Returning to Ireland after working a year abroad?

Leonard Hofstadter

Just curious more than anything. What would an employer in Ireland be thinking if someone who came out of college and then worked abroad for a year and then decided that he/she wanted to come back to Ireland?

Is it a bad thing, because the employer thinks that the person is a home bird and can't hack the real world, or a good thing, because the employer knows that the person went abroad and wants to come back so is not likely to go anywhere in a hurry, so is worth hiring on that basis, because they're going to be around in the long run?

Leonard Hofstadter

Bump..

anyone got any insights please ?

cloudatlas

I think the fact that you went abroad shows initiative, that you value different experiences and can work with people from diverse backgrounds. I don't think that the question will arise about why you've come back they'll see your education and employment history and work out that you have roots here.

gandalf

Depends how you frame it. If the work was relevant to what you studied you could say that you left to get relevant experience as you were finding it difficult to get this in Ireland. That should give them the impression that you are proactive which is a good thing.

nogoodnamesleft

I think an employer would look favorably on an individual that went abroad both for further study (some industries are considerably more developed in other EU countries and have better industry links which in turn improve the knowledge gained by academics and teach graduate more relevant material that will be of more use to them in their career). Seeking out further employment opportunities shows initiative, ability to think for themselves (i.e. researching the opportunity and following through on it) and the ability to relocate.

Regards returning to Ireland, it would probably be in an individuals best interest to remain abroad for a few years gain the necessary skills, experience and contacts and to exploit this to its full potential if the choose to return to Ireland.

hfallada

If you were not in the EU. Say your visa expired and was too expensive or a lengthy process to get a new one. If you were in the UK, say the rent was too expensive. Or just even say you missed Irish people.

tatli_lokma

Why lie? So many people take a year or more out to travel that it's a total non-issue IMO and most employers don't give it that much thought

The main thing is to use the interview to show that now you are home you are planning to stay and commit to the job for the contracted period.