Hey there I’m Amelia and I am an Occupational Therapist from the UK. The process to come to NZ took me approximately 12 months – but I took it slowly and could have done it quicker! I arrived in August 2017. The easiest part of the process was applying for the working holiday visa and signing up with ACCENT. Sarah did so much back ground work and organised my interview and job offer so I was all set up before I arrived. The most challenging part of the process was applying for my NZ Board of OT registration. My first impressions of NZ were how everyone is very chilled out and friendly. And windy! (we moved to Wellington).
The best part of NZ is the laid back lifestyle, and being able to be outdoorsy but still be living in a city. What I miss the most is the wintery UK Christmas and my family. My advice if you are planning to come to NZ is to do your research into what type of visa you can get and what the visa entitles you to/what restrictions there are. Save up! It can be expensive here. Plan some travel as soon as you can. Sarah from ACCENT made the process of moving and finding work so easy and my boyfriend and I can’t thank her enough. She went the extra mile to make sure we were welcome and it was a smooth transition.
Are there any major differences between your current role in NZ and your previous role in UK?
No it the work is very similar and there are the same expectations. However the health systems can take a bit of getting used to with the different funding areas and how to access these.
