Hello

Hej all,

My name is Steve; I moved to Sweden in February of this year to be with my partner and am living in Hässleholm, Skåne County.

I'm not under any illusions, this was going to be a hard move and is proving so, leaving behind a stable job in the UK to venture into the unknown. I'm basically looking for any tips or advice on how to find work. As a non-Swedish speaker without a focused skill set (my working background is varied, includes working in book publishing, logistics and call centres) I'm at a bit of a disadvantage and my location rules out any job in some of the larger cities (like Stockholm) for now.

What I'm doing is learning Swedish through duolingo, have had appointments with the local arbetsförmedlingen and am prepared to do anything and everything workwise within a commutable distance (such as Malmö, Helsingborg). Was/is anyone else in the same situation? Have they found the arbetsförmedlingen to be helpful?

On another note how have people found adjusting to life in Sweden? Am interested to hear from anyone's experience from any country. Personally the lack of pub culture here takes a bit of getting used to (or I just haven't discovered it yet!) and have struggled a bit in my few months here to meet people.

Thanks in advance,

Steve 

Hey Steve,
Nice to meet you. I also came to Sweden to be with my partner, and we are living  in Lund. Just finished up a Master's program in Psychology and am looking for work myself.   Have found Arbetsförmedlingen somewhat helpful as they do have online seminars and such which are informative.
As far as finding friends, I would recommend joining a club or group based on your interests. For instance, I enjoy running, so I have reached out to find a local running club. There might not be the same pub culture that you find in the UK, but there are definitely a few good pubs around town in Lund - not a bad place to start if you ask me!

Best of luck with the continued job search. I'm finding it to take longer than expected, but am also studying Swedish through a course at the local Komvux and that's been good so far.

Cheers,

Molly