Migrant Engineers - Plan how to Land an Engineering Job in Australia

I spoke to a group of recently arrived migrant engineers in Melbourne, Australia last week. Not one member of the group had a plan of how they were going to land an engineering job in Australia. Not surprisingly some members of the group had made over 100 unsuccessful job applications.

Can you imagine seeing the newspaper headline

Project Succeeds Without Plan or Budget

I can’t. But I am constantly talking to migrant engineers who have no plan how they will land an engineering job in Australia.

“Making tens of identical applications to on line agencies is not applying for jobs - it is wasting your time and destroying your confidence.”

Ian Little - Author of Project Australia: Land that Engineering Job in Australia

You came to Australia for the good life. It won’t start until you have a job.

Develop a Project Plan - your Project Australia. Your path out of your current financial hardship eating into your savings.

Your plan will have these elements

Be Professional - that’s part of being an Engineer in Australia

I meet many newly arrived migrant engineers in Australia. Many fail to make a good first impression. They put themselves at a disadvataage before they have even spoken by presenting poorly.

Every time you go to an event to meet other engineers you may meet a potential employer - Prepare properly.

An Australian employer wants an engineer who will make his company look good. Some one who will impress customers.Here are some things you should do every time you are going to a networking event or making a cold call or job interview:

Dress

As a professional engineer, you should look like a professional. A suit (and tie for men) is standard dress even in hot parts of the country. An exception is construction sites where you can be more practical. But look smart. Be clean, with tidy hair, and be clean shaven (unless you have a beard). You are selling yourself; look your best. If in doubt, dress up.

Behaviour and body language

You are on show the moment you walk through the door. If you are offhand or rude to the receptionist, others will see and will not be impressed. When you enter a room, smile and look everyone in the eye. If you are carrying a briefcase, have it in your left hand; you need to be ready to shake hands with people as you meet them. Shake hands firmly with both men and women.

Smalltalk

Generally employers will want to put you at ease. They will ask questions like “Did you find our office okay?” Answer with a sentence such as “Yes, thanks. The instructions given were good. It took longer than I had expected due to the traffic.” Everyone will feel awkward if just you say “Yes.” Be prepared to talk about the weather, a common subject to open conversations. The next most popular subject is any current major sporting event involving Australians.

Read the newspaper or watch the TV news so you can talk about poplar topics. It takes surprisingly little knowledge to hold a conversation by making broad statements and asking general questions. For example, Australians love cricket, but it is a complex and mysterious game to many people. However, if you know the Australian cricket team has just won or lost a match, you can always comment: “Did you see the cricketers win/lose yesterday? They seem to be playing well/not so well at present.”

Such smalltalk, or idle conversation, is an important sign that you will be able to talk with colleagues in the workplace. Practice smalltalk. It puts you at ease and creates a good first impression.

In Australia it is important to make a good first impression.

Engineers Migrate Australia Pack Video Clip

Attention Engineers! Everything you need to know about migrating to and working in Australia. Play sample Video clip …

This is a video sample from Project Australia - The Engineers Career Pack featuring Ian Little author of Project Australia.

Learn more about the Project Australia Engineers Careers Pack (Migrants and International Students)

Engineering Qualifications Assessment for Australia - English Competency

When applying to Engineers Australia for engineering qualification assessment or for an Australian skilled migrant visa you must show you meet the English requirements. In Australia, all engineering business is dome in English.

If you need to do an IELTS test, you must do this before you lodge your assessment application

You can demonstrate English proficiency by:

(a)      Showing you hold an eligible passport from one of the following countries (you will not be required to sit the IELTS test):

• United Kingdom (UK)
• Canada
• New Zealand
• United States of America (USA)
• Republic of Ireland

(b)    Including an IELTS Test Report Form (TRF) Number with your application to show you have a band score of at least six (6) on each of the four (4) components - speaking, reading, listening and writing.

Your test results must be from a test you sat no more than two (2) years before the day of making your application.

The IELTS is a test designed to assess an applicant’s English language ability. It has an academic test and a general training test. For engineering work take the general training test.
IELTS examinations are available worldwide and further information is available on their website.
See: International English Language Testing System

The important points are:

You must do the test before before you make an assessment application.

You must score at least 6.0 in each component of the IELTS general test

And most importantly:

If your IELTS English score is below this, you may find an alternative path to a visa, but it will be practically impossible for you to get an engineering job in Australia.

Do not try and work the system - improve your English to succeed as an engineer migrating to Australia.

Ian Little

Ian Little, is a senior engineering manager with WorleyParsons, an Australian owned multi-national engineering company. In this role he has worked in Australia, China and Saudi Arabia managing engineers from a wide range of countries of origin .

Ian was born in Australia, a descendant from Irish ancestors who migrated to Australia in 1850. He is an electrical engineering graduate from Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology and is a Fellow of Engineers Australia.

Ian developed an admiration for the contribution migrants have made to engineering in Australia through living in the Latrobe Valley Region of Victoria while working with the State Electricity Commission of Victoria (SECV). He was so intrigued by the challenge of learning a foreign language as an adult, and developing the language skill to a level suitable for holding down a job, he learnt German and travelled to work in Germany and Switzerland 1975.

Following the privatisation of the SECV, Ian moved on into the private sector and has worked in senior engineering management positions for major engineering companies in Melbourne. He has empathy for the challenges facing migrants, and has mentored migrant engineers settling in Australia.

Australian Engineering Job Interview - a FAQ

In an engineering job interview in Australia, there are some questions that are always asked. Fariba from Iran has asked me “How do I answer this question?”

Why do you want to work for our company ?

Well Fariba, I will not answer this for you! A skill an engineer in the Australian workplace needs is the ability to work things out for yourself.

Here is a 7 step method to help you to figure out the best answer for you.

What you have done is analysed how well you will fit with the company. The best result is when the company can offer you what you want, and you can give the company what they want.

Here is a simple example to a start you off.

OK - Now it’s your turn. Find an Australian engineering company on the internet, find out all you can about them. List their features relevant to you. Compare these against your abilities and ambitions.

In practically everything we do, success is the result of hard work. being successful in an engineering job interview in Australia is no exception.

For more information on how to answer the questions Australian employers ask engineers

Click here:

Project Australia: The Engineers Australian Migrant Pack

Engineers Australia Overseas Qualified Engineers Special Interest Group

Engineers Australia Overseas Qualified Engineers Special Interest Group

Engineers Australia, Victorian Division have formed a special interest group for Overseas Qualified Engineers.

The Overseas Qualified Engineers Special Interest Group was formed to facilitate migrant engineers finding suitable employment in their profession in Australia.

The desired outcome of the group is to create a forum through which migrant engineers can enhance their professional skills, develop professional networks and obtain practical advice concerning employment.

The Overseas qualified Engineers Special Interest Group will be launched on at an event on Monday, August 25, 2008 from 6.00pm-8.00pm. The forum is titled:

Succeeding in the Engineering Job Market in Australia - What you need to know?

This event is open to the general public. It will provide attendees with the opportunity to listen to a group of speakers who have overcome the struggles of finding employment in Australia. This is your opportunity to hear first hand experiences, practical advice and understanding what to do and what not to do in finding employment in the industry.

Presentation – “Getting that job in Engineering… What you need to do” by Enrique Gutierrez, Overseas Qualified Engineers Group Chairman. This presentation will focus on what you need to do to make yourself more employable in Australia. A range of topics will be discussed, including preparing your employment strategy, effective cover letters and CV’s and the importance of networking.

Panel Discussion - “Finding a job in Australia… Our Journey” - Chaired by Ian Little, author of Project Australia – Land that Engineering Job in Australia, panellists will discuss the challenges they faced in finding employment in Australia, and the strategies they used to overcome these challenges.

Venue & Address:

Engineering Australia
Conference Rooms A&B
21 Bedford Street, North Melbourne

To register for this event please email overseasengineers@engineersaustralia.org.au by Thursday 21st August.

For more details:

http://www.vicengweek.org.au/

ABC Radio Australia Interview with Ian Little, author of Project Australia

Audio Interview with Ian Little talking about Project Australia: Land That Engineering Job in Australia on ABC Radio Australia Breakfast Club July 18th 2008 with Phil Kafcaloudes and Adelaine Ng.

Listen to the interview by clicking play on the link below

Learn more about Project Australia

Project Australia

Mentors and mentoring for Engineers in Australia

A mentor is a personal coach who can advise and support you while you are settling in, looking for work, and establishing your career. Engineers arriving in Australian from overseas have to learn how to survive and prosper in the Australian workplace.

Settling quickly is too important to try and make it alone. The guidance provided by a mentor will help you learn the Australian customs and work practices faster, and land an engineering job sooner.

The best choice for a mentor is an engineer in your discipline and line of work, but this is not essential. Your mentor could be a family member or friend who has already settled here, or anyone else with suitable knowledge and skills.

You can discuss your plans with your mentor, get guidance on matters such as likely employers, job applications, job selection criteria, finding contacts (networking), planning, Australian standards and business practices, interpreting regulations, schools, house hunting, practicing business English and so on. A mentor can assist by helping you focus on what is important and provide moral support.

In choosing a mentor, look for someone you can talk easily to and feel relaxed with. If your relationship with your mentor does not seem to be working, find someone else.

If you cannot find a suitable mentor in your immediate support group, go to technical functions run by engineering groups such as Engineers Australia. You do not have to be a member to attend these functions. If you find some one you can talk easily with, ask them if they would be prepared to assist you by being your mentor. Contact your local Engineers Australia Division office if you cannot find a mentor. They may be able to help you find some one.

How mentoring works

It is usual to meet with your mentor at about six weekly intervals. The meetings should be about an hour and be outside the workplace, such as in a coffee shop. The meetings should be informal, but structured. Your mentor should assist you by providing guidance. There may be phone calls and correspondence in between these meetings. This will depend on what is happening. For example: if you wanted advice on a job application, you would not wait for the next planned meeting.

You and your mentor each keep a notebook to record what happens. This is purely for a personal record. You do not keep formal minutes that you check, and the mentor does not look at your notes. Your notes are your own personal record. You take written notes to ensure you remember advice the mentor may give and the actions that you each plan to do; so you do not forget, and so you have a greater commitment to the agreed actions.

It is important to plan the meeting times and keep to them. The meetings with your mentor are an important part of your engineering career management. Give them the priority you deserve. If something important comes up which clashes with an agreed meeting time, reschedule the meeting straight away. Do not just let things lapse.

Kick start your engineering career in Australia; land an engineering job quickly with the support of a mentor.

This post is taken from Project Australia: Land That Engineering Job in Australia by Ian Little

©Ian Little. All rights reserved, no part of this may be reproduced without permission rights from the publisher. Contact us www.tribuslingua.com.au

Read about…

Australian engineers get jobs by networking

Project Australia Media Release

Australian Engineers get Jobs by Networking

Australian Engineers get Jobs by Networking. To get an engineering job in Australia you need to establish a network of Australian engineering contacts to replace those you have left behind; to help you get a job and to provide ongoing professional support.

In Australia, about 80% of job positions are filled without being advertised. Applicants learn about them through networking of one form or another. As a new arrival to Australia, one of your biggest challenges is to develop a network.

Networking is not just giving out your business card and collecting business cards of potential employers so you have a list to ask for a job. You need to establish a relationship for exchanging information. Keep in mind, the company with no vacancies today may win a big contract and need people next month. Maintaining contacts enables you to:
• Learn what companies do
• Find out when they, or their competitors win jobs and will want more people –before others do!
• Understand what particular skills companies are after

Many engineers new to Australia make the mistake of seeing networking as a one way relationship. When they meet a company representative they blurt out “Do you have
any vacancies for mechanical engineers?” If the response is “No.” the conversation ends. They head off despondent, to the next prospect.

Networking is a two way relationship. As an engineer you have your skills to sell. Australian industry needs engineers. Through the networking relationship both parties
develop a better understanding of what each has to offer.

Do not expect to be offered a job at an engineering networking session or the first time you meet some one!

Where to start

To start an Australian engineering network, go to events and places where engineers meet. This is through professional engineering associations such as:
• Engineers Australia,
• APESMA, and
• specialist industry and discipline organisations
The meetings of these engineering organisations are normally open to non-members. You may pay a little more as a non-member. Their web sites advertise their up-coming events.

Here is an example script you can use to help get started. Add your own questions and put this into your own words. Then practice it on a friend. Note that the questions re all about finding information about the person and their company, or other companies they may have worked for or know about. You do this so that you can work out hat you have to offer them. You have engineering skills that employers want.

• How do you do I am Rajiv Singh, what is you name?
• Who do you work for?
• What do they make/do?
• What technology do they use?
• What is you position there?
• What do you do every day?
• Does the company employ engineers? What types?
• Where are they located?
• Do they export any products?
• Who are their customers?
• Who are there major competitors?

Some Tips for success

Networking is building a relationship. This requires give and take. The more you share with others, the more they will share with you. This does not have to be your deepest, darkest secrets or company confidential matters. For example: in a discussion, a potential employer might talk about a new project and tell you his company is looking for electrical engineers. Unfortunately you are a mechanical engineer – but you know of an electrical engineer who is looking for a job. This gives you the opportunity to help this electrical
engineer and make an impression with the employer. They will both be willing to help you in the future as you will have helped them by making a connection.

From your international engineering experience you will have some specific technical knowledge, above your general engineering experience, new to Australia. As esperation sets in after being unable to find a job, people can become so busy thinking “Please give me a job.” they forget that they have their general engineering skills, plus something unique, to offer. Find out all about organisations, and the projects and work they do. Then think about where the opportunities are for you.

Maintain confidentiality in business relationships at all levels. This applies to networking. People will share more information with those they can trust. If I trust you, I am more likely to share unconfirmed information and opinions with you, which will give you greater insight or advantage. However, if I think you will spread this to everyone, including my competitors, I will give you less information.

In developing and maintaining engineering network relationships don’t rely on memory - keep notes. This will be both personal and business details. This helps you get a
conversation going whenever you meet. You can ask about their family, use family members names, how the holiday went, how the project is going. People are impressed
when someone remembers them.

Maintain contact with members of your engineering network. This may be simply by sending a Xmas card or catching up for a cup of coffee. Try and have some information
that others may be interested in – without giving away confidential information. Regularly attending engineering functions where you will meet a group of your network, such as through a discipline College of Engineers Australia function or a special interest group is very effective and more efficient than individual meetings.

Do not be afraid to ask questions.

Work at Networking - that is how 80% of Australian Engineers get Jobs.

This post is taken from Project Australia: Land That Engineering Job in Australia by Ian Little

©Ian Little. All rights reserved, no part of this may be reproduced without permission rights from the publisher. Contact us www.tribuslingua.com.au

Project Australia Media Release

Migrant engineers are driven to despair, disbelief and driving taxis when they are unable to get a job in Australia where the news media continually lead with headlines of a skills shortage!

You have been in Australia six months, have applied for over fifty jobs and have not even got one interview. Thoughts of a job in engineering seem totally out of the question. So you move to the country, to cheap accommodation, willing to do anything to earn enough to feed your family. Marin Sorescu, a Romanian mechanical engineer with fifteen years experience designing portable oil drilling rigs came to start a new life for his family in Australia in 2002.

Four years later he was driving a tractor and picking up potatoes as a farm labourer. He had almost lost hope of getting an engineering job. The Australian job market is a minefield to newcomers. Many have poor English, all have no established networks, and they are trying to find jobs when only 20% of the jobs are advertised.

Project Australia - Land that Engineering Job in Australia is by Ian Little, a veteran engineering manager with Worley Parsons, a major Australian owned multi-national engineering company.Ian has over 40 years in the engineering industry. As a young man he was so impressed by the migrant engineers and supervisors he worked with in the Latrobe Valley power stations he learnt German and went to work in Switzerland and Germany.

With WorleyParsons he has worked in Australia, China and Saudi Arabia managing engineers from a wide range of countries of origin. Ian has been there and done it! Ian is clear and direct - as engineers can be. Migration and getting a job are dealt with as a project. Make a plan and budget, and follow it!

In Project Australia, Ian covers the demographics of the Australian engineering industry, the labour market, an overview of visas, accreditation, planning, improving English, engineering organisations, sources of assistance, the hidden job market, CVs, selection criteria, and job interviews. There is a chapter devoted specifically to issues for international students.The first hand accounts of successes from migrants highlight the impact of the struggle to get that first job in engineering in Australia. Marin Sorescu joined an English for Migrants TAFE course. Through this he improved his English and also developed a CV that was suitable for Australian employers. He participated in a one month work experience which resulted in an offer of permanent employment. This was a life changing experience for Marin who had almost given up hope of an engineering career in Australia.

When Samir Kadhum arrived in Australia in 2001, he had six years of experience as a construction supervisor in Iraq. Unable to get a similar job in Melbourne he started working for a refrigeration company. He sent off many emails for better jobs, but had only a couple of interviews. Through an employment program he was encouraged to use a mentor. He discussed the next job he went for with his mentor before the interview. They discussed likely questions and appropriate answers. He was offered a job at the interview.Shenaz Patel, an international electrical engineering student from Melbourne University provides a text book example for other international students to follow. She used her internet skills to research likely employers before attending career fairs. Armed with this information she was able to ask a wide range of questions. This set her up for success when she was interviewed for a graduate position.

“Project Australia - Land that Engineering Job in Australia is a book written by an engineer for engineers. It is a very comprehensive guide to the information required when planning migration to and winning a job in Australia, all contained in a single easy-to-understand document. The concept of managing migration as a project will utilise the natural talents of engineers and help them establish themselves quickly in Australia. This book is a ‘must have’ for engineers looking to migrate to Australia“

Julie Hammer, National President, Engineers Australia

Project Australia was born when tribus lingua founder Ailis Logan telephoned Ian Little after hearing him speak at an Overseas Qualifications Unit forum in Melbourne. Over coffee she asked if he knew of any engineers who could write. Ian’s response was ‘That’s an oxymoron isn’t it - engineers who can write?” Ailis was not deterred…

Their next meeting was more serious - an outline was formulated. A common bond of Irish ancestry was established - Ian’s Irish forefathers migrated to Australia 150 years before Ailis reached Australian shores.

Ian has adopted a new twist to an old line ‘Beware of Irish bearing wine. The Greeks are fine.’ Project Australia: Land that Engineering Job in Australia by Ian Little

Learn more…

PROJECT AUSTRALIA - LAND THAT ENGINEERING JOB IN AUSTRALIA

Ian Little is available for interview by contacting Tribus Lingua Media
Contact: Ailis Logan 03 9416 4751 or support@tribuslingua.com.au

Assessment of engineering qualifications by Engineers Australia

Assessment of engineering qualifications for migration purposes by the Institution of Engineers (Engineers Australia).

Something confusing to migrants is that the assessments of qualifications for eligibility for migration visas and for membership of Engineers Australia are made separately. It is possible to be accepted for immigration and refused membership of Engineers Australia. The reverse also applies. It is possible to be accepted for membership of Engineers Australia and not be accepted for a skilled migration visa.

The Institution of Engineers Australia, known as Engineers Australia, is the peak body for engineers in Australia, with more than 80,000 members. It is the national forum for the advancement of engineering and professional development of engineers. It accredits engineering courses, operates programs of continuing education and professional development, maintains a vigorous publishing and conference program, and involves itself in debate on national and community issues.

Skills assessment

Engineers Australia is the designated authority to assess professional and para-professional qualifications in engineering for the purposes of skilled migration to Australia.

The two pathways to recognition of your qualifications with Engineers Australia are:
• Recognised engineering qualifications
• A Competency Demonstration Report (CDR)

Recognition is the process of determining if the course you have completed at an overseas institution is equivalent to an Australian four-year engineering course. If your engineering qualifications are not recognised through any accredited course with one of the signatory bodies, you may seek recognition through a competency assessment process.
The Competency Demonstration Report gives you the opportunity to establish that your engineering knowledge and competencies are equivalent to those of the appropriate occupational category within Australian engineering. You can detail work and training you have done to establish that you have the skills and knowledge equivalent to an engineer with Australian qualifications. The Migration Skills Assessment Kit, available from the Engineers Australia website guides you in determining your occupational category and preparing your CDR submission.

To check a course is accredited, you need to know the university, particular course, and the years the course started and finished. You have to do this yourself as part of preparing your application for migration skills assessment to Engineers Australia. Information on both the Washington and Sydney Accords and the lists of accredited programs can be sourced from the following website: http://www.washingtonaccord.org/

Washington Accord signatories are Australia, Canada, Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong China, Ireland, Japan, Korea, New Zealand, Singapore, South Africa, United Kingdom, and United States. Organisations holding provisional status at time of writing are Germany, India, Malaysia, Russia and Sri Lanka.
Sydney Accord signatories (for Engineering Technologists or incorporated Engineers) are Australia, Canada, Hong Kong China, Ireland, New Zealand, South Africa, and the United Kingdom. United States holds provisional status at time of writing.

If you live in Australia, the state or territory Overseas Qualifications Unit (OQU) has educational assessment advice about overseas qualifications for free or a small fee. Applicants must be in Australia; you can’t have a contact in Australia make an application on your behalf if you are overseas.The Overseas Qualifications Unit’s addresses are available from the Department of Immigration and Citizenship website: http://www.immi.gov.au/asri/os-qual-units.htm

An OQU or AEI-NOOSR assessment may tell you that you have engineering qualifications that are academically comparable to a qualification in the Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF), however your qualifications may not be accepted for you to practice as a professional engineer in Australia. Professional recognition of engineers is solely assessed by Engineers Australia.

The bottom line:

An OQU or AEI-NOOSR assessment has no useful value for engineering qualifications.

Wait until you are in Australia to apply for membership of Engineers Australia.

For migration, get a Migration Skills Assessment Kit, available from the Engineers Australia website to make application for assessment of your qualifications for skilled migration to Australia.

This post is taken from Project Australia: Land That Engineering Job in Australia by Ian Little

Read More about Project Australia - The Engineers Australian Migrant Pack

Project Australia

©Ian Little. All rights reserved, no part of this may be reproduced without permission rights from the publisher. Contact us www.tribuslingua.com.au

Good English is essential for Engineering Jobs In Australia

Latest news as to why good English is essential for Landing an engineering job in Australia.

The Australian newspaper reported today April 29

‘TENS of thousands of skilled migrants from countries such as China and India are struggling to find professional jobs in Australia, says a new report. Despite the nation’s acute skills shortage, employers are shunning the new arrivals because of their poor English, according to the Monash University study.

Report authors Bob Birrell and Ernest Healy, from Monash’s Centre for Population and Urban Research, said Australia’s massive skilled migration program was failing to solve the job shortage.

The authors said that the main problem in finding professional jobs was poor English skills, but the program was dominated by migrants from non-English-speaking backgrounds.”

The following is an extract about the importance of good English to get an engineering job in Australia taken from the book Project Australia: Land That Engineering Job in Australia by Ian Little

Australian language

To obtain an engineering job in Australia and keep it, you must be able to understand what is written or being said by people you are working with. You must also be able to communicate to others the results of your work. If you can’t communicate effectively in English, you will not be able to get an engineering job in Australia. Unless you can afford to spend a year or more developing your English after you have landed in Australia, preparation before you board a plane is a cost-effective investment.

Overseas students studying in Australia need to take the opportunity to develop their language skills so their written and spoken Australian is fluent; equal to an Australian. Overseas students are competing directly with Australians when applying for graduate positions. Employers will not accept poor Australian language if you have studied in Australia. Overseas students must avoid the trap of staying within the comfort of their own nationality group and speaking minimal Australian.

Improving your language skills to Land That Engineering Job in Australia

There are two aspects to building your Australian Engineering language skill: spoken and written. The relative ability you need will depend on the engineering field you are looking to work in. As a minimum, you will need:
• Everyday language for getting around
• Technical terms as used by Australians in your discipline

Chapter 5 provides a number of ways to help you improve your Australian English. You will need to get out of your comfort zone to develop good English communication skills, essential for you to be successful as an Australian Engineer.

This post includes extracts taken from Project Australia: Land That Engineering Job in Australia by Ian Little due for publication May 2008

©Ian Little. All rights reserved, no part of this may be reproduced without permission rights from the publisher. Contact us www.tribuslingua.com.au

Read more of Ian’s advice:

Australian CV for engineers

Australian CV for engineers

Australian CV for engineers

Getting your Australian CV for engineers together. In general, engineers from overseas are able to get to Australia and find some jobs advertised, but they find it difficult to get job interviews. The main reason is that they don’t understand how to prepare their CV/résumé so it is attractive enough to potential employers.
In this chapter we help you develop an Australian CV for engineers that is irresistible to employers. You will work out your strengths, the most effective parts of a CV, tailoring your CV to particular jobs and employers, and how to write a covering letter that sells you effectively.

What’s in a name: CV or résumé?
Like many people, I thought a curriculum vitae (CV) and a résumé were the same thing. Technically, a résumé is a shortened version of a CV. However, we will stay with the popular masses and consider the terms interchangeable. I can assure you that if one advertisement says send a CV and another says send a résumé, they both expect to receive the same document.
From now on, we’ll stick with CV ― it has fewer letters.

Two-part preparation
Preparing an Australian CV for engineers to begin job applications can be divided into two parts. The first is to prepare your CV as you see yourself and for the ideal job you would like. This ‘basic’ or ‘vanilla’ CV will emphasise the experience and skills which you believe are your strongest points. It will reflect the areas that are important for you to win that ideal job. It will also address the issues you would normally expect to find in a job description.
I call it a vanilla CV because it is plain in the sense that it has no distinctive flavour added to make it appeal to a specific prospective employer. You may like your vanilla CV, but that’s not the point. You need to flavour it according to what you think the employer will like.
Obviously, that’s what the second part of preparing your CV is about: tailoring it to match the culture, wording and feel of each prospective employer, as well as the specific criteria of the job you are applying for. The response you are after is: “I like that. Let’s find out more about this applicant.” Which means you’ll get an interview.
It takes time and effort to remake your Australian engineering CV for every application, but it’s well
worth it. Compare it to the time you spend out of engineering, or in a job that doesn’t utilise your professional skills. The difference between sending out a vanilla CV and sending out an individually tailored one is like the difference between firing a high-powered heat-seeking missile and firing a shotgun.

The vanilla CV
We all have a lot more skills and attributes than we realize, derived from many sources. When preparing your CV ― and preparing for job interviews ― you need to be aware of them all.
You will have at least three sets of skills to draw on:
• Skills obtained from education and training, directly related to your engineering discipline and specialist expertise.
• Transferable skills. General skills and attributes you have from your work or training in other areas that can be applied on the job, such as organisation and management.
• Life skills. These have been acquired throughout your life. They won’t be asked for in a job advertisement, but they make you a more valuable employee. They help define you as a person. They may have been acquired through working in a family business, speaking foreign languages, or partaking in hobbies and pastimes. They include leadership skills acquired through participating in community bodies and sports. Life skills often relate to your attitudes and personal attributes. For example, if you grew up on a farm, you may have experience with a range of hands-on skills such as welding and fixing machinery which gave you a practical outlook on getting things done.
Typical engineering job descriptions
Here are three generic job descriptions for engineer, senior engineer and managing engineer positions. They have the generic attributes and skill sets for the different levels, and they are common across engineering disciplines.

I recommend that you build your vanilla CV around your particular skills, but to meet these typical requirements. This will reduce the amount of work you will have to do to match Australian engineering CV for a specific application.

This post is taken from Project Australia: Land That Engineering Job in Australia by Ian Little

Read more about Project Australia - The Engineers Australian Migrant Pack

Project Australia

©Ian Little. All rights reserved, no part of this may be reproduced without permission rights from the publisher. Contact us www.tribuslingua.com.au

Engineering Events around Australia

Attend the largest Engineering Expo in Australia in 2008!
Date: Thursday 17 April 2008
Time: 3.00pm- 7.00pm
Venue: Melbourne Town Hall
Crn Swanston and Collins Streets Melbourne
FREE SEMINARS - RESUME CHECKING - MEET EMPLOYERS - RECRUITMENT ADVICE - NETWORKING

http://www.vic.engineersaustralia.org.au/events/expo.html

Catch Ian Little author of Project Australia: Land That Engineering Job in Australia  speaking about Australian CV’s.