Living & Working in Madison more specific: U of W jobs and being a Canadian (apartments)

[miss_tizzle]

Hello,

I've been on city data for awhile researching cities to relocate to. A couple of years ago I landed in Madison overnight on my way to Chicago and I fell in love, hard.

Background context:

I work at the University in my city and I'm working towards a M.Ed. in Enrollment Management. I'm in my late 20s and I Manage a student centre on my campus currently. By the time I would relocate to Madison I would have 3-5 years management experience in a University setting with a M.Ed. specific to the university industry.

I am Canadian, which you may have noticed with my few Canadian words above. I am also First Nations aka Native Canadian. The US has a policy that understands that First Nations people are nomadic and allows us to live, work and study in the US by ways of Article III of the Jay Treaty.

In order to get my green card, I'll have to reside in the US first. With that being said, I'd likely wouldn't find a job before moving - it's difficult to be hired by an organization before you have the appropriate paper work. So worst case is that I go jobless. I will likely have about $15,000 to survive until finding a job.

Question Period:

This leads us to the main question. Is it difficult to get a job at the University of Wisconsin? It is my first choice; however, I am realistic to the idea that you don't always get what you want. I would like to know the level of difficulty. I ask because in my hometown, it's quite difficult to get into the University. Many people get their foot in the door through basic entry level jobs and work their way up. I personally know several people (who are highly skilled) who have attempted to get employment at the university but the competition is too high within the university that external applicants hardly get looked at. I'm curious because I've worked quite hard to get where I'm at right now, and I think I'd have a hard time starting over completely, especially after completing my M.Ed.

Am I setting my hopes high? I'll be late 20s/Early 30s when I would making the plunge - basically after I'm done my M.Ed. program. Should I consider other Post Secondary Institutions?

Also, I've notice everyone asks about apartments to live in when they relocate. I have a dog and have found it difficult to rent in apartments. How about links to houses for rent that accept pets? With the recent boom in the Canadian Prairies, cost of living doesn't seem too much of an issue because I own a 725 sq ft home with no basement, 1 bedroom, 1 den in a lower-middle class neighbourhood and I purchased it for $165,000. The average cost of a home in my city (to buy) is close to $300,000. Anyway, high rent for housing isn't uncommon.

Random side note, I love all the winter comments and how hard it is on some. I live in Canada, the area that gets -40 (cel) frequently in the winter. I'd welcome Madison winters with open arms!

[Megan1967]

Welcome to the Madison Forum. I would not give up your Canadian citizenship if you don't need to. In fact, right about now, I would love to have that passport.

I don't know a lot about the University's hiring process, but I do have a friend who works for the UW School of Business and I can tell you about how their department has hired people. Shortly after starting in that department her supervisor retired. They hired a temporary replacement who had just graduated from the UW School of Business with an MBA. He held the position for about 2 years when they finally got around to hiring a permanent replacement. He didn't get the position, but the person he did was, again, a recent graduate of the UW School of Business. My guess would be that you are correct, that it helps to know someone and to start at the bottom (like a student work study position) and work your way up. the job market in Madison is extremely competitive because there are so many graduates who want to stay here.

Have you considered applying for positions that require a similar skill set, but which aren't in the educational field? I know it seems ironic (tragic?) to have just earned a degree and already be looking at jobs outside your field, but that is something everyone in Madison has done at one point or another. Sometimes they come to love their new field even more than the one they originally trained for.

I know it is hard to get a job when you don't live somewhere, and in your case it is complicated by the fact that you are not a US citizen, but I think you should have some sort of job lined up prior to living here, even if it isn't in your field. Maybe even a volunteer position, just so you have some local references and make connections.

[miss_tizzle]

Thanks for the reply, Megan1967.

Wow, a new MBA grad in a director position? That's completely nutty! I suppose it depends, you can be a recent MBA Grad with 25 years experience.

I actually have switched industries already. I have a Business degree with a specialization in Gaming. My M.Ed. is all thanks to an entry level job I got in my early 20s on campus - after 2 years in the gaming industry post graduation, I realized I wasn't interested in it.

I really do like your suggestion of setting up volunteer work. I think that's exactly what I'd do. It's a great way to get references, as mentioned and to start meeting people.

[Ragnar]

Entering a PhD program at UW Madison is also an option, and would allow you work your way through the UW system from the inside. Perhaps a longer road, but it may also give you some valuable school and work experience in the US along the way.

[nightlysparrow]

In Madison, guys with Ph.D.'s are driving taxicabs. Advanced degrees are a dime a dozen there! All the farm kids from the rest of the state get their bachelor's at UW and since there's little future for them back in their hometowns, they stay in Madison, getting loans and earning degrees.

[Bo]

I used to be a hiring manager at the UW. Open positions would attract a flood of applicants and the HR people would be super selective at combing through them before handing them over to our search committees. People who didn't meet the requirements would get filtered out before getting to the manager.

Combine that with the hiring freezes that would be put up in times of fiscal trouble, in the middle of fiscal years, lasting for months on end, and you have a very challenging environment to get hired into.

IMO, the OP should consider applying at smaller schools, which are more likely to accept someone with a fresh degree and watch for openings in the Chronicle of Higher Ed. The biggest growth area in US academia is at for-profit universities.