Employment - American Aliyah - Articles about Israel

You may have heard of advanced rocket scientists who made Aliyah and then cheerfully planted carrots in a kibbutz field for the rest of their lives. However, you are more likely to want to find work in your chosen field in Israel.

Keep the following issues in mind:

Israel is small, so a particular position may not be available in your selected region - or at all
Some employment opportunities that are readily available in the United States may not exist in Israel
The Israeli work ethic is different

If you are older, then a significant career shift may not trouble you. You may be ready for a change after many years in your own profession. (OK, so you won't plant carrots on that kibbutz, but you can certainly milk the cows).

On the other hand, younger people should prepare for Aliyah in a different, but logical and sensible manner. For example, a librarian from a developed country may be very disappointed by the limited facilities and employment options available in information science.

If you are still young enough to contemplate the beginning of a lifelong field of employment, then you should give due consideration to what you want to accomplish in life. What field is best for you? Do try to find out which fields offer greater work opportunities in Israel.

Obtaining the official data

The American Bureau of Labor Statistics sends reports to guidance and employment counselors, employment offices, colleges, and universities. They offer forecasts and trends of the fields that will be needed in different American locations. Despite their occasional mistakes, they do help people select the right career or field of study. They help people determine the positions that are currently available and in demand, as well as those that will be available in a year, in five years, in ten years, and so on. Of course, long-range forecasts are less reliable than the more immediate data.

The equivalent Israeli data is important when you plan your Aliyah. However, your shaliach doesn�t know about it. He didn't learn about it in his training course, and he will probably deny that it exists.

He's right, to a certain degree, since Israeli information is different from that prepared by the American Bureau of Labor Statistics. However, you can pressure him to locate the basic information that you need.

For starters, some organizations post job notices, and some bureaucracies or ministries have websites that post available jobs. You and your shaliach can also scan classifieds and box ads in Israeli newspapers.

However, you really won�t get a complete or straight answer, and you will not know all of the trends. Israelis depend on protektzia more than on advertisements. As a matter of fact, certain larger offices are required to advertise positions even when they already have a candidate for the position. Thus, the posted advertisements do not necessarily reflect the current job openings.

Getting your own data

You should therefore supplement any factual information with your own research. Ask your Israeli contacts what they know about relevant jobs in Israel. The more people you ask, the more accurate your picture will be.

If you would like to find employment in a specific area, then it would be wise to check in advance whether it is available in Israel. However, it�s good to have a second or a third alternative. This flexibility is important:

It looks good on your resume
It sounds good when you�re talking to people
It is a wise way to make sure that you�re not going to have a problem later on

What should your job be?

Some time ago, Marsha Sinetar wrote a best seller called Do What You Love, The Money Will Follow for Dell Publishers. It described a good approach to your profession: You know what you enjoy doing. Be prepared to do what you love in Israel, but allow for additional possibilities or options as well.

Where do you want to go now?