Filippa Soares

Name: Filippa Soares
Age: 26
Nationality: Portuguese
Education: Nurse
Company: Lillebælt Hospital
Title: Nurse

I ended up in Denmark because

I attended a job fair in Portugal and I met a consultant from Workindenmark who told me about life in Denmark and showed me job possibilities in Denmark too. I choose a job in Denmark at Lillebaelt Hospital because they offered a contract which included a language course in Denmark at the hospital. I also have an uncle who loves working in Denmark, so I decided to go for it.

I send an application to Maria from the hospital, she invited me to an online interview, I was invited for a visit to Denmark, and it all seemed to fit perfectly with me. I started in the job with 10 other internationals, and we have been learning Danish together, and they are all my friends now.

What surprises me most about working in Denmark is

That all is “stille og roligt” calm and easy going. In Denmark, the work is very organized, and all of the technologies that we use are more advanced, both computers and hospital equipment.

I was also surprised that we all work as a team – both with other nurses and doctors. There is no hierarchy, we all work together. I really like that.

My Danish colleagues are

Not as friendly to newcomers as I am used to in Portugal. In Portugal, I would have coffee and go out with my colleagues. In Denmark, you have friends outside work, so your colleagues are not naturally your friends. They are all nice and very helpful, but it is very different.

Life in Denmark is

Nice. I go salsa dancing and meet a lot of friends, and sometimes I go to the fitness centre.

In Portugal, I had to work many hours in order to earn enough money to have a good life. In Denmark, you only have to have one job, work 37 hours per week, and you get a really good pay.  You have enough for your daily expenses and still have extra money for travelling and other things that are nice. One of my goals is to travel more, and that is a possibility for me now.

I would recommend anybody moving to Denmark to

Come with an open mind, and in the beginning, it is important that you make an effort in meeting new people, so join a club to enjoy your hobby or sport with others.