Preferably into the EU. I speak some Spanish and I’m set to graduate with an Associates this semester. Hoping to get CompTIA certs sometime soonish and would like to continue schooling to get a bachelor’s in Compsci. Most notable work experience is 2 years in an office setting making collection calls and processing payments. What resources are available to me? Who or what agency/department can I contact to get more information? What’s the pipeline look like?
I know I could look most of this up, but there’s a lot of information out there and some(a lot) of it I find somewhat confusing. Plus, I don’t really even know where to start.
There are a few weird historical rules which may be useful. For example, if any of your ancestors were Spanish Jews who were expelled in 1492, you may be entitled to Spanish citizenship. The same might go for Portugal.
Wow is that true? :D thats a crazy long time ago…
Some countries consider limitless ancestral pathways, but you must have factual evidence (birth records, marriage certificate etc.) that are unquestionable. Several countries also consider the paternal side only, meaning you must be able to trace your lineage through your father’s male family line only.
I haven’t heard of anyone being able to trace their line back to the discovery of America, but who knows. Certainly heard of some Brazilian successfully claiming German citizenship dating back to refugees from WW1, which is already 110 years ago and 3-4 generations later.
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Associates degrees are non-existent and not recognized in the EU, and most if not all countries require you to be a graduate to be eligible for hire, which would make a student visa the easiest route.
Luckily many countries offer tuition completely for free; though bachelor degrees are often taught in the native language. If your Spanish is solid, you could of course go to Spain, else with English you’d be somewhat restricted to Ireland and Malta (English is the second official language, but the primary for tuition).
Other than that, some universities have English taught bachelor degrees, so you’d have to research them individually. Finland is very English- and Tech-friendly, for starters.
I don’t think they offer free tuition to non-EU citizens
There are countries that do, but you’ll still need to demonstrate that you have the financial means to support yourself without working or needing recourse to public services for the duration of your study, so there’s still a fairly significant financial barrier to entry for most individuals. If you have the money to put down for 3 years of rent, food, utilities, etc, while you complete a degree in Europe, I imagine you’re generally doing pretty okay for yourself in the US.
Nordic countries do
Germany does
While most German universities are tuition-free, foreign students will still have to prove they have the means to support themselves, which means a 5-figure sum for each year.
But to be fair, the tuition is quite cheap depending on what and where you study. For myself the tuition is about 50€ per month(I just assume that the tuition is the same for non EU citizens).
50 euro tuitions are heavily subsidised, usually the price is a lot higher without subsidies.
In Germany “not free” means something like 400$ per semester at the public universities, doesn’t matter the nationality.
TIL: that’s not the case in the federal state of Baden Württemberg.
Wrong, correct answer is that it depends on the university.
You could do your bachelor’s in the EU. In that case, I believe the easiest way is by searching for universities that offer studies in english. The university I work at offers a master’s in computer science in English but the bachelor’s is in German. Most international universities also have offices that can help you with organizing your stay and visa.
Just show up in Belgium. Ask for asylum. If you’re denied, just stay. Belgium does not deport asylum seekers that got denied, you get access to unemployment benefits, free (for you) education, etc.
lol does that actually work?
There’s an estimated 112k people, or 1% of the documented population, living like that in Belgium (1)
Semi serious. Who said it is gay to marry your homies?
Not OP, where do I apply
Seconded
Mexico actually is a great country to live. Cheap living expenses, and the food is just ridonculously good. There are always good jobs available for educated people with good English
Out of curiosity, what is the climate/temperature like there, in the big cities? I imagine it being very warm
Biggest swamp cooler in the world just off the west coast. The closer you get to the Pacific, the more moderate the temperature is. It’s rather cool in Tijuana, currently. (50° F/ 10.5° C)
Depends in where you are. Mexico is (afaik, I might be wrong) the only country that has every possible climat in the world within its borders.
You can have sweaty hot, but tolerable, in Vallarta, you can have dry hot but very doable.innthe Guanajuato region, you can have a milder climate in Mexico City
Step 1, figure out if any of your parents, grandparents, or in some cases great grandparents came from somewhere else. Many countries allow near descendents to get citizenship.
and that’s the true story of how my partner and i figured out that the only non US place that will take us is ruzzia
That is a rough one, damn
And that’s the true story of how I learned all my Polish ancestors came over before modern Poland was a thing, and thus didn’t have Polish citizenship to pass on.
broooo! same! the weird part is that the part of so called russian poland my family was from when they evacuated Europe is in Western Ukraine now, so i guess the conclusion is everything’s made up and nationalities don’t matter
Similarly fuzzy! I think they mostly came from the “Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria” region of Poland. Some definitely have “Galicia” on their earlier census records, then later records for the same relatives say Poland. Other relatives waffle between Poland and Russia. t National borders are so fuzzy.
The other side of the family is from Appalachia since the 1800s, but sometimes can’t decide if they’re born in TN or KY because they were from a disputed region.
there are dozens of us with this background! dozens!
Country borders are just lines on a map. They don’t exist in the real world.
If only everyone was able to experience the overview effect, a lot of our issues could potentially fix themselves.
Mine did, too. I received Polish citizenship this year. If your family came from what is today Poland and you can prove that, you’re potentially eligible. If not, and they came from the territory that is today Hungary, Romania, etc - then check with those countries instead as similar laws apply.
So, how did you go about doing that? Did you pay a company to guide you through the process or what? TBH, I’m a bit intimidated by interacting with a foreign government potentially in Polish, a language I do not speak.
I hired a law firm in Poland that specializes in immigration. They walked me through genealogy / document procurement first, then helped with getting everything translated and notarized for use in Poland. It took about 2 years from starting the process to receiving citizenship.
our partner now
Free benefits
Oof
Well that’s not really an improvement…
lateral move at best. marked step down most likely
Step 1, figure out if any of your parents, grandparents…came from somewhere else.
I’m related to 7 different passengers of the Mayflower!
…yup I’m not moving countries the easy way
Oh damn maybe we’re related. Wing?
I’ll have to have my dad explain it again because he’s the one who’s really been deep diving into genealogy, but I remember he said the captain of the ship and the guy that fell overboard were two of the people we’re related to
I may have to look into this. My grandparents on my father’s side moved here from Norway as children (separate families obviously but immigrated around the same time to the same place, Minnesota) I’d love to go to Norway, I even know a (very) little Norwegian.
For great grandparents I go through 23 and me or other similar service, right? I know the grandparents on my mother’s side are Venezuelan and the ones on my father’s side are from the US, I don’t know about further back than that.
23 and me is a private company that sells your data and gives you a piece of paper with some percentage points written on it.
Unless your relatives are still alive and have another country’s citizenship along with the papers to prove it, you’re out of luck.If you have Italian ancestry, they actually have government help that will do free reviews of US immigration documents. I missed my Italian citizenship by a few years :(
But it was super easy to find out. Just google around for it, jure sanguinis or something like that.
What? Can’t you just ask your mom who her grandparents were?
Although as I type this I realize I have no idea if your parents are still alive, or on speaking terms.
lol all good, she is alive, and we are on speaking terms (I see her a few times a week). I’ll ask her, but I’m pretty certain her grandparents are native to Venezuela too. I don’t know if she really knows them or if they’re still alive though…
lol all good, she is alive, and we are on speaking terms (I see her a few times a week). I’ll ask her, but I’m pretty certain her grandparents are native to Venezuela too. I don’t know if she really knows them or if they’re still alive though…
If Americans could stay in the US that would be great.
Americans who want to leave are clearly able to identify the problems in the US, and are therefore probably not the ones causing the problems over there.
And in general we should welcome people who want to change their life conditions. Freedom of movement is important.
No need to take the chance. They got a pass the first time. You don’t get another. You vote in a rapist please stay where you are and deal with it.
Seems xenophobic
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Those that want to leave are probably not the ones you want to avoid.
IMO, anyone who is awake and aware of the situation in any capacity, and can think rationally has, or is, considering leaving, or has left already.
It’s the people who agree and are happy with what is happening that you should probably avoid, and they don’t want to leave.
Those that want to leave are probably not the ones you want to avoid.
They’re probably the ones I want voting there though, would be nice if people would move around more within the US specifically to counteract the gerrymandering and electoral college 😅
There’s a small third category. Those of us that see the problems and are willing to fight and die to try and save our country.
Fair enough.
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Look up “working holiday visas” if you’re under 30. It’s a process to encourage people to get world experience while they’re young. I’m sure if you found somewhere you liked you could then try and get something more permanent.
EU is not a single country, as the US. Each country has its own rules and regulations.
Some countries, as mentioned, offer a digital nomad visa (Croatia is one of them) others do not.
There’s also something called the Shengen area, which allows for free movement between countries. Not all EU counties participate (yet) and even some non-EU countries are part of it. This allows you to have a citizenship in one country and live / work in another.
As for the language, your mileage can vary. Most countries will require at least a basic language knowlege to pass the citizenship test. For day-to-day communication, work and study, you can find options where English would be sufficient. Lots of universities offer English-language programs and lost of companies are international with English being the primary language. Most Europeans speak English quite well.
As others have mentioned, a student visa for one of these would be your best bet. Explore which country would make most sense based on your needs.
If student visa is not an option, then getting a job (in the target country) first would be a way in. Get a working visa and start applying for citizenship.
You should also understand that literary everybody in Europe (not just EU) has an ID and is registered as a citizen. It’s therefore practically impossible to be undocumented and still get salary, open a bank account or visit a doctor.
TL;DR: Explore each country individually. “Moving to EU” makes as much sense as saying “Moving to Asia”.
So you’re saying this was a stupid question?
There are no stupid questions. I sincerely did not understand it as such. If you don’t know something, ask. If you have no idea where to start, ask. And this is how I understood it.
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You still have to learn the language and take citizenship tests to become a citizen in many European countries
Same sex marriage is legal in the EU isnt true.
Basically nothing is “in the EU” There are some general laws that each country applies on their own (often treating them as suggestions and get fined if they dont respect them)
It’s legal in a lot of the EU though, especially if you stay out of eastern Europe
Student exchange programs - > job - > permanent residence is one of the easiest ways to migrate.
This is what I would suggest.
Looking for grants and bursaries for the effort is something that should always happen. You may get lucky, or not, either way it will probably cost less than the same from an American university.
I mean, I haven’t done this, but it seems logical since OP is looking to further their education.
Use European Grants for foreign Students and be debt free when you finish. … Even that should set you in front of your peers in the materialistic USA. ( No fees for studying and cost of living in less fancy european cities is really low for students).
Your best bet is through a company. If you have a reasonable job opportunity, familiarise yourself with the work visa and residency procedures. Your future employer will likely help you in the process.
However, the economy currently is tough also in the EU, so you’ll need to find a niche.
Some countries are easier to get into than others. Start researching which ones have a path that could work for you.
Most are pretty strict but some are more open. If I recall correctly the Nordic countries may be a little easier, but don’t quote me on that. It’s been a long time since I accepted that this country had successfully trapped me here.
One potential avenue is getting a job teaching English in another country. I’ve known a few people who did that for a year or two after college and enjoyed the experience. I think the pay is not great, and you’re stuck in a classroom teaching a lot of the time, but it’s a relatively straightforward path out of the country and into a life somewhere else, and with a company involved to expedite the process because they want to make money from you working ASAP.
Getting your BS in CS can potentially help you as well, depending on the country you want to move to. Not an expert but when I was looking into this awhile back I found various countries will give preferential treatment based off things like education and skills. Being a college educated SWE or whatever can make you more appealing to immigration authorities.
