What kind of working holiday maker are you?

Thinking of travelling to Australia on a working holiday visa? There are heaps of job opportunities across the country, including Queensland, which is welcoming international holidaymakers with open arms. But with a wide variety of jobs available, it pays to know which roles best suit your interests, your personality, your travelling plans and your location preferences. Not to mention your skills and any qualifications you may have. 

What’s more, even though you may have a firm idea of the kind of jobs that you’d like to do on your working holiday in Australia, with so many options currently available to international holidaymakers, it certainly pays to explore your options — you may find you have many more than you think! Take this quiz to find out!

How important is where you work?

Chances are you have a good idea of where you’d like to work in Australia, but it’s advantageous to be flexible and open-minded. That doesn’t mean you’ll have to work somewhere completely different to where you had in mind. But with so much work available, there are often opportunities in places you may not have considered. For example, you may have your heart set on living and working on the Gold Coast, but you may find more job opportunities up north in tropical Cairns and The Whitsundays. Or you may plan to work in Sydney or Melbourne but with the higher cost of living in the larger metropolises, you may find Brisbane a better option.

When are you travelling?

As many industries have seasonal trends, the time of year you’re travelling to Australia affects the jobs that are available. For example, more hospitality jobs are available during the holidays, there’s higher demand for retail staff in the lead up to Christmas and the availability of fruit picking and agricultural jobs is determined by the season. So, while there’s work going all year-round, the kind of work that’s available is often seasonal in nature. 

Do you like working with people? 

Not everyone is cut out for customer-facing roles, but if you’re outgoing, can effectively engage with different personality types and enjoy working with people, you’ll have your pick of a variety of roles across retail, sales, hospitality, tourism, events and many more. And it’s amazing where these roles could see you working.

From bustling metropolises like Brisbane to the beaches of the Sunshine Coast and the spectacular landscapes of the Queensland Outback, there are always ‘people person’ roles available for backpackers on working holiday visas.

Are you the outdoor type? 

If you don’t mind a bit of hard ‘yakka’ (work) and spending time outdoors, job opportunities await you across Queensland and Australia. These include fruit picking, which is one of a selection of jobs that can help you get a  Working Holiday visa extension after completing three months (88 days) of specified work.

Other industries involving physical outdoor work that can help you get a secondyear working holiday visa include construction, farming and fishing. The best resource to learn about your options is the Department of Home Affairs website.

Do you have any qualifications or skills? 

If you have qualifications that are recognised in Australia or skills that are in demand, naturally you’ll want to use these to your advantage. But you’ll need to be sure that your qualifications are recognised. 

Thinking of working in Queensland during your time here? The Queensland Government’s Department of Employment, Small Business and Training (DESBT) may be able to help you check whether your qualifications are recognised in Australia. And if you don’t have recognised qualifications or certifiable skills that can help you get the job you want, don’t overlook the opportunity to take a course before you arrive in Australia or while you’re here — you can get a white card to work in construction, an RSA to work behind a bar and many more certificates online.

Work in Paradise incentive scheme

Looking to work by the beach or in the outback on your Australian working holiday visa? The Work in Paradise incentive scheme could help you make that a reality. This scheme is the perfect way to work, live and play in a tropical paradise like Cairns or the Whitsundays or enjoy unique experiences in the Queensland Outback with its spectacular landscapes while you work and save up for further exciting travel and adventures.

Experience Queensland with Greyhound Australia & Backpacker Deals

Are you planning on working in Australia this year? Get your Working Holidayer pass which includes travel to Queensland and 30 days of non-consecutive travel over three months with Greyhound Australia to more than 100 Queensland destinations. And to help you check off those Queensland backpacker bucket-list experiences, you’ll also get a $200 discount voucher* from Backpacker Deals. But you’ll have to be quick — this amazing deal for international holidaymakers is only available until the end of August 2022 or until sold out*!

*Terms and conditions apply.