Hi,
I was a VSO Teacher Librarian at the National Library of Maldives and
returned to the UK in July 1999.
I would be interested to hear other people's experiences of job hunting and
employment since their return from placement, particularly in light of a
report by VSO and DEMOS entitled 'Human Traffic: Skills, employers and
international volunteering' due to be published on Thursday. Part of the
report focuses on the effects of international volunteering on career
prospects. A media release with further details can be found on:
http://www.vso.org.uk/media/demos.htm
My own experience is: in more than one interview I was told that my two-year
absence from the UK library scene was the main factor in not offering me a
post. Eight months after my return I did get a temporary job and then
thankfully a permanent one, but not until almost a year to the day after my
return. However, this permanent job is at a lower scale and salary than my
pre-VSO posts. Consequently, while I have been able to further develop some
skills, more have had to be put on hold.
I hope that mine is an isolated case and that others have more positive
stories to tell.
Melanie Weeks
Facilitator
Learning Centre
Swansea College
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