Poll of the Day > Scotland job hunting going well!

(+) Yeah! (+)

Felt like celebrating.

Just got my first job offer in and it's one of my top three choices! Will be making a decision this week likely. Wooo.

Pretty great salary for the area, and 40 PTO days (8 are bank/federal, 5 for mental health). Really like their mission, product, and tech stack too.

I'm excited!!

Congrats! are you going to be like a hitman or something over there? Seems like a fun job to do in Scotland where they gots them funny ways of talkin

grats! what kind of industry is it?

so got another offer in, and honestly I think I know my decision already and might cancel other interviews. I happened to schedule my favorites early in the week, and one is much more exciting for me tech stack and product wise and company ethos etc. not as flashy an office as others but that's not really the main thing to focus on. has the highest Glassdoor reviews and great culture.

I'm giddy

Tutoria posted...

grats! what kind of industry is it?

messaged you about it

JigsawTDCII posted...

Congrats! are you going to be like a hitman or something over there? Seems like a fun job to do in Scotland where they gots them funny ways of talkin

obvs that's the way to go

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=i2q0T7QXETs

Are you going to be making the move to Scotland alone or with anyone?

Why Scotland in particular?

Why are you moving to Scotland?

not to be presumptuous, but everyone know Scotland is one of the most fun and fulfilling countries to be a hitman (or, in this case, probably more correct to say hitwoman?), so it makes sense career-wise

I'm curious about the line of business as well

But good stuff! I'm happy for you

JigsawTDCII posted...

Are you going to be making the move to Scotland alone or with anyone?

alone. And I do intend to permanently immigrate there. Five years before permanent residency. A year after that I can do citizenship.*

(*if Scotland becomes independent these processes might change)

FatalAccident posted...

Why Scotland in particular?

Vidyagamelover posted...

Why are you moving to Scotland?

I've been considering where I want to settle down for a couple years now, and what it is I value. Main things that I took for a starting point were: has tech, friendly and chill vibe, good public transit, and were cities (pretty good food and music, cultural events, etc). I had seen Edinburgh mentioned as very walkable and Glasgow very friendly so that made my list. Chicago was the main place I was looking at in the states and liked there too.

Visited. Fell in love. Very friendly and beautiful nature. Very very pedestrian friendly which is very important to me. I'm using the word very a lot but I VERY MUCH LIKE IT OK lol...

Other things I cared about besides the above:

- pretty decent for climate change relatively (thinking about wildfires, tornados, etc. They have excellent tap water lol.. and I found a thing about rising sea levels and they're pretty good in most parts through 2100)
- can't emphasis friendly enough, and it reminds me of home (Texas) in the good ways. Saying thanks to bus drivers, morning to fellow joggers/dog walkers/etc (also very dog friendly!). Square dancing apparently comes from Ceilidh. Cute cows lol..
- more progressive relative to the rest of the UK and states
- gun safety, crime safety
- better work / life balance than the states
- proximity to the rest of Europe for travel
- very affordable

Visited Glasgow and Edinburgh and made a pros/cons of each of those cities too compared to the other.

So yeah I made pros/cons of cities I was looking at. Scotland won. Felt very home there and loved it. I met up with some friends who have been living in London for four years and were from Texas and when I said how much it felt like home (but better -- again in the good ways) they were like YES they totally got that vibe too.

Krow_Incarnate posted...

I'm curious about the line of business as well

But good stuff! I'm happy for you

well broadly, it's tech, I'm a software engineer

specifically is too niche I think

and thanks!

oh also I was thinking Strasbourg and Berlin, but decided against them for various reasons (would like to visit there though!)

oh while I'm moving alone, when I was over there I had what I thought was going to be a holiday fling with a cute Scotsman. I figured that probably would not be A Thing since I'd be gone for many months with moving, job hunting, etc, and originally was definitely not thinking that would develop into anything.

But turns out we have actually been keeping a spark going, talking a lot still, and are weirdly very compatible so >.> that's looking promising

This is a interesting topic. I'm from England but my cousin who I've never met lives in Scotland. I am interested in the work culture there. Also congrats!

wwinterj25 posted...

This is a interesting topic. I'm from England but my cousin who I've never met lives in Scotland. I am interested in the work culture there. Also congrats!

Thanks! yeah I remember you're English. whereabouts there if you don't mind my asking? I've really only been to London, but the Scot I'm talking to visits Manchester fairly often.

grimhilde00 posted...

Thanks! yeah I remember you're English. whereabouts there if you don't mind my asking? I've really only been to London, but the Scot I'm talking to visits Manchester fairly often.

Sheffield or 'the steel city' as others call it. Next door to Manchester basically.

wwinterj25 posted...

Sheffield or 'the steel city' as others call it. Next door to Manchester basically.

ah yes have heard of there. I've been doing a ton of reading up on things.

I always thought of Scotland as farms. So apparently its a good area for tech?

Have you ever been to Chicago? The way youre describing Scotland sounds like Chicago but the people are nicer. Chicago is the one of the coolest cities to live in in the US in my opinion. Kind of expensive though. I wonder what the cost of living in Scotland will be.

Im so curious to see how this goes because I never would have thought doing software engineering in Scotland was a thing.

DrPrimemaster posted...

I always thought of Scotland as farms. So apparently its a good area for tech?

Have you ever been to Chicago? The way youre describing Scotland sounds like Chicago but the people are nicer. Chicago is the one of the coolest cities to live in in the US in my opinion. Kind of expensive though. I wonder what the cost of living in Scotland will be.

Im so curious to see how this goes because I never would have thought doing software engineering in Scotland was a thing.

Edinburgh has a great university, they have a really big startup scene, some large homegrown startups (Skyscanner and FanDuel), and keep growing. They also have a very large tech fest (Turing Fest).

I saw a lot of data science and analytics hubs there too.

Glasgow is the biggest city and a lot of large companies are there.

And yes I visited Chicago right after the UK! It was definitely my top choice for the states. Scotland is more affordable (but pays less so might even out).

I prefer Scotland cause of politics (compared to states in general), guns (not a dig at Chicago, I'm talking about the states in general, Chicago as a state choice again was my top choice), nature, proximity to Europe, train access across cities, and I just preferred it over there. Also no tornados lol (growing up in Texas I hate those..)

But I really did like Chicago. I'll be missing Mexican food and Chicago had that as a definite win hah (I did find a Mexican grocer in Scotland though so I can cook stuff on my own).

https://www.scotsman.com/business/edinburgh-singled-out-as-uks-next-big-technology-hub-3551782

https://technation.techcityuk.com/cluster/edinburgh/

also I recently saw this little survey and lol'd cause my #1 and #2 choices Edinburgh and Chicago are the same here

https://www.timeout.com/news/edinburgh-is-officially-the-best-city-in-the-world-in-2022-071222

oh FanDuel might have started in Glasgow, not sure, just know it started in Scotland

can I come crash at your house when I come to visit Scotland and then overstay my welcome by being there wayyyyy longer than you expected and essentially bum around Scotland not looking for a job and eating all your food

JigsawTDCII posted...

can I come crash on your house when I come to visit Scotland and then overstay my welcome by being there wayyyyy longer than you expected and essentially bum around Scotland not looking for a job and eating all your food

I'll think about it. you'll have to fight with 4 other friends of mine who are already in line to do this.

okay no problem. I lost every single wrestling match I had except for the one where the other guy didnt show up so I won by default when I did wrestling in third grade, but I also won the only fist fight Ive been in in fifth grade because I threw the first, last, and only punch. I think I can take on four random people. Is it a fight to the death?

JigsawTDCII posted...

okay no problem. I lost every single wrestling match I had except for the one where the other guy didnt show up so I won by default when I did wrestling in third grade, but I also won the only fist fight Ive been in in fifth grade because I threw the first, last, and only punch. I think I can take on four random people. Is it a fight to the death?

of course, there can be only one

and my flat will be small so

*our flat

JigsawTDCII posted...

*our flat

you kill me, in a good way

grimhilde00 posted...

Edinburgh has a great university, they have a really big startup scene, some large homegrown startups (Skyscanner and FanDuel), and keep growing. They also have a very large tech fest (Turing Fest).

I saw a lot of data science and analytics hubs there too.

Glasgow is the biggest city and a lot of large companies are there.

And yes I visited Chicago right after the UK! It was definitely my top choice for the states. Scotland is more affordable (but pays less so might even out).

I prefer Scotland cause of politics (compared to states in general), guns (not a dig at Chicago, I'm talking about the states in general, Chicago as a state choice again was my top choice), nature, proximity to Europe, train access across cities, and I just preferred it over there. Also no tornados lol (growing up in Texas I hate those..)

But I really did like Chicago. I'll be missing Mexican food and Chicago had that as a definite win hah (I did find a Mexican grocer in Scotland though so I can cook stuff on my own).

https://www.scotsman.com/business/edinburgh-singled-out-as-uks-next-big-technology-hub-3551782

https://technation.techcityuk.com/cluster/edinburgh/

Deep fried pizza originated in Scotland so you can look forward to that

grimhilde00 posted...

Edinburgh has a great university, they have a really big startup scene, some large homegrown startups (Skyscanner and FanDuel), and keep growing. They also have a very large tech fest (Turing Fest).

I saw a lot of data science and analytics hubs there too.

Glasgow is the biggest city and a lot of large companies are there.

And yes I visited Chicago right after the UK! It was definitely my top choice for the states. Scotland is more affordable (but pays less so might even out).

I prefer Scotland cause of politics (compared to states in general), guns (not a dig at Chicago, I'm talking about the states in general, Chicago as a state choice again was my top choice), nature, proximity to Europe, train access across cities, and I just preferred it over there. Also no tornados lol (growing up in Texas I hate those..)

But I really did like Chicago. I'll be missing Mexican food and Chicago had that as a definite win hah (I did find a Mexican grocer in Scotland though so I can cook stuff on my own).

https://www.scotsman.com/business/edinburgh-singled-out-as-uks-next-big-technology-hub-3551782

https://technation.techcityuk.com/cluster/edinburgh/

https://www.sdi.co.uk/news-features/news-and-feature-articles/what-makes-edinburgh-the-ideal-place-for-tech-companies

Jeez, had no idea. I'm kind of jealous right now.

I've been looking at the jobs available and I'm considering applying to one of these companies just to see what happens. I haven't interviewed in a while.

Revelation34 posted...

Deep fried pizza originated in Scotland so you can look forward to that

yeah that's another way it reminds me of home/Texas lol...

DrPrimemaster posted...

https://www.sdi.co.uk/news-features/news-and-feature-articles/what-makes-edinburgh-the-ideal-place-for-tech-companies

Jeez, had no idea. I'm kind of jealous right now.

I've been looking at the jobs available and I'm considering applying to one of these companies just to see what happens. I haven't interviewed in a while.

do it! hah

grimhilde00 posted...

yeah that's another way it reminds me of home/Texas lol...

do it! and let me know if you wind up moving there too hah

Are you worried at all about being far away from people in the US? Like family and friends.

DrPrimemaster posted...

Are you worried at all about being far away from people in the US? Like family and friends.

no I'm not. I consider myself pretty independent. I've kinda made moves like this with gradual baby steps. I moved to Austin without anyone there. Still, 3 hour drive to family. Then moved to SF with my ex and I had a friend in the city (not super close but we got closer once I moved there and was a bridesmaid in her wedding recently). Now I'm moving alone to a country with no one really there. I do have a couple ex coworkers in London.

But I make friends easily. My parents I'll still see a couple times a year with them visiting or me going over there. That's really the amount of time I like to spend with my family anyway.

Friends throughout life have moved in and out of cities I've been in. I've kept up with people in Texas, California, Vietnam, Mexico, etc. I am excited to make friends that stay in the same place as me longer. One of the reasons I didn't like SF or NYC or London, people come and go more, are transitory.

But yeah looking for roots and I'm not worried about setting them down here.

DrPrimemaster posted...

Im so curious to see how this goes because I never would have thought doing software engineering in Scotland was a thing.

oh one thing I don't think I touched on enough. I'm taking a huge salary decrease with this move and while COL is lower I think still it won't make up for that. Also I expect my housing will be smaller.

But I'm just valuing other things more (culture, transit, work life balance, etc)

alright if everything goes according to plan should be out there right at the beginning of September

I'll miss fringe fest but there's always next year and that's better for booking an Airbnb and flights anyway

That sounds awesome. I fantasize about doing that sometimes, leaving Canada to live in Europe.

I've never been, but I have spent a long time looking at street views in cities like Edinburgh and London. Amsterdam, Stockholm, Paris.

Since I live on the west coast it feels prohibitively expensive to visit Europe... I don't know when I'll be able to. Maybe I'll compromise and visit QC instead. lol

lol this interview process has been longer than I expected

1) 3-5 separate interviews each on a new day with some a week or more apart with things being remote, rather than having like a phone screen and an all day in the office

2) summer and holidays. today is a summer bank/federal holiday (Scotland gets an extra!) and I'm like impatient and mildly complaining about that, especially since I'm waiting this week for visa stuff, but also that's one of the reasons I want to go there good work life balance and holidays, so can't be too annoyed by it

I liked Europe a lot better even just 5 years ago. There aren't a whole lot of good places to live these days unless you enjoy isolation

DietSchmendrake posted...

I liked Europe a lot better even just 5 years ago. There aren't a whole lot of good places to live these days unless you enjoy isolation

when I visited UK in April it was fully open, but that's not the EU. Pretty sure they're pretty open these days too though..

I've been living in SF which has been pretty open since vaccines, and really open since the spring, but similarly took lockdown seriously for a long time.

or is that not what you mean by isolation?

It's not.

DietSchmendrake posted...

It's not.

what do ya mean then

oooh assuming the visa process moves as quickly as it should and I can fly out the 29th, there's a final concert and fireworks for closing Fringe fest I'm going to go see with the Scottish lad I know that would be such a fun welcome (and last time I went over there I was wide awake from jet lag anyway lol)

grimhilde00 posted...

what do ya mean then

I mean that people are getting ugly anywhere that more than a hundred of them are gathered.

DietSchmendrake posted...

I mean that people are getting ugly anywhere that more than a hundred of them are gathered.

ah I'm sure you've done plenty of research with that and all the countries

Scotland is very safe. one of the big reasons I'm moving there.

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/0/4/0/AAe6yIAADhWg.jpg https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/0/4/1/AAe6yIAADhWh.jpg

relevant recent Reddit thread

grimhilde00 posted...

ah I'm sure you've done plenty of research with that and all the countries

Scotland is very safe. one of the big reasons I'm moving there.

All the countries? no because I am specifically trying to avoid the worst, but I've been around to most of the first world at least, which seems pretty essential given your list of requirements

grimhilde00 posted...

oh one thing I don't think I touched on enough. I'm taking a huge salary decrease with this move and while COL is lower I think still it won't make up for that. Also I expect my housing will be smaller.

This means so much more now.

Im buzzing with so many career questions

DrPrimemaster posted...

This means so much more now.

Im buzzing with so many career questions

you can DM me if you want

grimhilde00 posted...

Scotland is very safe. one of the big reasons I'm moving there.

Nothing wrong with Scotland. England and Wales are perfectly fine too for that matter on how safe it is. Some folk get paranoid too much.