Finding jobs abroad

[sexualhelon]

Alright Pals, so I have a question about this. To give you some background info: I'm originally from the States but I don't have a bachelors degree - only an associates which, yeah, is probably hardly worth mentioning. I've got tons of work experience - freelance design, event planning/reservations for hotels, and even working as a flight attendant for a bit. I even lived in Eastern Europe for a bit teaching English under the table and giving my own private English tutoring lessons but this was easy there I was able to do border hops in those countries.

My question is: Is it even possible for me to land a sponsored job with a visa in Europe? What jobs would someone like me apply for and where would I find them? My love affair is with Europe - particularly Eastern Europe - but feel i would be better living in somewhere like Berlin. I'm starting to wonder if I should just go back to school for my Bachelors if that's the only way I'd ever be able to permanently move to Europe in which case I'd love some info on transfer programs or paid courses. If I were to just spend the 3 months I have in the Schengen zone around Berlin or some other city is it possible I would find work? What really sucks is how as a USA citizen I get completely shafted when it comes to working holiday visas - I get that it's reciprocal and hate that the USA has to be such a dickhead when it comes to that. However, I do know that it's insanely easy to get a working holiday visa in South Korea for US citizens and it's actually for 18 months. Has anyone done that before?

I realize this is a shit ton of questions but thanks so so much for anyone who can offer info on these things.

[ciaran]

First up, Berlin seems pretty hard to get work in general - I've been looking into it a lot myself and despite speaking pretty good German, qualifications, a strong career background & work experience, I'm not as confident as I'd like to be about being able to arrive unannounced and get doing the work I want to do.  For more specific queries, check http://www.toytowngermany.com/forum/index.php?showforum=85 , there's a lot of relevant info in the pinned topics aimed at and asked by (non EU) people in a similar situation to yourself.  Teaching English on a freelance basis is often a starting point, but with the amount of Irish, British, etc. to compete against, you'd be in a saturated market.

I'm not an immigration expert by any stretch of the imagination, but I think that if you set yourself up as self-employed in the EU, it helps a lot with getting a residence permit - if you're on a holiday visa, you get to stay 90 days in any 6 month period.  Also, the general rule of thumb is that if you land a job where the employer sponsors you, your residence permit is tied to that  job, so if you quit, you're fucked. 

Hope that helps.

[sexualhelon]

Thanks for your input man. I'm definitely aware and know enough people who are from/lived in Berlin to have gotten word it's a horrid city when it comes to finding work but my sights aren't necessarily set on Berlin - I'd honestly live anywhere in Europe although I do have my preferences. I'm aware that being a native English speaking American in Europe hardly adds any appeal - if any - to prospective employers because they could just hire a British person or pick up and Australian or Canadian on a working holiday visa. Personally, I found my odds in teaching English privately better the further east I went because it became less saturated as it's not as touristy.

At the moment, from what I can tell, my best bet is trying to apply for hotel/cruise ship jobs first and see how that goes. If I could land anything then I could always give private English lessons on my own as a supplemented income. That seems like the most apt route for Europe so it's either that or South Korea (definitely easier).