Making a career change

Contact some of the recruiters like Vietnam Works.

Colin is being nice.  Your options are slim and none and none just left the building.

SteinNebraska wrote:

Colin is being nice.  Your options are slim and none and none just left the building.

I could have sworn that was 'Slim'.

They look so much alike...

My god you are correct. They do look similar but it was Slim heading out the door.

Seriously to the OP, without

A speaking Vietnamese
B having a lot of experience in a field
3 a skill set not readily available in the Vietnamese work pool

there really isn't much of any chance to get into "finance" in Vietnam.  Jobs are held for the Vietnamese population and can easily be filled by them at a much lower cost.  As an ex-pat English teacher you are filling option 3 above.  That's why you and a bazillion other expats are employed in Vietnam.  The bulk of the rest are either here based by their multi-national company or own a business.

Could not agree with SteinNebraska more. Finance jobs are not that high powered unless its MNC and they usually send own people over. The locals manage their own outfits and will need handling local staff knowing language and culture.
Localised 'expats' stick to teaching English.

Thank you for the feedback, I appreciate it.

Congrats on meeting your financial goals!
Next:

1. Keep teaching in Vietnam
2. Research 'remote accounting jobs'. Google it and permutations
3. Choose what skill is most in demand
4. Learn/enhance skills online to specialize, take classes maybe
5. Network on accounting communities, linked in, small business boards, etc
6. Try to get remote side jobs in English speaking countries, start at intern rates if necessary to build your resume

Very good advices!!...and obviously need a lot of luck as well!!

gobot wrote:

Congrats on meeting your financial goals!
Next:

1. Keep teaching in Vietnam
2. Research 'remote accounting jobs'. Google it and permutations
3. Choose what skill is most in demand
4. Learn/enhance skills online to specialize, take classes maybe
5. Network on accounting communities, linked in, small business boards, etc
6. Try to get remote side jobs in English speaking countries, start at intern rates if necessary to build your resume

Brilliant advice, thank you for taking the time to comment! I'll start looking into it

Expat jobs do exist, but remember any non teaching job thaf local VN can do for less money than a foreigner is going to be given to the locals.... and I have to agree it should be that way, even though it makes finding a non teaching job a lot harder for me so far

Jlgarbutt wrote:

Expat jobs do exist, but remember any non teaching job thaf local VN can do for less money than a foreigner is going to be given to the locals.... and I have to agree it should be that way, even though it makes finding a non teaching job a lot harder for me so far

It says that on govt websites, but in reality its not always the case. I agree that if a local can do they job, they should.

The situation is getting more and more difficult for the teachers.
most of them do not have a work permit .... immigration laws are becoming more and more restrictive ... in the long run visas will be abolished or limited ...
The VN taking the way that Thailand ....

kallouche wrote:

The situation is getting more and more difficult for the teachers.
most of them do not have a work permit .... immigration laws are becoming more and more restrictive ... in the long run visas will be abolished or limited ...
The VN taking the way that Thailand ....

Respectfully, there is no logic to your post.

Perhaps you should say that the situation is getting more and more difficult for the ILLEGAL teachers.

I think LEGAL teachers (who are eligible for business visas as well as Temporary Resident Cards) are doing just fine, and they will NOT get caught up in the upcoming visa changes because they are not using tourist visas.

Yes, ILLEGAL teachers who are not employed under a work permit ISSUED TO THE SCHOOL/Employer will definitely begin to have visa problems.

According to my source in Hanoi, that's the main reason that the maximum length of stay (LOS) on tourist visas of any length will now be 30 days:

Immigration will be able to force these "tourists" to exit the country, and when they return, the immigration officer at the Point of Entry (POE) will now be interrogating them even more seriously to see if they are indeed teaching or otherwise employed illegally.

Meanwhile, as Vietnam continues to embrace economic partnerships with other nations, LEGAL visas and LEGAL immigration will expand and flourish.

Are fearing for your own situation?

Is your visa/immigration status totally legal and valid?

Just a question; not meant as an accusation...

OceanBeach92107 wrote:

kallouche wrote:

The situation is getting more and more difficult for the teachers.
most of them do not have a work permit .... immigration laws are becoming more and more restrictive ... in the long run visas will be abolished or limited ...
The VN taking the way that Thailand ....

Respectfully, there is no logic to your post.

Perhaps you should say that the situation is getting more and more difficult for the ILLEGAL teachers.

I think LEGAL teachers (who are eligible for business visas as well as Temporary Resident Cards) are doing just fine, and they will NOT get caught up in the upcoming visa changes because they are not using tourist visas.

Yes, ILLEGAL teachers who are not employed under a work permit ISSUED TO THE SCHOOL/Employer will definitely begin to have visa problems.

According to my source in Hanoi, that's the main reason that the maximum length of stay (LOS) on tourist visas of any length will now be 30 days:

Immigration will be able to force these "tourists" to exit the country, and when they return, the immigration officer at the Point of Entry (POE) will now be interrogating them even more seriously to see if they are indeed teaching or otherwise employed illegally.

Meanwhile, as Vietnam continues to embrace economic partnerships with other nations, LEGAL visas and LEGAL immigration will expand and flourish.

Are fearing for your own situation?

Is your visa/immigration status totally legal and valid?

Just a question; not meant as an accusation...

The Chinese will still be entering illegally, but this doesnt seem to bother their comrades in Ha Noi.

Dylmatt wrote:

Hey guys,
I couldn't find any information on this so I thought I'd start a new thread.
Like many young expats in Vietnam, I moved over here to teach English. This was just a temporary financial move for me in order to clear my student loan.
One and a half years have now passed and I have achieved all of my financial goals, However I have managed to fall in love with this city in the process, which brings me to the reason for this post.

I am wanting to make a career change to wards my line of studies, which is finance. Can anyone give me any tips on finding a finance job as an expat in HCM? I have a degree in accounting and a PGDA in Management accounting. Does anyone know if it's possible for me to get a finance job here considering I have minimal experience?
I'm pretty lost here, any help will be greatly appreciated!

Chances are next to none, companies here nearly always hire cheap locap staff.
Those that dont are often filled with people who cannot do the job and just happen to know the employer or pay a bribe for the job