From DC to London or Birmingham??

Hello!

I am so excited to find this website and am already encouraged by reading some posts.

My name is Karen and I am married to a Londoner.  We've been in the US (DC area) since we got married (2.5 years). Now that we have a US Green card successfully in hand, my dear hubbie is thinking about returning to England for grad school, either in London or Birmingham area this autumn.

So as I contemplante how I can get a job in England, if we should sell our house, and imagine us living in poverty in London, it is nice to find a site for others who have/or are planning to make the jump across the pond.

We will be in London next week to visit schools and I am planning to speak to a few recruitment offices.  If anyone could use a transport planner, please let me know!

Thanks-
Karen

Welcome to UKY!!!  Do you plan on returning to the States after your husband finishes grad school?

bvamin

At this point, yes I think our plan is to return here after he finishes school.  Having said that, our plans do seem to change from year to year...

Welcome to UKY!  I'm partial to London as I live here & don't really know Birmingham.  If you are planning on coming back to the DC area after a few years, I'd just rent out your place rather than sell it...having lived in the DC area in my past I know how much housing can go up in just a few years & that renting is done a lot!  Have a great time on your trip to London! (do you have a spousal visa here yet?  if not you can't really look for a job while over on a visit)

Welcome tu UKY!!   I live near  Birmingham and it is not as  bad  as  people say..  best of luck on your visit!!

Welcome, I hope you enjoy your time in London or Birmingham wherever you choose to go.

Just a word of warning, if your husband leaves the US for more than 2 years he will lose his greencard
and have to reapply all over again.  If it is less than 2 years it is possible to apply to keep it.

DW had her greencard for 6 months, then we moved to the UK and on one of the trips back to visit
they revoked her greencard.  They told her that if she comes back within 2 years she might be able to
get it back almost right away but if it becomes a more permanent move where we end up in England for
years (which we now are) then she'd have to go through the entire process again.

Matt

Hello transport planner Karen!

I am an 'urban planner' currently working in a private practice in Leeds (after 8 years of working in London), so I work closely with transport planners and from what I hear,  there is a huge shortage of qualified transport planners here in the UK, both in the public sector and in the private sector.  So, your skills should be in demand.

In London, public sector transport planners are employed by Transport for London  (www.tfl.gov.uk) and the individual 33 Boroughs.  They are doing some really innovative stuff and as anyone who has been to London will tell you, they have their work cut out!!!

There are also numerous private sector consultancies, with offices in London and regional cities.  Try the following:

www.arup.com
www.steerdaviesgleave.com
www.wyg.com
www.fabermaunsell.com
www.jmp.co.uk
www.wsatkins.com

Most of the above operate internationally, so shouldn't be phased at employing a US citizen.  There are lots of smaller consultancies, who might be able to offer a different kind of work experience.

Good luck with the move.  My wife is from Vienna, VA, so I know the DC area very well.  London or B'ham will be a big change, but a lot of fun!

Chris

Welcome to UKY!

Welcome to UKY!

I am living in DC and dating someone in Leeds. I'm going over next week to Manchester airport - leaving from DCA and changing plans in Philly.  My plan is to get my masters in Leeds and live with him this next year.

If you ever want to chat, meet up or see if we have similar flights - feel free to contact me.

~Andrea

Hi,

Welcome to UKY - something else to consider in your decision making is the cost of living.  You might be better to go to Birmingham esp if you other half is not working much while in school.  London is a very expensive to live in.

Best of luck

Steve

Thanks for all the kind responses. 

The school my husband is most excited about is in Hertfordshire, which I have heard is a bit cheaper than living right in London, although within commutable distance.  Of course , my husband being the Londoner, can't quite imagine England outside of London, but financial realities might prove otherwise.

My husband has his permanet green card, and I understand that he can't be out of the US for more than 12 months, but that is not enough to ensure that a green card won't be rejected.  I think because we plan to not sell our house here, we'll continue to file taxes in the US, and the reason we are in England (school) is specific and has a finite period that we should be ok.  We've had friends (wife American, English husband) who have done likewise off of a greencard.

When we come over to England this weekend, the real purpose is to visit hubbie's family, and to visit schools.  While I am not interviewing specifically for any jobs, I am hoping to make "general interest" inquiries just to get a general since of how much transport planners make, what the market might be, how I can make my resume more CV friendly, and what, if any, things I can do to make myself more marketable.

Thanks so much for the list of consultancies to check on!  And very exciting to hear that transport planners are in demand! My MA is actually in urban planning, but Ikind of just fell into transit/transportation following graduation...