Hey all,

I'm marrying the love of my life, my sweetheart from Bern in July 2011. In short, our best option is for me to move to Switzerland from the US.

She's got a great job here as a teacher. I on the other hand, am finishing a Master's in History from a university in New Jersey (Bachelor's in Philosophy). I have good marks, adequate work history with some tutoring experience, enjoy writing and teaching... I'm also an able photographer. I can speak intermediate Turkish, and limited Spanish.

Unfortunately, I don't think I have many options. But I'm open to whatever jobs may exist. Perhaps some form of teaching, or embassy work, or manual labor... whatever may exist. Though, I prefer to use my mind first. Thanks for your help.

Drew

I realized I never actually posted my question... what job options would a person in my position have in Switzerland (preferably near Bern)? An American without many language skills, and a Master's in History? Thanks.

Not to sound negative, but...Why is moving to Switzerland your best option as opposed to staying in the states?
I say this, because you are about to become newlyweds. Have you ever lived abroad? You said you are not speaking German. Well that's the german speaking side of the country. It's very expensive to live here. And if you think it's possible not to be working for atleast the first 6 months, and you think your new marriage will survive that, then come on over!
I am not trying to be negative. I moved to europe, not right after getting married, but for love as well. But coming to a foreign country where you don't speak one word of the language, is not easy. If you read this forum you will find alot of people that are living here with their spouses or boyfriends/girlfriend/friend/realtives and so on, and alot of them are scraping for whatever they can find. And alot of those people are speaking german too.
But, trying to answer your actual question...so do you speak Turk, because you are Turk? There are alot of Turkish communities here in Switzerland and I would check if their aren't Turkish social clubs or the like, either in the area you are thinking of, or anywhere in the german speaking area, as it's not that big of a country, and see if they could use some one, some where. Do you like spinning meat on a metal stick? You'd be suprised at how many people do like it here too.
You might look into one of the international schools, if you have any experience in teaching history. I don't know what field of history is your specialty, but if it's American history, that is only going to useful to a specific crowd of students. Do you have any other experience, skills?
I know when I researched the area I was going to be moving to, I called about 30 restaurants and hotels, and asked all of them the same question when they could understand"I am not asking for a job from you, but, if some one like myself came to a place like your's would you be interested in hiring some one like me?" 5 said yes. All you need is one job of course. And a whole lot of desire to learn german and understand their culture. It's in your best interest to live, breathe, eat, and digest german from this moment on if you want to have any chance.
Again, I am not trying to be negative, just realistic. It might sound wonderful to hear that in Switzerland the people make so much more, then most places in the states(where I recently was debunked in another thread I found out the per capita income was almost exactly the same between the two countries) but, you should start a thread with asking how much does such and such cost in Switzerland, and pre pare to get your mind blown out. Garbage bag tax, tax for the garbage man to pick it up, enviromental carbon tax for your car, tv tax, end of the year tax, bike tax, driver's license that will cost you 140, and, well I am too tired to list everything.
So what else can you do?

www.rav.ch
This is the state unemployment agency job listings. It's also in english. This will give you an idea of what is available. You will have to write the job you are looking for in german though.
www.gastro-express.ch
This is a do-it-all for the restuarant and hospitality field in Swizerland. You will find on both sites, they are looking for mutter speaking germans. Not just hacks. I know, I probably called ALL of those people to have them only re-iterate that on the phone.
The Embassy and the like, normally hire mostly locals(Swiss people) because they have to also speak the native language to deal with Swiss people who are trying to immigrate, student visas, and the like to the US.

If you will be moving in 2011, the best thing you can spend every free minute from now on, is learning German imho. The better your command of the local language is, the more and better job-options you will get (and the culture-shock will also be softer ).

And Switzerland is small, distances are short, public transportation works pretty well; so you don't really need to limit your job search to Bern only (unless there would be a visa restriction, which I am not aware of). Basel, Zürich, Solothurn, Biel, Aarau and more are just a short train ride away.

Wish you all the best with your life-project

I also moved to Switzerland for love, and I don't regret it in the least.

Since your future wife will be working, will it be crucial for you to work full time? If not, you could also do freelance work.

It is a challenge to move over, but one I think is very worthwhile.

Congratulations on your impending marriage.

While it will probably be more difficult than you imagine; adapting to a new culture and not speaking the language, missing your family and friends, it's worth trying, all new experiences are

So with that in mind, I would encourage you to start learning German ASAP! Insist that your girlfriend speak to you in German, take lessons immediately, watch movies and TV programs that you know well, in German.

Without the language, it will be difficult (to impossible) to find a job.

Good Luck.

Mrs. T

Do you have a teaching qualification? If so, you could work in an international school.

Like the other guys said, spend a lot of time learning German between
now and then.

Sorry I can't give you any job tips. I while back I also came here to marry my Swiss girlfriend. Although I got into an IT job pretty quickly I still found the first few years very tough. Other people I know had much better experiences. Good luck

I have just migrated to Switzerland for the second time.
The first time was very tough, not a lot of opportunities for work, and had trouble mastering the language. This time however I feel I have more skills and education behind me and 5 years of work experience relevent to my specialist area of expertise. Whilst German is still challenging for me, I intend to go back to study German for the next 3-6 months to get on top of it whilst searching for work.
You may have another option open to you and that is perhaps considering doing a PHD in your field. This may buy you time to master the language and find your feet.

Good luck with everything.

Have you got a link to that. It would be an interesting read.

It was on the Glarus voting thread...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of...%29_per_capita.

I have been there and done that!

And it looks like I'm not alone!

I moved here and got married soon after, and I had learned virtually NO German. I received a "B" Permit for employment which has many restrictions. Because my wife had just completed her second Law Degree that year, her income here in CH is substantial, so there was no need for me to try to find a job. In the U.S. I ran a chemical and industrial equipment company, so with the "B" Permit, it would have been hopeless to find anything equal to what I was doing. My wife has an old family friend that is a high school teacher, she hired me to tutor her best and worst students. Now that I've been here so long, I have the unrestricted "C" permit! But now with the kids, I'm a stay at home dad!

There's actually a difficult situation for people who move here and try to learn German. First of all, if you learn German and try to speak, EVERYONE will hear your accent an and instantly switch to English for their practice! Then many people suggest to not learn Swiss Ger., just learn the High Ger. because it's more important.

Everyone then speaks dialect, you answer in your newly learned High Ger., then they answer in English!

Link no worky

I'm fighting that a lot! lol I speak French enough so that I can manage my everyday life and chat with friendly people, but quite often they try to switch to English (I guess they think their English is better than my French...). I'm persistent and keep answering in French till they give up and get used to it. But it's true, it's easy not to learn the language if people are so "helpful". You just have to push it.

Your B / C Permit should allow you to pursue any kind of work you desire. Why do you perceive restrictions?

Hello,

I have experienced the same fact, but I was fortunate to turn to the University!

Look for PhD Positions at the university of Zürich, ETH or even Bern.
They will pay you enough to live and you might have a carrier in the Uni afterwords.

Good luck

A full B permit has absolutely zero restrictions as far as employment or indeed independent work is concerned.

When I received my B Permit in 2002, they clearly explained that any job I pursue, the firm must first fill out an accompanied form declaring that all attempts have been made to first fill that job with a Swiss citizen before moving forward! And I was handed extra copies of that form! That was a little stronger then just a "perceived" restriction!
And as I stated clearly, I know that the C Permit is unrestricted.

Granted, some time has passed since 2002, things might have changed with the B Permits?? I have not inquired since then.

I have had no restrictions with my B. And I am happy that you can stay at home, and no one gives you cr*p about the fact you aren't pulling an income but watching the kids.
Others are not so lucky.