Lately I've had this urge to move to another country. I live in the United States and I have a desire to move to England. I'm thinking to try it out for a year and see how it goes and if I like it I'll stay longer. Having no knowledge of getting this accomplished, what things should I be thinking about before I execute this decision. Right now this is an impulse but the more I think about it the more I want to do it.

Things I would like to know: How difficult would it be to get residence in England for a year? How difficult would it be to find work there (I have a college degree if that means anything )? I have family in the US obviously, but with the ease of communication nowadays it wouldn't be that large of a boundary. Other than that I have no real restrictions (other than financial of course once I began living there).

I'll also open this up to discussion about moving abroad in general. Has anybody else thought about this? Has anybody moved from one country to another and stayed for any length of time? How did it affect your life? Did you enjoy it? Would you do it again?

Before anything, I would say keep these things in mind.

1. What are your prospects if you move there?

2. Do you have enough money saved up?

3. Do you know anyone there, or anyone that has lived there? Connections are vital in a new place.

4. Why are you really wanting to move there? Try to ensure you haven't built the place up in your mind.

Other than that, different experiences are great, but England isn't all that different from the US in a lot of meaningful ways. So if it is change you want, that may not be the level of change that will satisfy you. There certainly are differences I am sure though. Like Class and status tend to play a more significant role. Although iirc there are more institutions of a more egalitarian bent in England. They also have their own economic downturn so job prospects are probably low. Generally, I would recommend having a job locked down before you even get a plane ticket.