Q&A: Interview With an Expat Living in Zimbabwe

Posted on Dec 16, 2015 | 0 comments

Q&A: Interview With an Expat Living in Zimbabwe

Becoming an expat is an amazing opportunity for those interested in a global lifestyle. But I also know that in some cases, the thought of leaving everything you are used to, to start a new life in a foreign country may bring a lot of uncertainty, stress, and confusion. I know this because for the past 20 years, that’s exactly what my life as an expat has been all about. The best parts about living the expat life are the many great experiences you get to have and the many people you get to meet. I met people who I still count as my friends. For this post, I had the enormous privilege of interviewing one of them, my good friend Tenny P. Jones about what she’s experienced so far as an expat living and working abroad.

 

Hi Tenny, thanks for agreeing to do this interview for Passport Career. Can you please start this interview by telling us a little bit about your experience as an expat?

 

Hi Marielys – first of all, I want to thank you for the opportunity. It’s a great pleasure for me to be here with you today talking about my experience as an expat. I have to say that having the chance to live abroad has been, by far, one of the best experiences of my life. I have been living in Zimbabwe for the past three years with my husband and kids while my husband works for a non-government organization. I have to admit that at the beginning I was very concerned with the move, but after a while I got used to the idea of living abroad, and once I made peace with the whole situation, I was finally able to enjoy the experience, which I am still enjoying up to this day.

 

Are you currently working? And, how did you find out about the job opportunity?

 

Yes, I am currently working as a substitute teacher at a local school, but I have to admit that it was never my intention to work as a teacher here in Zim. The opportunity came as I was talking to a friend during a get-together. She told me that the local school that she was working with was looking for a substitute teacher and urged me to apply for the position. Since I already had all my teaching certifications in order, I decided to apply and after being interviewed for the position, I was offered the job. That was two years ago and I am still currently working with the school.

 

Can you explain to the readers the application and interview process for the job that you were selected to do?

 

The application process was simple. I had to send (via email) my resume and copy of my certifications to the person who was in charge of hiring for the position. A couple of days after I submitted my application, I received a call from the school inviting me for a job interview. Two days after meeting with the school director and two other people, I was offered the position, which I happily accepted.

 

What happened after you were selected for the job? What other processes did you have to take care of before you could start working? (visa, job permit, etc.)

 

Once I got accepted for the job, the first thing I needed to do was to request a temporary employment permit. That process was tedious and took a while, but my husband’s organization helped me with the application process and a couple of weeks after I submitted my application, I got the permit approved and I was able to start the hiring process.

 

How was your experience of living and working in your particular country?

 

As I mentioned earlier, the experience has been a great one. I am enjoying every single minute of it. We know that our transfer day is approaching soon so we are taking advantage of the time that we have left in the country to visit the places that we have not visited yet and to spend time with the friends that we have here.

 

What advice would you give to other people who, like you, are planning to move or look for a job abroad?

 

The best advice that I can give them is to take advantage of the opportunity. Opportunities like this one sometimes come once in a life time. I will also tell them to stop worrying about it and to go ahead and do it. They will see that after they take that first step, everything else will fall into place very quickly. We did it, and it has been one of the best decisions we have taken in our lives.

 

Thanks Tenny for talking to us today. I wish you all the best in the time you have left in Zimbabwe and I also hope that we get to stay in touch after you go on your next abroad experience.

 

There you have it, my Passport Career friends. I just brought you an inside look for what living as an expat is all about. Now my question for you is – are you ready to give the expat life a try? 

 

WANT TO KNOW MORE ABOUT JOB SEARCH AND LIVING OVERSEAS?

Passport Career provides more detailed career information and extensive resources about networking, finding a job, internship, alternative career opportunities as well as information on writing CVs, cover letters and interviews. If your organization, embassy, university/college, library, or other institution would like access to our country portfolios (15,000+ pages of expert content for 80+ countries and 250+ cities) to share with your students, employees, spouses/partners, and others managing a national or international career transition, please click here to contact us (or send email to: info@passportcareer.com) regarding a free, live, online demo and details on how to obtain a license to access Passport Career.

Marielys Camacho Reyes, Expert Global Career Consultant

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