Working in London

By Andrea Desfarges, PR graduate

London might seem like the ideal way to gain experience, travel and make money simultaneously – and it can be – but there are some things you should know that they don’t tell you in the brochure.

London is laden with immigrants; Polish, Turkish, Brazilians, Algerians, Australians, you name it. So it makes sense that visas, bank accounts and skilled work is harder to come by as a foreigner since, right or wrong, preference is given to British born residents. The credit crunch has magnified this problem as there are fewer companies hiring.

Make sure that your paper work is sorted out beforehand, register with top pr and marketing recruitment agencies and try and set up interviews telephonically before you fly out. Be flexible with the type of role that you want, but make it clear that although you’re prepared to learn and work hard, with a qualification and some work experience you should be earning more than a basic wage. Which, by the way, is £5.70 per hour or approx £16 000 per annum for a professional pr job. It might sound like a lot but when you’re earning pounds, you’re spending pounds.

I waitressed for a few months until I was finally offered the type of role that I was hoping for and many South Africans end up doing that permanently or working in a call centre. But with nearly 1 500 PR agencies based in and around London there is no reason that you shouldn’t find a job in PR if you persevere.

It’s not all doom and gloom. The standard of work is very high, the client lists are fantastic and the media industry is one of the largest in the world. Once you’ve worked in the UK it is accepted that you can work in any country, while unfortunately South African references mean nothing.

And once you do start earning an average wage, a comfortable standard of living is more affordable(Electronics, clothing, food, cars.

One of the main differences between working in the UK from working in SA has to be timing. Things generally work at a faster pace here. And we’re not talking CT – JHB different pace, we’re talking about all emails actioned ASAP and deadlines reached long before the due date. If asked, one needs to be able to organise an interview with a journalist within an hour, or solve problems on the spot.

Pro’s to working in the UK:

The late Summer sunsets at 22h00 and good music festivals

A Saffa (South African) bar or shop is never far away, so you won’t miss your biltong

The ease of travelling around Europe that is cheap and quick

Large Saffa community and exploring a new pub scene

Pubic transport

Not having to worry about installing burglar bars or constantly getting your bag snatched

Con’s to working in the UK:

Say good bye to the heat of the sun and purchase a raincoat

You often have to share housing as rent is so expensive

Starting right at the bottom with low wages and long hours

You will always be treated as a foreigner

About Andrea Desfarges:
Andrea completed her Diploma in 2003 and in 2004 spread her wings to the small island of the UK, managing to land a position in the PR department of KPMG London. In 2005 Andrea started her own small business, Red Box PR, which specialises in media campaigns, experiential marketing and brand management. In 2008 she was nominated as one of the top consultants in the UK by the PR Week Awards.