Moving to Argentina from Africa for a better life.

[mahmoud]

Hello all ,

I'd like to ask for some opinion from people who live in Argentina since they could provide some prospective.

I live in Libya and life here isn't the prettiest . I studied electrical engineering and couldn't really find great work that could help me do something with m life . I read a alot about immigrating to Argentina and read many people saying it's a bad idea considering the economy and such . I plan to do my masters degree there if possible and relocate ultimately , even for a temporary period or possible for a while IfIi can become a citizen . My nationality doesn't allow to work abroad as visa restrictions are very tight and they're very selective in their process .

So my question is , What are the chances of me staying in Argentina after finishing my masters degree in electrical engineering? Is work possible for foreigners provided they know Spanish? Is the economy as terrible as they say? I'd like to hear opinions if possible.

Thank you!

 

[Quilombo]

I live in Libya and life here isn't the prettiest .

That's quite the euphemism... for forum members who aren't aware, following NATO's bombing campaign of Libya in 2011 and the coup against Gaddafi, Libya has basically become a failed state and there are multiple factions fighting over control of the country (Government of National Unity and the Government of National Stability) plus local militias, AQIM terrorist cells, Tuareg nationalists, migrant trafficking rings, literal slavers, etc. and then interference from the US, Turkey, Qatar, EU, Egypt, UAE, Russia, and others too.

Libya used to be one of the most developed countries in Africa/the Middle East, but now here we are, so, this is I assume why Mahmoud is considering Argentina.

So my question is , What are the chances of me staying in Argentina after finishing my masters degree in electrical engineering? Is work possible for foreigners provided they know Spanish? Is the economy as terrible as they say? I'd like to hear opinions if possible.

Very good, plus it's not like you'd be deported to Libya even if you overstayed your visa, you'd have a very simple argument for refugee status given everything happening in Libya. You'll find work here, though it won't necessarily pay well, but there is a Middle Eastern community too, and you might be able to find connections at the King Fahd Islamic Cultural Center, it's a big mosque in Palermo.

The economy is bad, but it's not Libya, it's stable bad if that makes sense, plus you speak English, Arabic, and you'd be learning Spanish, so there would be some opportunities I assume compared to others, plus remote work is always an option too.

Look, it won't be easy, but I imagine your life would be better for you here than in Libya. My only question for you is your family and friends. Do you think you will be able to handle being so far away from them? Not asking to discourage you, simply curious because this is something effects even people from say the US or Europe that move here that can easily go back home to visit.

Let us know if you have any other questions and we'll try and answer them.

 

[mahmoud]

First off , thank you for explaining the situation of the country and for your lengthy reply.

The economy is bad, but it's not Libya, it's stable bad if that makes sense, plus you speak English, Arabic, and you'd be learning Spanish, so there would be some opportunities I assume compared to others, plus remote work is always an option too.

The biggest mental hurdle for me is not knowing how the job market is in Argentina. It would be a big risk for me to have to go back after doing my masters to my home country or being a liability where I wouldn't be able to find a job to support myself . I keep reading that the job market is bad alongside the economy but most comments seem to be from westerners (people from USA, Canada , Europe , etc) so in comparison to their own respective country , the Argentinian economy would seem bad. So I wanted to learn more about this if possible.

Look, it won't be easy, but I imagine your life would be better for you here than in Libya. My only question for you is your family and friends. Do you think you will be able to handle being so far away from them? Not asking to discourage you, simply curious because this is something effects even people from say the US or Europe that move here that can easily go back home to visit.

This would also be very difficult but sometimes we have to make difficult decisions. People here rarely visit Latin America let alone move there so Argentina seems like uncharted territory , every impression I have of it comes from what I read online which is not bad. I read that Argentines are very welcoming people who don't discriminate against others so it's good to hear. Also that Argentina is relatively safe as long as you use common sense.

Let us know if you have any other questions and we'll try and answer them.

Will my temporary residency as a student count viable if I want to apply for the citizenship in 2 years? and will the 365 day student visa count as one of the 2 mandatory years for application of the citizenship? ( Getting it would make my life easier and would open new doors for me so I'd like to learn more about it)

and what's the quality like in argentine universities?

 

[Ronnie Hotdogs]

Job market is going to be very difficult unless your Spanish is perfect and your connections are good.

 

[autoluminescent]

Hi Mahmoud, welcome! If you are interested in studying a master's degree here in Argentina, I recently responded to a post here about my experience as a graduate student that may help you. If you have any specific questions I'd be happy to help try to guide you.

 

[Cambalache]

Hi Mahmoud,
English is not my first language, I am a local.
The Argentine economy is very unstable, but engineering is a profession with quite a lot of demand, if you have a good english level (and you can speak Spanish).
Salaries are not as good as in other countries (US, Canada, EU).
You can take a look at the job market here by searching on both LinkedIn and Zonajobs.com.ar, specifying your area of expertise.
Argentine universities have a very good level.
For engineering, best universities are: ITBA (private, very expensive) www.itba.edu.ar
And Publics: the Engineering campus of the UBA www.fi.uba.ar, and the UTN www.frba.utn.edu.ar ( i think UBA is better, but both are very good options in Buenos Aires)

 

[Caribbean Cool]

You HAVE TO speak Spanish. This is NOT a bilingual country.

 

[Rich One]

First off , thank you for explaining the situation of the country and for your lengthy reply.


The biggest mental hurdle for me is not knowing how the job market is in Argentina. It would be a big risk for me to have to go back after doing my masters to my home country or being a liability where I wouldn't be able to find a job to support myself . I keep reading that the job market is bad alongside the economy but most comments seem to be from westerners (people from USA, Canada , Europe , etc) so in comparison to their own respective country , the Argentinian economy would seem bad. So I wanted to learn more about this if possible.


This would also be very difficult but sometimes we have to make difficult decisions. People here rarely visit Latin America let alone move there so Argentina seems like uncharted territory , every impression I have of it comes from what I read online which is not bad. I read that Argentines are very welcoming people who don't discriminate against others so it's good to hear. Also that Argentina is relatively safe as long as you use common sense.

Will my temporary residency as a student count viable if I want to apply for the citizenship in 2 years? and will the 365 day student visa count as one of the 2 mandatory years for application of the citizenship? ( Getting it would make my life easier and would open new doors for me so I'd like to learn more about it)

and what's the quality like in argentine universities?

What is your Nationality? Libyan ? It makes a difference . Assume you have means to support yourself as a student ? The requirements for a formal masters degree are quite tough, knowledge of Spanish and Argentinian culture.

I hear from many expats, that to apply for citizenship a lawyer is needed, the fees are many thousand dollars

 

[mahmoud]

What is your Nationality? Libyan ? It makes a difference . Assume you have means to support yourself as a student ? The requirements for a formal masters degree are quite tough, knowledge of Spanish and Argentinian culture.

I hear from many expats, that to apply for citizenship a lawyer is needed, the fees are many thousand dollars

Does a lawyer cost much even if all of your paperwork is ready and he/she just has to apply for you? I read here it costs a lot for those with incomplete paperwork.

 

[FrankPintor]

The Argentine economy is very unstable, but engineering is a profession with quite a lot of demand, if you have a good english level (and you can speak Spanish).
Salaries are not as good as in other countries (US, Canada, EU).
You can take a look at the job market here by searching on both LinkedIn and Zonajobs.com.ar, specifying your area of expertise.
Argentine universities have a very good level.
For engineering, best universities are: ITBA (private, very expensive) www.itba.edu.ar
And Publics: the Engineering campus of the UBA www.fi.uba.ar, and the UTN www.frba.utn.edu.ar ( i think UBA is better, but both are very good options in Buenos Aires)

The economy is unstable, it has always been so, look at cost of living rather than salary. Then again, I know some people working remotely, generally programming or database work, and receiving payments in USD.

UBA is supposed to be the best university in Latin America. Argentina is proud of its universities.

Just FYI, there are prominent Arab communities around the southern cone of South America, Santiago de Chile has enough Palestinians to support a first division football club, both Argentina and Brazil have large communities of Lebanese / Syrian immigrants with some very prominent members of society (Carlos Menem, for example). I don't have any more exact information, and certainly not for North African Arabs, being one of the westerners referenced by the OP, but some googling and reaching out to the appropriate societies surely can't hurt.

I imagine the OP is familiar with the visa requirements and has what's needed to enter Argentina. Once you're in, you can look at what you need to do to stay. When I checked out postgrad courses for my son, it seemed that most of them were oriented at working graduates, and were in the evenings.

I'd kind of disagree with @Caribbean Cool regarding Spanish, university-educated Argentinians, especially in the technical domain, tend to be quite competent in English, in my experience. However, Spanish fluency might be a requirement for either a visa or a postgrad course.