Thinking about moving to France (life, cost, pay, driving)

[junsai]

So I currently live in America and am pursuing a career in it. Network Engineering specifically. I am interested in moving to France as it's closer to the bulk of my family who are in England. I would move to England but... I never really enjoyed it and would like to try somewhere new. If all else fails I'll just then go to England or back to America.

I'm just interested in what is the job market like for I.T

[Glucorious]

Originally Posted by junsai

So I currently live in America and am pursuing a career in it. Network Engineering specifically. I am interested in moving to France as it's closer to the bulk of my family who are in England. I would move to England but... I never really enjoyed it and would like to try somewhere new. If all else fails I'll just then go to England or back to America.

I'm just interested in what is the job market like for I.T

Question here is if you're an E.U. citizen?

[Chava61]

Originally Posted by Glucorious

Question here is if you're a E.U. citizen?

If one isn't an EU citizen (and one only has American citizenship) it is very hard to get a work permit/visa to live in France or England.

[Glucorious]

Originally Posted by Chava61

If one isn't an EU citizen (and one only has American citizenship) it is very hard to get a work permit/visa to live in France or England.

im not sure if its "very hard". i was referring to the unemployment rate. france's immigration laws seem to be a bit blurry though.

[helloimage]

Originally Posted by junsai

So I currently live in America and am pursuing a career in it. Network Engineering specifically. I am interested in moving to France as it's closer to the bulk of my family who are in England. I would move to England but... I never really enjoyed it and would like to try somewhere new. If all else fails I'll just then go to England or back to America.

I'm just interested in what is the job market like for I.T

You speak fluent french?

[britinparis]

If your French is good and you have some good experience, you'll probably be fine - France is fairing slightly better than many other European countries during the crisis - though it's no walk in the park. Unemployment is over 10%.

If you can't speak French forget it. Unless you're super skilled (and very senior) and were going to an international company, your job options would be pretty much limited to (a) working in an English-language call centre or (b) teaching English (c) working in an English pub (even then you'd need basic French).

You'll probably earn less than in America, and pay more tax. The cost of living - particularly in the Paris region - also has to be seen to be believed!

But the general quality of life and well being is second to none. Swap Walmart for fresh baguettes on every corner. Driving a gass guzzler for the amazing public transport and free bike hire. Free state health care, five weeks of paid holiday a year. I personally love it.

[Jaggy001]

Originally Posted by britinparis

If your French is good and you have some good experience, you'll probably be fine - France is fairing slightly better than many other European countries during the crisis - though it's no walk in the park. Unemployment is over 10%.

If you can't speak French forget it. Unless you're super skilled (and very senior) and were going to an international company, your job options would be pretty much limited to (a) working in an English-language call centre or (b) teaching English (c) working in an English pub (even then you'd need basic French).

You'll probably earn less than in America, and pay more tax. The cost of living - particularly in the Paris region - also has to be seen to be believed!

But the general quality of life and well being is second to none. Swap Walmart for fresh baguettes on every corner. Driving a gass guzzler for the amazing public transport and free bike hire. Free state health care, five weeks of paid holiday a year. I personally love it.

Can I just add to the French language issue ..... whereas other French speaking areas (e.g. Suisse Romande, Belgium) were generally happy to adopt English technical language in the IT field, the French adopted, and in some cases invented, their own technical language. This complicates the issue of speaking the language because you will need to learn those terms.