Need some advice about the US and careers!
The Blind Eternities forum
Posted on June 26, 2016, 8:06 a.m. by ChiefBell
Hi everyone, hope you're all doing well.
As you may or may not have heard there's a lot of political turmoil at the moment in the UK as a result of a recent vote to leave the European Union. The outcome has been widespread economic uncertainty in England and the threat of complete upheaval.
Naturally I have no interest in staying here and contributing to a system that's so happy to shoot itself in the foot.
I'm currently undertaking a PhD in Counselling Psychology which means I will be an accredited Doctor of Counselling Psychology. This means I can carry out popular Psychological interventions such as CBT, psychodynamic therapy, or Person Centered Counselling. Basically I sit in a room with patients and deliver a psychological therapy in a structured form for an hour before taking clinical notes and seeing the next patient.
A few questions (the TL;DR):
Which job in the US is most similar to what I do now? A therapist? A psychologist? A counselling psychologist? I don't know what you guys would call it.
What's the market like for workers like me? Would you work in hospitals or private clinics, or would you see patients from your home?
How difficult is it for a skilled medical worker to obtain a visa to work and live in the US?
My girlfriend is an accountant and studies tax law. How difficult is it for a skilled finance worker to obtain a visa to live and work in the US?
I'm extremely liberal, left leaning, and unapologetic about this. I would kind of like to live in a place that agreed with me. I've heard talk about San Francisco, Portland, and Seattle. Any other recommendations? What kinds of things should I know?
Any other help for a Brit trying to move to the US?
PROTIP: Not here to debate politics. I don't care if you agree with my stance or disagree. I'm not going to rise to criticism. I'm just humbly asking for your help in sorting my future out. Thanks.
Also as a side note: I won't be as active with writing or publishing articles for a while (nodding at zandl here in particular) because I really do need to sort myself out.
VampireArmy says... #3
Those 3 cities are your best bet.your work is fairly common for people to immigrate for. Since us students are a bit more lazy. There's counseling work you can get with pretty much any hospital. Your girlfriend will have no shortage of work but might need to get acquainted with us tax law as it's possibly much different than the UK. There are plenty of agencies.
Seattle will likely be your cheapest bet and San Francisco being your most expensive
My father worked in drug counseling my mother was a nurse and my brother is a nurse so I'll get you some extra info on that. My father was a budget analyst for the air force (just retired) so I'll ask him about your girlfriend.
June 26, 2016 8:22 a.m.
The #1 difference maker: can you prescribe meds?
If you can get a company to sponsor you, a visa should be doable.
What many people do: be a student first hereconsider less desirable locations as a start (rural or inner city)
Jobs I see as being in demand: addiction counselingcritical shortage of psychiatrists
I am not in this field but my sister and brother in law are.
June 26, 2016 8:23 a.m.
I'm actually not a psychiatrist- I have never done medical training. I cannot prescribe.
I do intend to do medicine at some point but not for now.
June 26, 2016 8:33 a.m.
Serendipitous_Hummingbird says... #6
if you can't prescribe meds you'd be a psychologist.
And yeah, I can understand wanting to get out. President Clinton is vastly preferable to a Prime Minister Johnson
June 26, 2016 9:27 a.m.
McSleuthburger says... #7
Short: For cities to match your views I would say either the west coast or northeast US.
Long: West Coast:
(Bay Area) Berkeley, Oakland, and San Fran area of Cali is the most liberal area. I would advise to stay out of living in San Fran and LA (Stupid expensive) and southern Cali.
Northeast:
Connecticut(Hartford & New haven) & Rhode Island(Providence) could be solid places but I feel it could be a bit harder to find a job though Im not sure 100%
Good luck though with whatever you decide and if you end up near Pittsburgh PA for whatever reason I'd be happy to help you out. There are alot of hospitals (so I feel youd be able to get work here) but im not sure how fast your girlfriend could get a job though im sure she could
June 26, 2016 9:49 a.m.
ducttapedeckbox says... #8
The West Coast or Northeast US would best align with your political views. The lifestyle is incredibly different though - the northeast, especially in Boston and NYC, are some of the most stressful places in the country. Also the drivers are notoriously worse. The pro to the area in your situation is that Boston has some of the best hospitals and medical schools (and law schools if your girlfriend is pursuing a degree!) in the world. This could be a little more difficult to find work, though. The big concern is the lifestyle.
Now that I write that, Northeast doesn't seem to appealing hah. Seattle, Portland, and Oakland would all be great cities. San Francisco gets just as bad as NYC for cost.
I have a cousin that is a psychologist so I can see if I can get anything from her. Hell, my mom's entire side of the family is all some form of a medical professional. Fairly certain that a noticeable percentage of the BU Medical center staff is related to me.
June 26, 2016 11:38 a.m.
MindAblaze says... #10
Have you considered Canada? Our professionals are well compensated, taken care of by our system, and in demand.
June 26, 2016 12:08 p.m.
Since you have such a high level of education and a good skill to offer, I would believe that it would be fairly easy to get a visa here. As for where to go, I've spent a lot of time in San Francisco and it has a very steep learning curve. Expect to pay about 3000$ a month for rent on a two bedroom apartment(you'd be lucky if that apartment had a stove too). Owning a car in sf is insanely expensive due to the lack of free parking, parking tickets, maintenance on your car due to the hills and paying extra in rent to have your own parking spot. Also the job market is competitive. If you come to America I would recommend you get medical training and become a doctor. Going to school here will get you in contact with lots of people that can leave a good note for you when applying for a job. And if you are in to the research portion of your field then you could work at a college. I would also look into making sure you can practice with your degree in the state you choose to go to. Different states require different training with Washington requiring thr highest level of training in the medical field. San Francisco would probably be good for your girlfriends work. There is a lot of people with a lot of money and thus a lot of good law firms. There is also the financial district if she decides to go that line.
I would strongly consider a visit to the states to decide where you go here. The weather I would suspect to be much different than from England.
June 26, 2016 12:14 p.m.
grumbledore says... #12
I've lived in Portland for 14 years - it's a fantastic city. Very liberal, lots of hiking and parks. Highly recommend it.
June 26, 2016 1:34 p.m.
grumbledore says... #13
Also - I have to travel to the Bay Area (San Francisco) for work. It's pretty there, but a complete cluster fuck for traffic and everything else. Personally, I don't think it's worth it. Just my $.02. Good luck ChiefBell :)
June 26, 2016 1:36 p.m.
As far as location goes, the spot with the best lifestyle index set might not be as great as a place with a mediocre index set that also is home to people you already know that could provide several ready connections right away.
The U.S. is a bit less awesome about social nets, services, and built-in welcoming ready to connect-to society (not that there aren't these things, just that capitalism tends to encourage building these things with your own resources and starting social connections makes this much faster and more effective).
June 26, 2016 2:03 p.m.
ABadMagicPlayer100 says... #15
Seattle area is very liberal unless you get way out to the suburbs, but even then it's still somewhat liberal. Also, weather should be fairly similar to the UK most of the time.
June 26, 2016 3:14 p.m.
Havok.Bane says... #16
I've lived all along the west coast, and currently live in the Seattle area, and I'd recommend either Portland, or Seattle mostly because just renting a house in San Francisco is incredibly expensive! Also in Portland there's no sales tax which is kinda nice, but there are higher property taxes.Then in Seattle it's weather is fairly close to that of London as I hear it, as well as being fairly close to WOTC which is kinda cool right?
June 26, 2016 7:35 p.m.
DarksteelBadger says... #17
Have you considered Ithaca, NY at all? It is fairly liberal and the job market isn't bad either. As for employment... I did a couple searches. I can't get the links working, so I'll just paste them.
San Francisco:
http://www.indeed.com/m/jobs?sameQ=1&q=Counseling+Psychologist&l=San+Francisco%2C+CA&from=searchOnSerp%2Cwhereauto
Seattle:
http://www.indeed.com/m/jobs?sameQ=1&q=Counseling+Psychologist&l=Seattle%2C+WA&from=searchOnSerp%2Cwhereauto
Ithaca:
http://www.indeed.com/m/jobs?q=Counseling+Psychologist&l=Ithaca%2C+NY&from=so&fromage=&radius=50
June 26, 2016 10:06 p.m.
DarksteelBadger says... #18
You can do similar searches for other places and for your girlfriend. Whatever happens... I hope all goes well. The whole community appreciates you and all you do for T/O. You will be greatly missed during your, hopefully, temporary absence. We all support you!
June 26, 2016 10:12 p.m.
DarksteelBadger says... #19
Ithaca also has a comparatively lower cost of living.
June 26, 2016 10:13 p.m.
mathimus55 says... #20
Honestly, you might want to wait a bit until our election is over too. No sense in leaving everything only to have Donald Trump and his...entertaining self get elected. I'm not sure you would be gaining anything if you are leaving over the Brexit issue if you come into the US embarrassing itself with that gasbag in charge, which as much as I hate to admit, is a very real possibility. This is coming from a relatively conservative Christian male, but I would be embarrassed to call him my president.
June 26, 2016 11:20 p.m.
Even IF Trump is elected (which recent polls say is far less likely than your racist grandfather would have you believe), he would still have to get through congress to make any noticeable changes. And after four years, everyone would just be all "Holy shit; okay, you guys were right."
I've lived around Arizona my whole life and while the state is generally seen as very conservative, Flagstaff is extremely liberal. It's a smaller city (60,000-ish) but there are a lot of opportunities if you're outgoing. The weather is AMAZING, too; MUCH cooler than Phoenix and a lot of snow in the winter, with good hiking and skiing, if that's your bag.
June 27, 2016 3:03 a.m.
DarksteelBadger says... #22
If you are up for a little cold weather, Minneapolis would be a great place. The people are nice and the Magic scene is great. The job market is good as well. Wherever you go, medical skills are in high demand. Good luck!
June 27, 2016 9:38 a.m.
In all fairness though, Canada might be more for you than America. Though I think America gets a lot of things right, we still have a long way to go. However, about 40% of citizens in this country are stuck in the 1950's and are either too prideful to admit that there's a problem or refuse to devise any sustainable, practical solutions (see: gun control). If you're leaving the UK because they've shot themselves "in the foot", then being stuck in American politics is likely to give you PTSD.
Canada, on the other hand, has a widespread reputation for being a very accepting and welcoming country and their medical field will be better than America's for years to come (if not always). Canada is also generally very liberal (far more so than most parts of the US) and you're rather parallel to the UK on a map, meaning your weather patterns are going to be similar. Vancouver is geographically close to Seattle and shares a lot of similarities both ideologically and culturally.
June 27, 2016 10:56 a.m.
MindAblaze says... #24
Vancouver is gorgeous, but expensive. You may be familiar with Gabor Mate, and much of his work was developed in the inner city of Vancouver, so if you're looking to practice as a Clinical Psychologist there is no shortage of need for it.
Many of the larger centres are very liberal in Canada, and qualified professionals are in demand as I said before. That being said, currently Alberta and N.W.T do not require a PhD to practice as a Clinical Psychologist so you may have more competition for jobs in Alberta. Plus it's oil country, take that however you choose.
Generally though, winters are drier in the interior and more humid the closer you get to the 49. Public transit is pretty decent anywhere I've gone, so start up costs for commuters is pretty reasonable.
My wife's family immigrated from Doncaster in the 60s and have had nothing but enjoyment in the London Ontario region. Do your research though, not that I need to tell you that.
June 27, 2016 1:43 p.m.
Didgeridooda says... #25
Texas has a very good cost of living, has liberal areas, and in areas a booming economy.
June 27, 2016 7:18 p.m.
IcyLightning says... #26
My advice, don't move anywhere because of politics. Its one of the worst reasons to move, because everywhere you go you will encounter people with different views or corrupt systems or just general bureaucratic bs.
Find somewhere you could fall in love with, an area that you could see yourself living in an enjoying. The US is an absolutely beautiful country, with a such a wide variety of cities and climates. Don't go to Portland because you're liberal, move to Portland because the local life interests you, you like eclectic and unconventional living, you like rainy temperate climates.
As for jobs, as long as you move to a larger city, work for Psychologists as an applied field is pretty good, and your gf shouldn't have too much trouble finding work in accounting.
Ultimately, don't focus on trying to live somewhere that everyone agrees with you on every issue. Its not going to happen in the US. I live in Kansas, a diehard conservative state, but I live in Lawrence... one of the most liberal cities in the Midwest.
If you've never been to states I definitely say try to visit here if you have time and the capital, It'd be in your interest in taking a trip to different cities just to experience the different dynamics to see what you enjoy.
Either way, good luck, always glad to welcome someone new to 'Murica.
ChiefBell says... #2
VampireArmy
June 26, 2016 8:08 a.m.