Careers where you travel abroad.

[JetBlast]

Originally Posted by IIIrd Icon

if you want [the travel] right away, agree with Jetblast, an airline job. has to be direct hire tho', not through the agencies. they don't give the bene. also, working in cruise liners__ not much mulla, but you get free board & lodging.

I agree with this, regarding the airlines. Do not work for a contractor - you do not receive the same flight benefits as people who are directly employed by the airline. Usually contractor pay sucks as well.

 

[fredfred]

1st hand experience w/Peace Corp:

3 years in one very, very remote location. 90% chance you don't accomplish anything for your area (depends on what country they place you in). You'll be sick a lot due to various illnesses, etc.. You get some time to travel in your area a bit.

So it's not a "see the world" job. It's a have-your-life-perspective changed forever job.

 

[stewartu]

How about a service rep for a company that sells industrial equipment world wide. I regularly buy and install such equipment and then the service rep comes to site to do startup work for a few weeks. Think Siemens, General Electric, Sulzer, Elliot Turbomachinery, Honeywell, like that.

 

[globetrotter]

Originally Posted by stewartu

How about a service rep for a company that sells industrial equipment world wide. I regularly buy and install such equipment and then the service rep comes to site to do startup work for a few weeks. Think Siemens, General Electric, Sulzer, Elliot Turbomachinery, Honeywell, like that.

+1 what you need are skills that are very very difficult to transfer to somebody else, and that are worth enough that it pays for your company/organization to fly you around the world, and where their is demand in diffferent parts of the world.

I work in international sales - I got to maybe 50 countries last year, on 6 continents. but while there aren't a lot of jobs like mine, there are a lot that allow you to travel somewhat.

really, the thing is having a skill that very few other people have, and that is somewhat valuable.

 

[CorneliusP]

field engineer

fix gas, steam, and/or wind turbines

travel absolutely everywhere that has power

requires engineering degree of course. maritime engineering degrees open more doors in power than mechanical/electrical

edit: also, decent money but not SF money; I made 130k my first year out with a master's. Worked just under 4k hours. spent $0 on living expenses, everything paid by company while traveling. not for everyone and the avg burnout is approx 1.5 years. I'm done at 2

 

[nicad2000]

Originally Posted by Flambeur

accountant.

Please elaborate - I'd love to transition into such a position myself.

 

[kwilkinson]

Originally Posted by Big Pun

I think being a chef on a cruise liner would be awesome.

Originally Posted by Jekyll

I did a little bit of research into cruise jobs earlier this year. Long hours, low pay, and very little time off in port seem to be the common complaint.

+1 to Jekyll. I have a friend working a cruise line right now, and he is just counting the seconds until his contract is up. He says it is ridiculously bad. You work 12 hour shifts, and don't actually get a bunk all to yourself. You switch the bunk with the person who does your job on the 12 hours a day you're off. As a cook, you aren't allowed on deck, but only below deck. You aren't allowed to go to port when the ship is docked. And the pay is terrible. I've heard this from people working in several different cruise lines, so it leads me to believe that it's industry wide and not just a single company. Talk about terrible.

 

[83glt]

Get any ordinary job anywhere else. Most parts of the world are so much smaller than N. America that you'll be able to see much of it by going places on regular holidays and weekends. Well, in Europe anyway. For example, Zurich to Milan is about a 3.5 hour train ride and a ticket should cost well under $100 USD if bought in advance. It's also easier to get to Africa/Asia from Europe if you're looking for a longer trip.

I agree with those who are dissuading from combining work and travel. What's the point? In most such jobs, unless very highly specialized, you'll most likely get to see the airport and that's it. Doesn't count. Otherwise join the foreign service. That way you're stationed somewhere. Trouble with that option of course, is that you may find yourself stuck in the "expat" crowd where you end up moving in circles of exclusively other foreign service employees, going to the same restaurants and generally living as you would here, except abroad. It's obviously a personal choice and you can make an effort to meet locals and explore the country of your station. That also depends on where you are and the security situation, etc.

Ultimately, you can just live and work here in the US and make a point to take 2 to 3 week-long vacations abroad each year. Or become a movie star.

 

[globetrotter]

Originally Posted by 83glt

Get any ordinary job anywhere else. Most parts of the world are so much smaller than N. America that you'll be able to see much of it by going places on regular holidays and weekends. Well, in Europe anyway. For example, Zurich to Milan is about a 3.5 hour train ride and a ticket should cost well under $100 USD if bought in advance. It's also easier to get to Africa/Asia from Europe if you're looking for a longer trip.


the question is why somebody would pay you to do a job, if they can get a local who speaks the language. you need a skill that is transferable and valuable

I agree with those who are dissuading from combining work and travel. What's the point? In most such jobs, unless very highly specialized, you'll most likely get to see the airport and that's it. Doesn't count. Otherwise join the foreign service. That way you're stationed somewhere. Trouble with that option of course, is that you may find yourself stuck in the "expat" crowd where you end up moving in circles of exclusively other foreign service employees, going to the same restaurants and generally living as you would here, except abroad. It's obviously a personal choice and you can make an effort to meet locals and explore the country of your station. That also depends on where you are and the security situation, etc.

Ultimately, you can just live and work here in the US and make a point to take 2 to 3 week-long vacations abroad each year. Or become a movie star.

state department people don't see much of the world. it goes like this - US posting for a couple of years, then some hell hole as junior secratary for 2 years, US 2 years, some sort of hellhole for a few years, etc - you end up somplace nice in about 30 years

 

[83glt]

Originally Posted by globetrotter

the question is why somebody would pay you to do a job, if they can get a local who speaks the language. you need a skill that is transferable and valuable



state department people don't see much of the world. it goes like this - US posting for a couple of years, then some hell hole as junior secratary for 2 years, US 2 years, some sort of hellhole for a few years, etc - you end up somplace nice in about 30 years


Are you saying that no one can work abroad unless they have a highly specialized skill? I don't think that's necessarily true. Are you going to get a job abroad picking up garbage? Probably not. But I don't think you have to be super-specialized either. Obviously language is a necessity. I just assumed that the OP has at least another language if he is considering working abroad. It also helps if you have a dual citizenship as many do. Highly specialized skills won't matter nearly as much in that instance. I guess I was somewhat writing from that perspective.

Regarding the State department, agreed 100%.

 

[scarphe]

Originally Posted by 83glt

Are you saying that no one can work abroad unless they have a highly specialized skill? I don't think that's necessarily true. Are you going to get a job abroad picking up garbage? Probably not. But I don't think you have to be super-specialized either. Obviously language is a necessity. I just assumed that the OP has at least another language if he is considering working abroad. It also helps if you have a dual citizenship as many do. Highly specialized skills won't matter nearly as much in that instance. I guess I was somewhat writing from that perspective.

Regarding the State department, agreed 100%.

actually the specialzied skill is important since the costs connected to hiring foriegner are higher, sometimes greatly. if one has dual citizenship that is not a problem, for the said person it is not even workign abroad.

 

[BP348]

If you want to travel a lot then the US Navy is a better choice then the Army.

 

[globetrotter]

Originally Posted by 83glt

Are you saying that no one can work abroad unless they have a highly specialized skill? I don't think that's necessarily true. Are you going to get a job abroad picking up garbage? Probably not. But I don't think you have to be super-specialized either. Obviously language is a necessity. I just assumed that the OP has at least another language if he is considering working abroad. It also helps if you have a dual citizenship as many do. Highly specialized skills won't matter nearly as much in that instance. I guess I was somewhat writing from that perspective.

Regarding the State department, agreed 100%.

you don't have to be the best in the world at what you do, or have an extremly isoteric skill, but you do have to have a skill that local people don't have, or be willing to work for less compensation. very few americans speak a second language well enough to really function in a way that is really valuable, so you are probrably looking at a corporation paying for you to relocate, which is maybe 3-4 times what a local would cost.

 

[Mr Herbert]

+1 oil industry

working for the CIA as a field operative would be pretty interesting - wouldnt they only take high calibre types? id imagine the psychometric testing would be a huge factor

 

[IIIrd Icon]

Originally Posted by globetrotter

+1 what you need are skills that are very very difficult to transfer to somebody else, and that are worth enough that it pays for your company/organization to fly you around the world, and where their is demand in diffferent parts of the world.

I work in international sales - I got to maybe 50 countries last year, on 6 continents. but while there aren't a lot of jobs like mine, there are a lot that allow you to travel somewhat.

really, the thing is having a skill that very few other people have, and that is somewhat valuable.
agree, if you're looking for a lifetime career. also, being in the right place at the right time is very much crucial since that nature of job is not easy to come by + specialization takes time. i think the OP, wants it NOW.

from what has been suggested so far, an airline job would be the most realistic, imo. you get flex work hours__ meaning you got the option to pick up hours from co-workers when you need to, as well as give away your hours [when planning a trip or you just don't want to work]. i got a friend who works his ass off [pulling double shifts], then takes off for a couple of weeks or so to destinations unknown ... making full use of his travel benefits. he even gets up to 90% airfare discount if he flies on other airlines [stand-by, of course].