How to Live in Europe as an American

The easiest method for US citizens to legally live and work in Europe is through the Department of Defense. All of the US military bases in Europe hire civilians to perform various jobs. Many of the skilled positions will even pay for your moving expenses. Health care, however, is not always included. Go to USAjobs.gov to see some of the job openings.

Of course, you could enlist in the military but foreign postings are never guaranteed.

The problem with Defense Dept teaching positions is that they are all over the world and your assignment often depends on seniority. I can also guarantee that your first posting, if accepted, would not be in Europe. You have a variety of responses, start with your university, but this not the best site for your question.

Are you an undergraduate or graduate school student? If the former, have you thought of pursuing your graduate studies abroad? I think it's better to take smaller steps first, like living in a different country for a limited time, before fully committing to something more permanent. As you may know, the job market in many European countries is very poor for young people (just look at the high unemployment numbers, even for young college educated people), so to compete in that atmosphere, you'd have to bring some specialized, hard-to-match skills that aren't found in the local population. Or you could work for a multi-national company that has offices overseas. I would say that this forum is not a great resource to do this kind of research because it's largely leisure travel related (and the demographics and circumstances are much different than your own). I would start with your college resources to gauge what kind of prospects you may have overseas given your educational level and experience.

At one point in time I looked at graduate (post graduate in UK terminlogy) programs. One thing I noticed is that many Master's programs in UK seemed condensed into one year as opposed to the typical 30 to 45 hour 2-year programs in the U.S. You mention a PhD. Do you already have an MA? If not, that's a possible avenue. Also check out when the next Fulbright (sp) scholar application period is due up.

I would recommend perusing the schools that contract with iss.edu. They are a placement company used by most American schools overseas. They run hiring fairs all over the place looking for qualified candidates. I know several people who went to hiring fairs and had several offers by the end of the day from which they could choose. As an English major you could get a teaching job and work on your degree at the same time? Many schools in Europe require experience but in some places you can go as a first-year teacher.

I would look into getting a teaching job at one of the international schools. Frankfurt has a least 5 of them. They will move you over here, pay you well and your opportunities for weekend travel are excellent when you live in a hub like Frankfurt.
Check out Frankfurt International School, International School of Frankfurt, Phorms, Metropolitan School Frankfurt, Frankfurt International School Wiesbaden campus, European School Frankfurt, European School Rhein-Main, Strothoff International School.

Since you are still at university, I would apply for a semester abroad program to see if you like living abroad first. If you do, then see if your university has any fellowship opportunities or connections abroad which would offer residency. You can also directly apply to a graduate program at your own expense which may open the door to other opportunities.

Which languages do you speak, as this may determine where you go.

Although people in many parts of Europe speak English as a second language, the only places that speak entirely English are the UK and Ireland.

I don't know about Ireland, but there are tuition fees at UK universities which are more expensive for overseas students.

The UK is trying to reduce the number of immigrants and therefore trying to find a job here will be difficult unless you work for a US company with offices here. Youth unemployment is high in Europe.

I have lived overseas in Saudi Arabia (5 years), and Germany (4 years), while employed by the US Army as a civilian.

Both jobs were competitive selections. Back in the 80s there were over 300,000 US troops in Europe, not there are a fraction of that number. The number of job is rather small compared to those days.

It is wrong that accepting overseas assignments that you might be ordered to a position not of your choosing. That may happen for those in uniform, but not civil service employees.

Living in Europe was a wonderful experience. As a DoD employee, we had free housing, use of the commissary and post exchange which saved us $$$ over living completely on the local economy. Still, we lived in a local neighborhood away from the Army housing. We loved many things about Germany. The people are very nice, especially once you get to know them. Housing is not like the USA, most people live is much smaller houses or flats.

It was great to be immersed in the culture of a different country. My Wife and I worked with mostly German local nationals. We could hop in the car and see much of the country on the cheap.

One thing that we learned about Germany, rules are rules and they seem to thrive on rules. It was far more than most Americans want to live.

We learned some German, but were never fluent. Many Germans and Europeans speak English, so it was never a problem.

Have you been to Europe? If not, I would suggest a study-abroad program just to ensure you make an informed decision.

I have lived and worked outside of the US for 17 years, but I was hired internationally each time. To reach a point where you can be hired internationally, you have to have significant work experience under your belt already for a company to even consider the expense of bringing you on. Perhaps at this point in your life, it makes sense to consider a graduate degree at a school in the UK - Scotland is excellent and free. You'll have to support yourself somehow, though, and you'll need to be sure that you can be legally employed. Don't assume that a student visa will allow you to work.

I would make a final suggestion of Peace Corps. I cannot tell you how many of my colleagues (Americans working overseas) got their start in Peace Corps. It also provides a very large and strong network as former Peace Corps Volunteers tend to give preference to other volunteers. No Peace Corps in the UK though!

Looking at USAjobs is the best place to start. You can search the countries you want to work in. Jobs don't have to be teaching. Bases in Europe hire all kinds of people from grocery store clerks to bartenders, they look for Americans. Most of the jobs are not high level/high salary positions. If you're young and don't have dependents, however, it's not that hard. They may or may not pay to relocate you; again, if you don't have a lot of stuff, it's not a big deal if they don't reimburse you for relocating.

There are also teaching/clerical/administration jobs with international schools. They wouldn't be on USAjobs. You probably have a better chance at those if you are studying an education related major.

The hardest part is preferences. Dependents of people stationed overseas get precedence. You just have to stick with it, until you find something.

I've looked at jobs in Europe, but few come up at my level and I imagine lots of people, already in Europe, apply to get the promotion. I keep trying but no luck so far.

Many overseas government jobs, State Dept, USAID, Peace Corps, etc., are likely to send you somewhere other than Europe.

One other opportunity, but you have to research it. Is to get a job on a cruise ship. You should be able to find something that cruises Europe in the summer then cruises the Carribean in the winter. The jobs are long hours but, as an English speaker, they would probably want you in the pursor's office or cruise director's staff - much better than cook, maid, etc.

though Germany also sounds lovely

Well then, let me add some thoughts for Germany.

I don't agree with what some of the others said about unemployment. Many companies are desperately in search of qualified personnel. My nephew for instance has basically been snatched from university just having finished his bachelor's degree.

That said, the emphasis of course is on "qualified". A good knowledge of English is required in many fields, but English as a stand-alone qualification will leave pretty much only teaching as a job.

You don't say anything about your knowledge of the German language. In order to be able to work at a German school, you will of course have to be able to speak at least some German. So that pretty much leaves the international schools someone else mentioned.

One thing that we learned about Germany, rules are rules and they seem
to thrive on rules.

Have you ever tried living in the United States as a foreigner? You'd be surprised at the numbers of rules they thrive on. :-)

there's a lot of competition for Federal jobs and its difficult to compete against the veterans' preference, and for reassigned DoD employees from other places as the footprint shrinks. For low end jobs at military facilities, there is a preference for spouses of active military assigned there. Much of the support activities are run by contractors, not DoD employees. Locals are employed for many of the lower end jobs as well.

Anne,

I didn't intend to insult Germans with my statement about rules.

Examples of the kinds of rules that we found in Germany that you don't find in the USA are these:

1) Don't flush your toilet or take a shower after 10PM. That was a rule that we were informed of by our landlord. That was pretty common from what we heard from others.
2) You must report to the police when you move to a new residence. I guess the police want to know where you are at all times?
3) If you are standing on a street corner at 10pm at night and the light is red, you can't cross the street, even though there are no cars within a mile of your location.
4) During the Winter, you are responsible for clearing the snow and ice from your portion of the sidewalk. You need to have that arranged, when you are gone. Actually, that is not a bad rule.
5) Not sure if it has changed, but the stores would all close about the time we were off work (apparently the Unions are powerful and don't want people to work after normal work hours). The only time you could shop was on one day a month, as Saturday or a Thursday evening the stores were open.

6) You could not wash your car with a water hose, had to use a bucket. Apparently, an environmental rule.
7) If you wanted to go hunting, the rules were just ridiculous.

8) One thing we liked was that Germans were great about following the traffic rules. One rule was that when you parked your car and left it you were required by law to lock your car.

I worked in England as a postdoctoral research assistant for two years (2005-6) after I got my PhD (at a US university). I'm in a scientific field (chemistry/physics) so I don't know how much of this is applicable to an English major, but here are some details of my experience:

After talking with my PhD adviser about it, I chose the research group I wanted to work with, in part because I knew (from seeing them at conferences, etc.) that they did great research, and in part because, like you, I was curious about living in the UK. They knew my research, too, from those same conferences, so I didn't have to go through a competitive application process - I just asked, and they offered me a job. (Actually, at first they said they didn't have any money and I'd have to apply for an outside fellowship to pay my salary. But after I was turned down for the fellowship, they found the money for me after all. At that point I had to go through the motions of filling out an application to satisfy legal requirements, but it was basically clear that the job was already mine.)

They did the paperwork to get me a work permit. I had to get my own visa and pay my own moving expenses (which didn't amount to that much, because I was a poor grad student without a lot of possessions).

As my postdoc contract was winding down, I applied for jobs in several different countries, including the US, the UK, and Germany. Most of these were in scientific writing/editing, not research. I got a job offer from a publishing company in Germany that was looking specifically for native English speakers to work on one of its English-language publications. The topic of the publication aligned perfectly with my area of expertise, so I was a good fit for the job. However, after a lot of thought, I turned it down to take a different job back in the US.

I loved living in the UK, but I was also happy to return home. It's a beautiful and fascinating country and I'm glad I got to experience it, but there were also all sorts of little ways that I just didn't quite fit in. When I talk to British researchers who have spent some time living and working in the US, they often say the same thing.

@geovagriffith, I didn't feel insulted. I only wanted to point out that each country has its own set of rules. And we are usually not aware of many of those in our own country because either we grow up with them naturally, taking them for granted, or, being residents, they don't affect us in a way that would seriously impede us.

I apologize if this is going to get a bit off topic (maybe it can be considered "cultural aspects of moving to another country" :-) ), but I would like to reply to a couple of those "rules":

1) Don't flush your toilet or take a shower after 10PM.

In an apartment house, it's just sheer common courtesy not to do anything noisy like play the piano, run your washing machine, or yell at your wife after 10 p.m.. In buildings with thin walls, it can also be quite annoying if your upstairs neighbor takes showers at all hours.

As for flushing your toilet, that's sheer nonsense. No landlord is entitled to demand that of his tenants, and if yours did, he was just going way beyond his competences. And as for that being "pretty common": I've never heard of that kind of rule before, and I've lived and flushed my toilet in German apartment houses for many years of my life.

2) You must report to the police when you move to a new residence. I
guess the police want to know where you are at all times?

I am sorry, but that's just plain wrong. There is an office where you do have to register when you move to a new residence (Einwohnermeldeamt), but that's a city hall department and has absolutely nothing to do with the police.

3) If you are standing on a street corner at 10pm at night and the
light is red, you can't cross the street, even though there are no
cars within a mile of your location.

Who says you can't? Of course you can. And many people will.

However, a red light remains a red light, and it's not going to be ineffective just because it's 10 p.m.. Just like in the U.S..

And if an accident does happen because you cross the street when the light is red, you'll have a lot of explaining to do to your insurance. Just like in the U.S.. I am sure U.S. insurances will ask a lot of uncomfortable questions in that situation too.

4) During the Winter, you are responsible for clearing the snow and
ice from your portion of the sidewalk. You need to have that arranged,
when you are gone. Actually, that is not a bad rule.

I agree, even though I hate the shoveling. :-)

And everyone who ever broke their arm because a sidewalk was not cleared will also agree.

5) Not sure if it has changed, but the stores would all close about
the time we were off work (apparently the Unions are powerful and
don't want people to work after normal work hours). The only time you
could shop was on one day a month, as Saturday or a Thursday evening
the stores were open.

There are two sides to that, as every salesperson who has to work weekends instead of being able to spend time with their family will tell you.

And as for only being able to shop one day a month, I don't see how that can be possible since the laws about work hours would affect your job too, normally giving you two days off per week.

6) You could not wash your car with a water hose, had to use a bucket.
Apparently, an environmental rule.

That rule is actually even stricter than you assume: Washing your car is not allowed at all in many places, including in front of your house. And yes, it's for environmental reasons. All kinds of oil, lubricants and other stuff get washed into the ground water, not to mention whatever cleaning agents people might use. A perfectly sensible rule, in my opinion.

7) If you wanted to go hunting, the rules were just ridiculous.

Let me just put it this way: There is more than one view on hunting laws in Germany as well as in America.

And it would be fairly easy to find quite a number of perfectly ridiculous laws and rules in the U.S.. :-)

Universities in Scotland are hugely expensive, like Stanford, $60,000/year, not free! Where did that statement come from? I think they are free for EU (not England) residents though.

4) During the Winter, you are responsible for clearing the snow and
ice from your portion of the sidewalk. You need to have that arranged,
when you are gone. Actually, that is not a bad rule.

This is law in most places in the US as well.

Here's a French program that was suggested to a family member currently at University.

http://highereducation.frenchculture.org/teach-in-france

I've never heard of teachers getting free tuition to go to graduate school. Where is that? I want to tell my kids and grandkids about that.

On the subject of laws that may seem ridiculous to foreigners . . .I was an exchange teacher for a year in London. I was shocked to learn that at the teachers' Xmas lunch, there would be alcoholic beverages. Not only were wine and beer served, but the hard stuff, as well. Lots of it. After the holiday break, the leftovers were sipped at lunch until all were consumed. My colleagues were shocked that in California schools it is against the law to serve alcohol, even at night time events with no children present. One of them said, "we sent our puritans over to you."
Now, on a more serious note, and back to the OP's query. . .There is a program sponsored by the Japanese government, called JET, which places native English speakers in schools as assistants in English classes, no knowledge of Japanese required. My daughter participated many years ago. The provisions vary by prefecture, but she got housing and a salary.
There is another program, one of the Fulbrights, which places recent college grads also as assistants in English classes in Europe. My other daughter did that one in France. She got lodging and a small salary for 12 hours/week work, and was able to take courses toward her MA at a nearby university, tuition free. I do believe language fluency is required. Both of these were done back in the last millenium (1986/7 and 1989/90), so I don't know if the programs still exist. Try googling or your college placement office.

I've never heard of teachers getting free tuition to go to graduate school. Where is that? I want to tell my kids and grandkids about that.

Most countries in Europe consider education a right rather than a privilege and so it is either free or the fees are very low. My son will start college at the University of Bern in autumn studying computer science and the total costs including books is zero! If he goes for a masters afterwards then the all in costs is about $1,800 per year.

Here are a few old references:

http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-32821678

http://www.nbcnews.com/feature/college-game-plan/why-american-students-are-flocking-germany-staying-n515961

Let me just clarify one thing: civil registration of residence (sometimes done through police offices, sometimes through an office of vital statistics, sometimes through the city hall etc) is something common in many European countries, for locals and foreigners alike.

The Netherlands, for instance, has such a comprehensive system that it hasn't held a census since the early 1970s. Your residence registration is a pretty big deal, and that information is automatically shared between public offices, banks upon request, credit registry, university and school administration, health insurers - and more. So when you move (Dutch or not) you must inform the central civic registration system of the move. If you don't everything gets screwed up, from taxes to the (default) presumed composition of your household, to a variety of tax-related matters like imputed income from real estate or notional rent.

The upside for these registration systems, which go in tandem with national ID cards, is that it is very easy to do business on a daily basis, and virtually no one will ever ask for some "proof of residence" like utility or bank slips addressed to you.

Those are some pretty old laws about shopping in Germany and go back to the 80's, early 90's.

Grocery stores are now open until 22:00 or even midnight, dept. stores until 20:00-21:00 on Fri. and Sat. Bakeries open on Sundays in most cities and at train stations you will find stores open on Sundays too.
Frankfurters cross on red all the time, even in the day time, but usually look to see if any kids are there and if there is then they wait so they set a good example.
The toilet flushing and shower rules at night are illegal. No landlord can ask tenants to follow those rules. They do have quiet hours in the afternoon and after a certain time at night, but this is not very restrictive. Don't cut your grass, don't vacuum or play loud music.

Pluses of working and living in Germany- you will get at least a month of paid vacation, you will have great health insurance, you will get to travel a lot.

You should change the title of your post to how to emigrate to Europe as an American.

Complete a degree program over there do an internship with a multinational maybe they will hire you and have a child or marry a local.

Thanks for the info, Jim in Bern. I will pass it along. It's likely too late for our kids to get any advanced education in Europe, but it would be great if the GKs could.

When the OP said this...

"I would like to get my doctorate in English, but in the States, if your grades are up to par, you can attend for free if you teach. Is that the case elsewhere?"

...I thought she meant that there are programs in the US where a teacher could go to school for free and that she was seeking something similar in Europe.

So I was seeking info on those US programs to which she referred. A couple of the kids might be able to do that, even at their advanced ages.

Lo, in the US, I think Americorps has some programs, but I am not certain of the details.

When my son finished Americorps, there were fellowships and paid internships available to Americorps alumni at his grad school.

I know of expats living in Austria and Germany, both Americans married to their nationals, one of the Americans, Calif boy fluent in German and working in a computer related firm.

First of all. ask yourself how "American" you are in being able cope or not cope with the "rules" in Germany, ie, socialisation. Most of what I've heard of and read in regards to "cultural cues" in Germany and France don't bother me a bit....these rules. If you are a "prisoner of your upbringing" (I'm exaggerating to make a point), then you'll have more issues with coping , what is called 'sich einleben.' What about your notion of privacy or expectation of air conditioning? Are they essential for you?

If you intend to focus on Germany, first and foremost, get the language down, (this includes speaking and writing correctly), study all day, etc, use which ever method works for you, tech assisted methods, drill and kill, total immersion, etc until you start dreaming in it. Know it so well that you don't face linguistic interference, ie, wanting to say the German word for a car jack or med prescription and the English word keeps popping up or vice versa.

Bottom line... it depends on one's dedication.

FYI: Malta is another English speaking EU country.

@Rosalyn: Love that story... !

And could add many more examples: Two-year-old girls having to wear a bikini bra top... Paper coffee cups warning you "Watch out! This could be hot!"... Rear view mirrors kindly letting you know "Objects in mirror may be closer than they appear!"... Bans on clotheslines as a zero-energy alternative to dryers...

What's ridiculous always is in the eye of the beholder. :-)

Bans on clotheslines are rare and I doubt are even enforced anywhere.

The "objects are closer..." warning only appears on convex side mirrors, usually the right side only.

Wikipedia at least doesn't make it sound like it's rare or uncontroversial.

But that's actually beside the point. My point was "... is in the eye of the beholder". :-)

Bans on clotheslines are rare and I doubt are even enforced anywhere

I keep running into them: former California condo, my current upscale housing development--but I have a dynamite drying rack I use. I lived in Europe too long to give up sun drying.

Anyway, a short term commitment is always good before burning all bridges. People and situations change. Furthermore, what looks rosy from a distance, shows all its warts upon closer examination. Try the expat forum for info: expatforum.com.

FYI: Malta is another English speaking EU country.

Actually after BREXIT there will be no English speaking state in the EU and the EU will no longer be under any legal requirement to communicate or produce documentation in English! Neither Ireland nor Malta selected English as ther stated language and in the case of Ireland the diplomatic language is French not English. Traditionally the Irish foreign minister and more often than not the finance minister as well are expected to speak French at at least B2 level.

It is hard to imagine an EU without English and I expect that changes will have to be made going forward to some how have a language with no owner so to speak.

I've honestly never heard of clothesline restrictions. These must be restricted to some buildings' balconies, or covenants for specific developments when they are new. An ordinary homeowner can always use a clothesline.

Note that in a lot of western US states it is illegal to collect rainwater since the runoff belongs to somebody.

In my area it's common for high rises to prohibit having anything on ones balcony that can be seen from below, other than plants. (I'm not sure whether they can get away with prohibiting satellite dishes.) It's an aesthetic issue. Some buildings require that draperies or drapery liners be white or off-white for the same reason.

Actually after BREXIT there will be no English speaking state in the
EU

Now I do wonder where you would get that kind of information. Ireland is part of the European Union, and English is one of Ireland's official languages, actually being the dominant language over Irish.

Malta is part of the European Union as well, and English is one of its official languages.

Also, the OP is asking about Europe, not about the European Union. And while Britain is certainly able to leave the European Union, it's going to have a harder time leaving Europe.

There's a great subreddit on this subject: r/iwantout. Lot of younger people currently in the middle of planning to emigrate or just live abroad for a while. Good luck!

Are you set on Europe. Are you interested in Asia. I was in the JET (Japan Exchange and Teaching Program). The program is run by the Japanese government and you are an assistant English in Japan public schools. It's a great program.

https://jetprogramusa.org

Now I do wonder where you would get that kind of information. Ireland is part of the European Union, and English is one of Ireland's official languages, actually being the dominant language over Irish.
Malta is part of the European Union as well, and English is one of its official languages.

Regardless of what you may think, that will be the legal situation once the U.K. exits. As set out in the treaties each state must opt for one language and neither Ireland nor Malta selected English. In the case of Ireland A8 of the constitution states the Irish is the first language and so the government went with it.

Presumably something will be done to address the issue going forward but until then BREXIT means the English will no longer be an official language of the EU. Hence Mr. Junker's comment about the decline of English and his switch to using French.

Are you saying that English is NOT one of the official languages of Ireland as well as Malta, and that English is not the majority language in Ireland at least?

That's all I said, and I am not quite sure why you are contradicting me, or why you are giving others the impression that that's only "what I think".

And if English is one of these countries' official languages, quite obviously there are English speaking countries remaining in the EU. Regardless of which language they may have picked for diplomatic purposes or for writing treaties.

I have been wondering about that too.

I think that all of us are equipped to live abroad most successfully now with the exception of the OP who has not come back to comment.

You don't state your current year (junior or senior?), but try the Fulbright U.S. Students Program - According to their website, "The Fulbright Student Program offers research, study and teaching opportunities in over 140 countries to recent graduates and graduate students." This would fit what you are looking for. If there is time left in your undergrad program, enroll in German 101 and 102 to get one year of language skills. Or, you could enroll in an intensive language course. I know that some European universities offer fellowships to American students to support graduate work, similar to what we call 'assistantships' in the U.S. We had a student complete an M.S. and then went to Germany to work on her Ph.D. on such a fellowship. However, be advised that fellowships and assistantships are awarded on a competitive basis, so definitely don't let your grades slip.

Thanks to everyone who took the time to reply; I really appreciate it. You've all given me many ideas and much food for thought. I just finished up my freshman year of university, so I suppose I have time to come up with ideas/schemes. Once again, thank you!

These are the steps to easily move to Europe:

1. Go to intended destination in Europe.
2. Find suitable man from intended destination.
3. Marry man in point 2 above, apply for immigrant status as spouse.
4. Live in the intended destination in Europe with husband married at no. 3 above.

Done!!

5.Find out how long you have to stay married to man married in no. 3 above in order to have an independent status of your own. (For Germany, I think that's three years.)

6.Dump man.

;-)

Your are a freshman? Then study abroad your junior year. No one will even look at your twice unless you have some sort of living abroad experience.

Lo: My daughter is doing that right now. She applied for a combined masters/doctoral program at several schools. She was accepted at Carnegie Mellon. Her tuition is covered in full for six years. She can extend for year 7 if she needs additional time to complete her dissertation. She is paid an annual stipend over 9 months to teach one session of an English 101 class to freshman per semester. So she gets an $17500 annual income for that. She is, joy of joys,considered an employees and gets paid medical, dental and vision!!!!!!
A lot of universities offer this combined graduate/doctoral program. Her best friend is in the same program at Yale. It's an awesome opportunity.
PM me if you have any questions.

Hi,

Since you have completed the first year at the university, hopefully you included a foreign language in your studies. assuming that is still an option. If not, get to it as a sophmore. The more foreign language you study, cram, take in, memorize, etc, the better. Getting "A" s in foreign language courses is a start, good, but still not good enough. Above all, forget the mistakes you make, keep plugging at it...speaking, reading, and writing.