I can only advise regarding Finland.  English is widely spoken and unless the company is small or specialised, Finnish is an advantage.

In terms of opportunities, jobs are offered in the IT, Catering, Telecoms, Retail and manufacturing sectors.  (corporations such as Nokia, Kone and Alstrom).  The winters are bitterly cold and long....but unlike Geneva the weather is seasonal.  Finns are wonderful people.  Not open at first, but make real good friends in the long run.

Again, life is cheaper than Geneva (in all aspects).  Finland offers myriads of lakes and you can also ski (not as challenging as the Alpes).  But like I said winters are dark and long, summer is an absolute joy. Check http://www.helsinkitimes.fi/ for jobs and general info on thsi country.

Albeit Norway, Sweden and Finland are great places to both work and live, I would highly recommend Denmark as the country to focus your job search on.

Bonne chance!

Chris

Where we live in Evian-les-Bains/Bernex [F] there are a large number of Swedish, Danish and Finnish people, most of whom live here permanently. Some are tax-exiles, which indicates that [and it is also well-known] they pay less in taxes here in France. However, why not go for a change. If you need to be put in touch with any of them, please send a PM and I'll send it on to them.

Hi Emma,

What kind of job are u searching for? I am from Denmark and can tell you all the relevant information. Short summary: High tax rates, high salaries, International jobs are available, every one speaks English, however, though to get a job, if you do not have the required qualifications. The level of education is pretty high and without at least a master degree, it will be impossible, unless if you want to have low salary and not specific or competency relevant positions. Let me know and I will try to guide you.

Hi guys

Thanks for your replies and your help.

@reza well, I have a masters degree so that should be ok! I'm looking for something in the political field: research, think tanks, NGOs or anything possibly EU related. I'm also interested in the environment which seems to be quite a big issue there, and finally I can also do communications though it's not my first choice.

Cheers all!

hi Emma,

I lived in Sweden for a while. It's a very nice country. People are very kind and always willing to help. Swedish are distant in the beginning and I would say it's not very easy to get closer to them. But once you manage to do so you will find out that they are amazing friends! The nature is wonderful as I guess everywhere in Scandinavia. The winters are too long and cold though (even for me, coming form Moscow :P) Five month of snow, wind and darkness... but maybe you will like it.. who knows?  :)

You said you are interested in environment. Well, Sweden (and Scandinavia in general) is probably one of the best places to work in this field .. I'm telling this as an ecologist  :) I also know it's very popular in Oslo which is an amazing place!

Prices..definitely lower that in GVA but still not the lowest you can find. Accommodation is an issue but again not as bad as in Geneva.

English language is very well spoken. My personal opinion is that Scandinavians are very good in languages. It was very difficult to improve my Swedish because everyone (I'm not exaggerating) is almost fluent in English.

Good luck with everything and feel free to drop a line if you have any questions!

//Elina

Hi Emma,

I lived seven years in Sweden and I think that the summaries above accurately reflect the situation and the people.

I wish you a good search,

Per

Hi Emma,

Well, it should be possible to get a position in the areas you mentioned. Enviromental is not a problem in Scandinavian as it is many other places, but it is very hot subject and because of the concerns, lots of projects and thereby positions are available :-) Almoost all Danish companies spend lots of money on CSR, but also many govermental initiatives are running. You probably cvan search for a position at vestas, which is the world leading company in wind energy, HQ based in Copenhagen Denmark :-)

You can create a profile at www.jobbank.dk and search for what you wish. Good luck. Any other questions, let me know.