As I said in my last comment, I’d go to Zurich simply for the friends thing.
Thoughts on Amsterdam:
Probably the worst on this list for finding housing? New rental laws have restricted the market a lot. Once you find something you’re golden though.
There’s the 30% ruling which would significantly impact your donation abilities BUT I think maybe you live to close too the NL border to qualify?
I think it’s better connected than you give it credit for. Easy trains to London, Paris, Brussels. Good night trains to Switzerland and Central Europe. And then Schiphol is one of the best-connected airports in Europe
You’re probably already aware of this but since I don’t think you mentioned it, Amsterdam has a pretty strong queer scene. Probably not on a par with Berlin but I’d estimate not far behind.
There are a few Dutch EAs who have worked at quant firms and done E2G—let me know if you’d like an introduction. @Imma🔸 might also be interesting to chat with. She’s a software engineer who moved from NL to CH for E2G reasons (IIRC) but then moved back.
Random suggestion: Dunno if you’ve already got a master’s degree but the UK has just expanded the number of universities that, if you have a degree from one of them, will give you access to their ‘high potential individual’ visa. AFAIK this is easier than getting sponsorship. Unfortunately, Ghent didn’t quite make the cut, but lots of other EU ones did (including Amsterdam, which has a solid AI safety scene). So you could sample a new city, get a 1-year master’s, and then you’ve gained the option of an easier move to London.
P.S. Great to see you’re coming to EAGxAmsterdam—hope you have a great time!
This is a useful write-up, thanks for sharing!
As I said in my last comment, I’d go to Zurich simply for the friends thing.
Thoughts on Amsterdam:
Probably the worst on this list for finding housing? New rental laws have restricted the market a lot. Once you find something you’re golden though.
There’s the 30% ruling which would significantly impact your donation abilities BUT I think maybe you live to close too the NL border to qualify?
I think it’s better connected than you give it credit for. Easy trains to London, Paris, Brussels. Good night trains to Switzerland and Central Europe. And then Schiphol is one of the best-connected airports in Europe
You’re probably already aware of this but since I don’t think you mentioned it, Amsterdam has a pretty strong queer scene. Probably not on a par with Berlin but I’d estimate not far behind.
There are a few Dutch EAs who have worked at quant firms and done E2G—let me know if you’d like an introduction. @Imma🔸 might also be interesting to chat with. She’s a software engineer who moved from NL to CH for E2G reasons (IIRC) but then moved back.
Random suggestion: Dunno if you’ve already got a master’s degree but the UK has just expanded the number of universities that, if you have a degree from one of them, will give you access to their ‘high potential individual’ visa. AFAIK this is easier than getting sponsorship. Unfortunately, Ghent didn’t quite make the cut, but lots of other EU ones did (including Amsterdam, which has a solid AI safety scene). So you could sample a new city, get a 1-year master’s, and then you’ve gained the option of an easier move to London.
P.S. Great to see you’re coming to EAGxAmsterdam—hope you have a great time!
Ghent university indeed didn’t seem to make the cut. The 1 year university thing would indeed be possible yes!
DM’d btw, would love to meet some EA quant people in Amsterdam.
Will edit post tommorow reflecting new information :)