Hey all, hoping you can help.
I live in South Africa at the moment. I’m 18 years old and I’ve just finished my final year of school - I receive results in Jan 2024.
I’m hopefully going to be studying in Amsterdam next year (although won’t know until I receive results) but I will definitely find a place to study abroad.
I’m very fortunate to have an EU passport. The situation here in South Africa, is relatively bad. The chances of me getting a job here are quite limited.
For this reason, I’m hoping to immigrate to Netherlands next year (anywhere in Europe would suffice though) - I plan on finding part time work - waitering/bartending/tutoring/babysitting/cleaning etc… and starting to earn some cash (which I’ll invest on the side).
I just don’t even know where to begin. I’ve got enough money to get a plane ticket and afford 1/2 months rent while I look for a job but other than that, going with pretty much nothing.
Just looking for tips and advice:
- where is the best student life? Where are the best opportunities for international students when looking for work? Any agencies I should contact? Personal stories of similar circumstances etc…
If anyone has any tips or advice, please post on this thread. Would be greatly appreciated. Thanks so much.
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First of all, start learning Dutch now already.
When you get here, find a student job quickly otherwise living costs will eat you…fast (considering the ZAR-EUR exchange rate). There are plenty of part time jobs in the hospitality industry that could get you on 1500 - 2500€ a month.
You have an EU passport as I read it so you are basically sorted. Just keep your head down, don’t drink and don’t go out but rather grind for the first year or two until you have a nest egg of money. Then worry about finding friends and going out etc etc.
First two years will be tough. Good luck.
1500-2500 a month? That is a lot of hours of working on €10 hourly salary when combining it with studies. OP might be able to find something slightly better than €10, say €15 ph, but it will be a shit ton of work still and I would not make my budget/time allocation plans based on a higher salary than that.
Also, if you plan on going to a Dutch university, it will cost you €2200 a year. You’re lucky with that passport.
Really appreciate the support man. How do you think I go about getting a job? I’ve found a few that have posted listings online but super little income and bad locations. Do you think I should get there and once I’ve landed, start looking? The uncertainty is for sure one my biggest fears and obstacles.
I believe that most landlords ask a big deposit and rent in advance (sorry didn’t read your post properly). So if your plan is to land in NL and earn your rent by for example bar tending a couple of nights, it might unfortunately not work, since as I said, most landlords charge (rent + deposit) in advance (as far as I am aware). It’s not like in the old days where the aussies and saffers went backpacking through Europe while living on their bar tending jobs. living costs are sky high. You will need more capital hey
Yeah first find accommodation and then go to cafes, bars and restaurants in your area and most of them will likely have job postings with email address etc etc (at least that is how I did). I don’t know of any agencies in the hospitality industry (“Horeca” as the Dutch call it), although I am sure there are.
Also bare in mind that public transport is expensive, especially when travelling between cities. Can easily run up a 120€ bill or for example travelling between cities can cost you 20-40€. Not sure what the student discounts are though.
Without discouraging you, I am afraid that you are underestimating the costs involved. But since you have an EU passport I would highly encourage you to find a way to do it! You’re welcome to DM me with questions
I totally appreciate the support. I should have mentioned, I’m extremely privileged to have the financial support of my parents, although I’m mainly doing this to prove I don’t need their help, if shit hits the fan and I’m desperate, they would help. I’m currently looking to find a job through an online agency, hopefully to start with that job whilst looking for others. Once again - I’m also quite reliant on investing and plan on specializing in it (even though studying something different) so yeah - from a financial point, I’m alright. It’s just more of a point from how do I get further without being so financially reliant on “mommy’s money”
That’s great. Totally agree, you should take this step while you are young and will have much more job opportunities.
Just so I don’t mislead you, the 1500-2500 is based on my personal experience being over the age of 21. In your age bracket 500-1200 is more realistic.
Then your accommodation costs will range from 350 (if you are really lucky) - 1200. You might spend most of your money on accommodation and then you need at least another 1000 each month for living costs.
Might want to wait until you are 21 so you can get full minimum wage.
You’ll need much more money to get a room and survive the first few months.
If you speak Dutch you can get a decent paying job in Eastern-Central European cities in customer service no time. Live a better than average living standard locally and have a relatively good start to your career.
Newly they have Afrikaans openings as well from time to time in these shared service centres.
Check careerjet and other sites. Good luck! 👍
Just a little reminder that every EU country is different when it comes to allowing you to reside there.
For example, in Belgium everybody with an EU passport is welcome. However if you want to stay for longer than 3 months, you have to be able to show that you are going to be working (or have sufficient funds otherwise). Furthermore, finding a place to live isn’t going to be easy if you don’t have a job arranged or 6 months rent saved up.
I don’t know what the exact situation is in the NL, but it’s worth investigating.
You also want to learn Dutch asap. If you already speak Afrikaans, you’re three quarters of the way there :)
South African here who spent 6 months in Amsterdam during my masters and has now been living in Rotterdam for a few months for my PhD (will be here for another 4 years) after spending some time back in SA.
Firstly, strongly consider not living in Amsterdam. It’s a beautiful city with lots of great qualities, but it’s damn expensive and operating above capacity. You’ll be very lucky to find accomodation without an extensive search, and the city just feels full. There are great universities in other cities (Rotterdam, Utrecht, Leiden, Delft, Nijmegen, Groningen, Eindhoven and Wageningen, to name a few) where you wont spend all your savings and you will still have a good time and a great education. The Netherlands is unique in that most of the big universities are very comparable in terms of quality, with a few such as Delft and Wageningen being very specialised in certain fields and being the best in those.
That said, I’ve enjoyed the Netherlands. Things are safe, things work (big thing coming from SA), I’ve made great friends (requires putting in some effort to reach out to people, unlike in SA where peeps are mostly super welcoming), and it genuinely feels like a land of opportunity. I don’t think I see myself here in the very long-term (who knows), but I’m happy with my choice. Speaking Afrikaans also massively helps to understand Dutch. Still get very confused with grammar and stuff on the speaking front, but does make you feel less alienated if you come into a place kinda knowing what’s being said.
I would implore you, however, to not write off South Africa immediately. Things aren’t going great, but there are still many pathways to build a good life in the county, and there are positive elements to South African life that you won’t get at all abroad (as a funny example, I constantly miss mountains). I know many people that moved abroad and have come to regret it or have second thoughts. The gist of it is that I think it would do your future well if you fully weighed up the pros and cons of emigrating. What do you value? What do you want? What do you like about South Africa that you might not like about the other country, and vice versa? You don’t want to commit to living in an expensive country without an income and the also realise it’s not a good fit. Also, you have an EU passport, so emigration at a later stage is very easy if it becomes necessary.