Working Holiday – United Kingdom – Locum vet pay rates & more…

I was at a conference in Queensland recently and overheard a veterinarian talking about the United Kingdom. He said, “In the UK, there is God, then vets, then school teachers …” While this may be a slight exaggeration, it is true that vets are held in very high regard in the UK.

Working in the UK has long been a rite of passage for many Aussie and Kiwi vets. Whether it’s a working holiday, the potential to earn some serious money to put towards a house deposit, or simply broadening professional experience, it’s easy to see why a UK stint holds so much appeal. And the feeling is mutual; even though practices in the UK can employ graduates from the European Union, both locum and permanent vets from Down Under are still very much in demand.

So, what do you need to know about working in the UK?

Pay rates and conditions

Pay rates for locum vets in the UK have improved recently. Daily pay rates range from £200 to £280, with most vets earning between £230 and £250 per day.

As an added bonus, accommodation is usually provided. It might be a small flat attached to the practice, a local B&B or even a large home complete with manicured garden. If you’ve travelled in the UK before, you’ll know how expensive accommodation can be, and how much of an advantage this is when it comes to saving money.

And if you’re wondering how you’ll get around all that scenic countryside, a vehicle is provided with mixed/large animal jobs and selected small animal jobs. Some practices are even happy for you to use the vehicle outside of work hours, which makes a weekend away in the Cotswolds or the Lake District that bit more accessible.

Locum jobs in the UK

Vetlink has helped vets from Australia and New Zealand to find work in the UK for over seventeen years. We have an established network of UK practice contacts, with a range of jobs on offer including small animal, mixed and farm/large animal. These locum positions can be anywhere from a single day to many months in duration.

To give you an idea of what’s on offer, here are just three of the many jobs we currently have listed:

Essex Coast
A locum vet is required from 10th 30/8/15.
Large multi-vet practice 1.5 hours from London.
Accommodation and car provided.
Pay rate: £220 to £250 per day.
Feedback from a previous locum: “All the vets were lovely to work with and everyone was very welcoming.A busy practice and a good experience. I would return to this practice.”
If you are interested in this job, please contact mark@vetlink.com.au

North Humberside 
A locum vet is required to work in Yorkshire for six months from November 2015.
Located less than an hour from the coast and the scenic Yorkshire Moors.
The hospital is purpose built and accredited by the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons.
Accommodation is provided.
Pay rate: £250 per day.
If you are interested in this job, please contact mark@vetlink.com.au

Oxfordshire
Locum vet required to work from Saturday 20th February, 2016, for 3 to 4 months.
Long-term role also available.
Applicants must be capable of sole charge.
Located just 20 minutes from Oxford and 45 minutes from London.
The practice employs 2.5 vets, 2 nurses, 2 receptionists and a practice manager.
Accommodation and vehicle provided.
The purpose-built practice is well equipped with x-ray, ultrasound, in-house lab, Tonopen and dental machine.
If you are interested in this job, please contact mark@vetlink.com.au

Your first UK job

If you would like to work in the UK, we can organise your first job before you arrive.  We can also help you navigate your way through your visa application and the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons registration process.

This means you can land in the UK and hit the ground running, without wasting time and money looking for work and paying for accommodation when you arrive. Vets who use our service typically arrive in the UK and take a week or so off to recover from jet lag before starting their first locum job.  From there, we can organise more work for you, or you may wish to do some travelling.

Travel 

Proximity to Europe and all of the travel opportunities it offers is one of the biggest attractions for Australians and New Zealanders to work in the UK. In recent years, increasing numbers of low cost airlines have meant super cheap flights to the continent are readily available. So, in addition to longer stints of travel in between locum jobs, many vets take advantage of a weekend off to do some wine tasting in the south of France or soak up the history of Eastern Europe.

For more information on cheap European flights, check out www.easyjet.com/en/ or www.ryanair.com

Interested?

If a working holiday in the UK sounds like your cup of tea, and you’d like to know more, please contact me on mark@vetlink.com.au or call 1800 991 993.

Please feel free to leave me a comment below.