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What would you study if....

post #1 of 13
Thread Starter 
You were moving to Western Europe or North Africa?

I am going to school right now, but my DH and I have agreed that we most likely want to move to England or his home country of Tunisia. I was thinking of studying a language - Arabic or French? I may have a year or two or five
to prepare myself for a job in another country so spam me with what you think a good job is for out of country pursuits.
post #2 of 13
I'm not sure if you are asking about career or just a class?

If I had to decide on classes, then I would definitely study languages and history. If you are asking about career - I'd look into real estate, or the laws for running your own business.

It's rather personal though.
post #3 of 13
Thread Starter 
Well it would be classes for a career. I am just thinking about what transfers from country to country best.
post #4 of 13
I would study nursing and Arabic.
post #5 of 13
Nursing. Teaching. Finance. Computers. I don't know what your citizenship/visa status will be, but you might want to look into what type of work England/Tunisia offer visas for. The last time I looked (a few years back), a work visa in England was much easier to obtain if you were a very in demand worker -- at that time, I was looking at going there to teach because there was a huge shortage. Granted, the pay was crappy and the COL high, so go figure.
post #6 of 13
Any interest in the medical field? I would think the need would be universal. Nursing perhaps? You could finish in 2 years with your AS in nursing... just in time to cross the pond!
post #7 of 13
Thread Starter 
Nursing would be great - if I took orders well LOL. I am very put off with the whole medical industry right now. Teaching sounds very promising! I wonder what kind of degree I could get while taking online courses for a Bachelors, hmmmm.....
post #8 of 13
I would take a language and a masters in public health or health sciences.
post #9 of 13
I think being bilingual in any two languages is always a useful skill that helps you use your mind in new ways...I'd probably study French.
post #10 of 13
If you go to England, your options and competition for jobs will be different than if you go to Tunisia. If England, I'd look at what sorts of workers are in demand. Look at their points based system for immigration.

This website says: Skilled migration plays an important part in the United Kingdom's effort to keep its economy globally competitive. As part of the UK's five-tier points based immigration system, Tier 1 (General) allows highly skilled individuals who score the requisite points to immigrate to the UK without any kind of sponsorship from an employer. Highly skilled individuals include doctors, scientists, engineers, MBAs, and other educated workers.

If you can do something like accounting and finance, policy analysis, computer engineering, international law, it would be preferable to something like having a BA in Dance or another equally useless degree. You are a native English speaker, so you'd be able to compete in the job market on fairly equal footing if you have good qualifications and skill sets that are in demand.

If you go to Tunisia, it's so different culturally than the US - it's Muslim, so if you are a western woman, you may face discrimination trying to get a job on the economy working for a Tunisian company. And your wages would be whatever prevails in the city where you live. I would think nursing, teaching, economic development, something you can do for an NGO, American or European aid organization, or some sector of the ex-pat. community (teach at an international school, work as a local employee of the US Embassy, teach English at a shi-shi language school for well to do Tunisians, work as a freelance photographer with expats. and foreigners as your main clientele) would be the way I would try to go. (This is coming from a former Embassy brat.)
post #11 of 13
Teaching ESL could be a good option in Tunisia. I would definitely do everything I could to learn the language.
post #12 of 13
I'm in Tunisia right now!

I studied Arabic for two years (FuSHa - formal, literary Arabic) and then lived in France for 4 or 5 months this spring and studied French a bit... and I totally rely on my French more than my Arabic. It's just that, as an English speaker, French is about 50 times easier for me that Arabic. I understand about 80% of the French I hear and maybe 20% of the Arabic, although that's getting better as I start to learn the local darija.

Everyone I've met speaks French, although in more rural areas or among older people that might not be true. It is useful to have the ability to read Arabic, so I would at least go that far. I use my Arabic when my French fails, and I use the local darija when I can (and because I love saying "Schno?").

Tunisia is a Muslim country, but it's also a country where women have a whole lot of rights, legally speaking. Offically it's a very liberal and progressive country - free public education through grad school (mandatory until age 16), free or affordable high-quality health care, including birth control and abortion on demand for the first 120 days, mandated paid nursing breaks for women for the first year of their baby's life... there are women in the ministry, women professors, women police officers.

Of course, there's also a good bit of staring and some minor harassment on the streets (verbal stuff, and IMO less than in Morocco or EGypt), and most of the cafes are men-only... I mean, a women could go there and would be served, but in reality it doesn't happen.

Kids now study English in school starting in 5th grade (French starting in third) so you might be able to do something with that. I've seen ads for companies doing test prep, too, for the bac mostly.

PM me if you want to talk more about Tunisia!
post #13 of 13
I'd study Arabic intensively and try picking up a little conversational French. Nursing, education (English), maybe child development (nursery schools are beginning to pick up in the region), midwifery, rural development, and maybe business with the intention of running your own small business. (like maybe a cafe for women?)

French will be easier to learn, in urban centers everyone pretty much speaks it, but Arabic will endear you to many and open the culture to you in many more ways.
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