[admvinny]

Hey all, been snooping around for a wee while only posting now - in an effort of trying not to ask stupid questions but i will anyways i guess

I currently live in Ireland and have been working circa 2.5 years in the planning field here, doing the more mundane things such as applications for development, appeals, further information subs etc. I have recently been working in the private sector and have little public sector experience, i have a BSc in Spatial Planning and as a minor environmental management and i am looking for a position in New Zealand.


In real terms i'm looking to diversify a bit and get out of the whole development led system and get a bit more into the environmental field, with my degree i have carried out siginificant study on environmental matters, resource management etc and ideally i am looking to move further into these kind of fields as opposed to the planning thing, reason being i'm a little bit bored of it and to be honest sick of the consultancy work 70+ hours a week to get on well - i would much rather be healthy out in the open air more and obviously not being cooped up in an office all the time would be ideal.


am i thinking totally unrealistically, can i effectively move my focus in terms of how i'm qualified and given my utter lack of practical experience in the environmental end of things would there be opportunities for someone like me in such fields in New Zealand without having to retrain or do a more focused post graduate degree or similar.

Secondly i intend to apply under the skilled worker permit for a visa - would this be correct, altough the term town planner is not directly on the skills shortage list, urban planner/resource manager is and personally i'm hoping this is the equivalent or near descriptive of my general qualification / experience. Could any of you shed any light on this or ami going down the wrong path on the visa thing.

i guess thats it - looking for a better quality of life basically, no more unpaid overtime and maybe a bit of a change from the applications end of things cheers all!

[JandM]

I don't know an answer for you, but welcome, and good luck.:)

[admvinny]

cheers for the sentiments, cant wait now!

[dusk]

those job titles do sound fairly similar. NZ immigration use the Australia and New Zealand Standard Classification of Occupations list for their job titles, this is the entry for the one on the shortage list:
UNIT GROUP 2326 URBAN AND REGIONAL PLANNERS

URBAN AND REGIONAL PLANNERS develop and implement plans and policies for the controlled use of urban and rural land, and advise on economic, environmental and social factors affecting land use.

Indicative Skill Level:
In Australia and New Zealand:
Most occupations in this unit group have a level of skill commensurate with a bachelor degree or higher qualification (ANZSCO Skill Level 1).

Tasks Include:
o compiling and analysing data on economic, legal, political, cultural, demographic, sociological, physical and environmental factors affecting land use
o conferring with government authorities, communities, Architects, social scientists, Legal Professionals, and planning, development and environmental specialists
o devising and recommending use and development of land, and presenting narrative and graphic plans, programs and designs to groups and individuals
o advising governments and organisations on urban and regional planning and resource planning
o reviewing and evaluating environmental impact reports
o staying up-to-date with changes in building and zoning codes, regulations and other legal issues
o may serve as mediators in disputes over planning proposals and projects
o may speak at public meetings and appear before government to explain planning proposals

Occupation:
232611 Urban and Regional Planner

Develops and implements plans and policies for the controlled use of urban and rural land, and advises on economic, environmental and social factors affecting land use.

Skill Level: 1

Specialisations:
Land Planner
Resource Management Planner (NZ)
Town Planner
Traffic and Transport Planner

[andrewandjane]

theres always plenty of work here for resource consent officers, open space planners, policy advisors etc with local government. shouldnt have a problem,have a look at some local govt websites for vacancies and look at job descriptions should give you an idea of what to go for, also cvouncils are accredited emplopyers which can make the whole visa thing a bit quicker

[admvinny]

thats great - actually have two kiwi lads here in the office and they have put me onto a good contact currently reviewing my c.v. hopefully once i get a job offer on paper the whole visa thing will be quick enough - i'm hoping to move in 3-6 months but is this realistic given that i probably won't budge without an offer of some sort

[dusk]

if you get an offer you can certainly get through the visa process in under 6 months if you have no health problems and can get hold of all the required paperwork in good time - having a job offer means you get the 'sllightly faster' service from NZIS :)

[admvinny]

i'm just doing out the budgets etc to have a similar enough life over there as i would here and to say i will be struggling to have the same kind of gig going on would be fairly accurate - currently would need 40k nzd to have similar assets so to speak

in ireland i'm on circa 40k euros nearly 80 k nzd

is there a scale of salaries for town planners available somewhere based on experience???

i've been looking for a while now and can't find anything - i'm also a grade 2 cad technician which i have no experience at just traingin and to be honest would only use part time - it bores me to tears tbh

also is there any scope for trainign for BER ratings of homes in New Zealand - it was something i was looking at doing here in Ireland through a part time course - energy ratings for houses etc

[andrewandjane]

Nz planning institute may be able to help there.. but as a rule in Auckland a planner with a fsveral yrs experience is on around 60+K for council and probably a little more in the private sector hope that helps? i recall a while ago when i was looking at what the coucnil where paying me i did a google search for planners salaries and planning institute and it did come up with salary levels but they where for the previous year and where a BIT higher than they were paying me, so i moved jobs to another department and got what the average for a planner with experience was.

good luck.

[admvinny]

60k sounds more like it alright -0 i know i'l be taking a pay cut as i'm young (24) and i have all private experience and obviously i'm Irish so it may take me a while to actually be effective in terms of planning laws etc i have 2 and a bit years of experience by the time i plan to leave 3 , over here it seems than private experience is worth a bit more when interviewing for public jobs is that the case over there too - plus at the moment i'm still hovering in assistant planner/ junior planner is there a similar grading system over there i.e. will i have to start ground up again on crap money and all that