Stuck in a foreign land

[globetrotter]

OK, so I moved to France after graduating with a PhD in Biochemistry from a Big Ten school. This was a year+ ago, I had arranged for a post doc (temporary position, lousy pay by US standard) to be living with my native french girlfriend who landed a really nice job in the private sector.

Problem is, I do not like my job- much rarther get into research in a company (well anything but french universities). BUT as my french is quite bad (I get by when talking to friends etc, but couldnt do a business meeting, let alone ace an interview..), I have a hard time to find anything here, never had an interview yet. Whats more, the job market is BAD here for science.. and most jobs are not posted, but the offers passed directly through personal networks (Alas, I have none as mine is 1000s of Miles away..)

Whereas in USA diversity and initiative (such as moving abroad) are well received, I am starting to believe the inverse goes for France.. So desperation is building as the clock is ticking and the rejection letters roll in..

A note: Although I hate every minute at work, I truely enjoy life here.. and I have lots of time with my newborn kid and wife..

[nomadchick]

Have you thought about commuting to the UK? From central Paris you can Eurostar it to London in just under 3 hours. I had a friend in London who lived in France and commuted every day because there were no jobs in her field in Paris, but she wanted to be near her family. It's not ideal, but it sounds like you're going nuts there, and the UK is much more open to Americans, and there are a lot more job openings and networks there...

Just a way-out thought. My other suggestion would be to check into ex-pat services and network with other Americans. In London there is an organisation run by American ex-pats that helps people settling in find jobs and get training. There are a lot more Americans in London, I reckon, but it might be worth a try to look into something like that in Paris. Not sure how you'd find them other than the internet, though...

Good luck!
Heather