's also a good sign daw na we really are interested to get the job.

Gano katagal bago ka nakahanap ng work? I've been here for a month now. Sabi nong flatmate ng friend ko, the market's not as good as it was before. Pero let's be optimistic.

I wanted to check out yung temp jobs din para hindi masyadong ma-bore. Mahirap kasi na nasanay na sobrang busy sa Pinas tapos pagdating dito walang magawa.

@Metaform. We'll see how it goes. I'll let you know. But try applying online na rin once you get your visa. Good luck to us!

aldousnow · August 2012

Reply to @maanrb:
Just to add, if swak naman yung skills mo sa hanap nila sigurado tatawag yun, yung iba tumatawag pa din kahit na a month ago na yung application mong pinasa. Meron din nagsesend ng programming exam. pagdating diyan tamad ako. hehehe. kasi kalimitan sobra hirap naman pinapagawa e. I'd rather interview muna ko about sa skills and work ko, tapos tsaka nila ko pag exam na technical.
I got a job offer 1.5months after I started sending applications sa seek. sa 1.5 months na yan ang dami ko sinendan na application, you could check yung isang thread na ginawa ko dito, nandun list ng lahat ng company na inapplyan ko.

http://pinoyau.info/discussion/524/kung-may-tiyaga-may-nilaga.-/p1

Tiyaga lang, may mapapasukan ka din na related sa skills mo.

maanrb · August 2012

Thanks @aldousnow! Lucky you, 1.5 months lang may work ka na. Actually, nakita ko na yung list mo before and it's very nice of you to share it with eveyrone. Who knows, baka merong jobs na hindi lang naka-advertise pero pag nag-apply kami nagkataon may opening. Thanks again and God bless!

aldousnow · August 2012

Reply to @maanrb: oo nga no? nagpost ka nga pala dun. hehehe. at nagreply din pala ko sayo dun.

good luck maanrb. I'm sure makakahanap ka din ng work very soon. Lage ko sinasabi, tiyaga lang. Keep the faith. Good luck ulit.

Metaform · August 2012

So far, na-establish na natin na walang bearing ang overseas experience at education background in finding a job. How about professional certifications such as CCNA, MCITP, CISSP, etc? Napapansin ba ito ng mga employers?

2rmobile · January 2013

@Metaform

1. Yup walang bearing kung UP or ATeneo grad ka etc.. they didnt even ask kung san ako graduate.
2. Wait in my case.. "Work experience" matters the most. They asked me my previous work in other countries. So make sure you state that in your resume and cover letter etc.
3. Prof certs will help kung inadvertise sa job post... (in my case stating macromedia cert engr didnt help.. maybe in networking may bearing...)
4. If you are into web dev/soft dev.. show them your github stackoverflow acct etc. How active you are in the programming community etc.
5. Be confident during the interview. The recruiter told me i asked too little 65K sa unang job ko... (which turn out to be true as i was offered 85k then 115k in a year.. from diff recruiters/companies.. note this was 2009 kakarecession pa lang)

Current market trends..(in my field).. in demand ang mobile and software dev.. lalo na ang rails, ios, android. Yung highly skilled like SAP etc.. mejo kaunti ang job posts pero pag nagpost abot din ng 100K per year. The highest offer i received was 130k from sydney and 115k in melb. I chose melb even though i have a bro-in-law sa sydney.. well.. bec of cost-of-living expenses...

Depending on your skill set and how you present yourself sa interview.. you will know kung pasok ko sa job. They ask right away when can you start etc. Mararamdaman mo ito. When you feel this.. demand how much you are really worth. Walang hiya hiya ok?

Again, note [5] be confident you are competing with other IT/software devs from india china.. and now the uk/nz... I am now happily employed at 90K (yea i chose this) since its not in the city and 5 mins away from my house. To be honest, mas mahirap maghanap ng bahay/accom (i guess sa ibang thread na lang ito.. pero i can share as well...)

God bless you all.. and i know magaling ang mga pinoy. If you seek advise etc, email nyo na lang ako.. if i dont reply here...

killerbee · January 2013

@2rmobile thanks for the info bro. laking tulong to.

2rmobile · January 2013

6. Subscribe sa seek email. Since 2003 (nung nag student visa ako noon.. pero fail).. araw araw nag email ang seek sa akin ng job post.. parang ganito https://dl.dropbox.com/u/64281809/seek_market_size.png Based on the cumulative years i get a feeling on which technology is in-demand etc. Market size during dec/jan is very low.. mga 10-20 posts lang. Pinakamarami during may/oct? around 50-70. Pag araw araw tinignan mo ito.. you'll understand what i mean... makakabisado mo ang mga recruiters.. michaelpage.. seed.. robert half.. etc..

7. Recruiter. My first interview was with a recruiter... he asked me why I wasn't wearing a tie. I politely told him na naiwan ko sa Perth and I only have a few belongings here in Melbourne. To avoid this kind of situation, kapag recruiter ang naginterview.. wear a tie or formal attire. First impression last ika nga.. so kung hindi ka lumusot sa recruiter.. hindi ka aabot sa actual interview.

8. Direct hire. Mas gusto ko ito. Submit a CV direct to the company/development manager. The interviewer even asked me to come as I am.. so I went in casual clothing.. jeans. Lesson learned.. ask kung formal or casual... it won't hurt to ask..

9. How do you prepare a CV? I have a portuguese friend who has a Masters of ComSci here in Melbourne who works as a part time cab driver. The Masters degree was a way to get PR only. He told me he submitted a lot of resumes and he lost count already.. sad and painful story. He never landed an IT job here.. pero he's in the US now.. long story. Anyway lesson learned.. hindi sa paramihan ng resume that you can submit. It needs to be tailored for the job description... lalo na kung recruiter ang magbabasa... https://dl.dropbox.com/u/64281809/resumes.png

10. Learn the tax table, super 9%, 14%, 17% and gauge the whole package. Kung sa city ka nga mag work at aabot ng 120k ang sweldo mo.. iiyak ka sa commute from lilydale to st kilda.. mga 1.30 mins papunta at pabalik.. mga 3 oras ang mawawala sa buhay mo araw araw. 100k sa glenwaverly free parking for a 6 mon contract.. mas ok di nga lang perm... Contract sa UniOfMelb as a senior software dev at 95K with 14%-17% super is not bad.. kaso parkville yun traffic din.

Ok na to mahaba na.. sa uulitin na lang po... happy new year and ika nga ng boss ko (70+ yr old) ngayon... work smart.. not too hard..

LokiJr · January 2013

@2rmobile nice tips! If I have an AQF diploma should I emphasize that in my resume and interviews or mas mahalaga sa kanila talaga ang work experience?

I would say 95K with 14%-17% super is a luxury! That's one very generous employer hehehe

2rmobile · January 2013

No one asked me kung saan ako nag graduate etc..and even if they ask hindi naman nila alam kung saan ang UP Ateneo Lasalle UST etc.. nevertheless an AQF from a well known uni will be better.. Kung recent grad ka with 1-2 years exp.. stress out the AQF.. pwede siguro i studied in UTS, UNSW or UniMelb/RMIT for PostGrad Dipl in Computing so so.. grade of blah etc... thesis on blah.. specialization in blah.. etc. Ofcourse kung Masters/PhD you should state kung may publications ka sa journals etc.. (fyi, i dont have a masters/phd.. i have a bachelors in engineering from Pinas) It won't hurt if you put more detail on your CV.

Mostly mga govt/public sector ang nagbibigay ng 14-17%. Pero note, I see these kind of job posts once or twice a year...

Dapat siguro i-tier natin..
For (1) recent grads, intermediate, junior, entry-level 1-2 years work exp expect around 45-65K.
For (2) team leads etc.. mga 65K-85k.
For (3) senior devs/specialized skills/tech/management roles mga 75-100+K.

Meron mga salary grades/guides to help out. Most of the jobs i see on seek belongs to groups 1-2.

LokiJr · January 2013

@2rmobile, ahh I see...government posts pala ang generous super. I should aim for that in the future hehe

Distance learning course yung kinuha kong AQF Diploma sa Sydney e...Kaplan yung provider. I guess if I'm going abroad bawas bawas ko na ang pag mention sa Big 4 university and more emphasis on that AQF diploma hehe

2rmobile · January 2013

@LokiJr i woundn't recommend aiming for govt positions kung newly grad ka. I think mas mahirap makapasok sa govt kesa sa private sec. Note na generally mas mababa ang bigayan/pay sa govt institutions...

My advice would be.. while studying.. mag part time ka na sa pilipinas.. look for freelance projects etc.. (Sorry kung biased sa IT/software industry.. since ito lang naman alam ko.) Be involved in open source projects etc para maestablish mo na even newly grad ka.. you can code/learn. Parang internship sa atin? Ganun ginagawa nila sa mga RMIT CS students.. they're experimenting on obj-c.. doing a few ios apps.. so pagkagraduate na pagkagraduate nila.. they show it to prospective employers. NOte na its not the money $$ you gain but the experience ang mas may weight..

2rmobile · January 2013

@maanrb

did you find/have work in SAP ABAP now?.. im really curious to know as i see very little companies posting jobs for SAP not unlike before 2007-2009.. Im not into SAP.. pero the thing with SAP ABAP.. its mostly offered by mid-large companies.. Rio Tinto, Coles, AU Post..etc and most of the jobs is by referral? (rumor?) Nevertheless, you might have accumulated other skills like Java, HPUX admin, Oracle DB perhaps? then it might be easier to get jobs for those roles? SAP is so complex... anyway...

Pero if you do land a SAP ABAP job currently.. (which I hope you really do...and dapat mag blowout since $100/hour

usually ang mga SAP...) then I think AU has really a big demand for the IT sector/industry and I wont believe the recession outlook/rumor anymore...

LokiJr · January 2013

@2rmobile Ahh...I'm working in the Finance industry for a good number of years already...I chanced upon this AQF diploma course kaya kinuha ko na rin hehe..I was hoping to use it to make my visa and employment easier :P

gacoquia · February 2013

tanong ko lang po sana since I saw SAP, how about Microsoft Dynamics AX.
Almost 3 years na din ako sa field na to. stressful but challenging , I just hope that theres an opp for me to land a job there. Altho im still in the initial phase of the application.

Metaform · February 2013

Holy crap bakit ngayon ko lang nabasa itong thread na ito? Golden tips! Basahin ko ulit bukas at revise ng CV for next week. Game face on pa rin!

Metaform · February 2013

@2rmobile Boss baka pwedeng pa-pm ng dropbox link ng CV and cover letter mo for IS Manager. Thx

cchamyl · February 2013

awww...

i was hoping u could provide insights on the current market stat for systems analyst like me. i sap sd functional analyst here... pero i think most of u guys here are programmers..

LokiJr · February 2013

Maganda pa po job market sa Melbourne...dun sa huling jobs report na pinalabas sa Australia, may slight decline ng demand sa NSW pero pretty stable pa rin sa Melbourne...You might want to try WA too!

rolf021 · February 2013

@LokiJr - sir, pwede hingi po ng link para basahin ko rin?

stolich18 · February 2013

^agree hehe sa seek naobserve ko din yan. hehhehe

LokiJr · February 2013

@rolf021 naku sa nine news ko po siya nabasa...natabunan na yun ng ibang mga balita pero baka mahagilap niyo pa siya hehe

Mackoy1012 · February 2013

Not that good sa tngin ko...
Ung ibang functions ng office namin is inililipat sa india, cosy cutting...

lean110586 · February 2013

Help po sino po my alam p pong vacant jobs dito melbourne, till now po ala pa me makita kahit part time

thank u po very much

LokiJr · February 2013

Ano pong visa nakuha niyo at ano po yung occupation niyo?

Metaform · February 2013

Hi guys. SO kapag IT Consultant ang nag-interview, kailangan ba na naka-suit and tie?

yukie77 · February 2013

@Mackoy1012 - oh no, ktakot naman if ganun, feeling ko marameng target punta sa Melbourne.

Anyway, question rin, meron bang best time to go there, like dito sa SG, usually sabe nila after CNY and true enough prang after nga ng festivities may mga emails regarding new opportunities. Para rin may idea yung mga plan pumunta dyan ng walang job, anung best time of the year pumunta at maghanap dyan or kahit sa other parts ng AU?

Thanks!