Planning to quit my good engineering job to leave on a WHV to Australia - Looking for some tough love and realistic expectations

Hello everyone,

Lately, I’ve been seriously planning to move to Australia on a Working Holiday Visa (WHV) for at least a year.

To give you some background—so you can better understand my expectations—I’m a 23-year-old from Portugal with a master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from the country’s top university. Over the past year, I’ve been working as a mechanical engineer at a refinery, which is theoretically the top 99% of what I could get as a first job after my masters. Unfortunately, however, I feel completely stuck, as the refinery is in a remote area of Portugal, and I simply have no passion for what I do.

My ideal scenario would be:

• Given my CV, I’m planning to apply in bulk for jobs in the mining industry on the west coast of Australia, construction, or any high-paying job where my qualifications would give me an edge over the competition.
• Work non-stop for the first six months, taking as many hours as possible to save up as much money as I can.
• Spend the rest of the time traveling across Australia and eventually exploring both islands of New Zealand, which has always been a dream of mine.
• After that trip… honestly, I have no plans for my life.

I feel like it’s now or never if I want to try something like this, but I also feel scared that I could be renouncing a great career as a mechanical engineer ...

What do you think of my plan? Do you think it’s realistic to secure a job before even landing in Australia? Or will I likely have to look for opportunities once I arrive in Perth?