Hi everyone, I’m from Italy and I’m writing to help my nearly 36-year old brother. I’m trying to find a way to help him in rebuilding his struggling life and his situation is really serious. I won’t tell the whole story and I only ask for a practical study/work matter.

He dropped out of school and he has only a middle school graduation, then he worked for many years in a call centre in the fields of insurance, telecommunications, and public television. He also has a strong passion for crypto but honestly, I don’t know if he did some practical jobs in this field.

Without deepening further details, he suffers from persistent depression and resentment toward life and the world to mask the burden of his failure, and I’m convinced that he needs to change his life, do new experiences that he didn’t do, meet new people, and see the world from a different perspective. Something that would also need to leave my country due to a lack of possibilities and the need for new “fresh air”, and that he doesn’t have the strength and courage to do because of low self-esteem and the belief that it is “too late”.

I thought about Ireland because it’s still in the EU, and I’m interested to know about the possibility to find a 1-year long study stay that could include the opportunity for an internship and job placement. Of course, the first thought is [EF](https://www.ef-ireland.ie/aya/) but I wish to have further suggestions that would properly fit his situation, as well as hear about other places, subreddits, and websites in which I could ask for. I can provide him with a budget of 10,000 euros or so to help him settle.

Thank you so much, I hope you may be able to help me in this difficult family matter.

2 comments

  1. This sounds risky to me. If your brother has crippling depression then moving away on his own could be very isolating for him. Its only a good idea if he is financially secure and doesn’t have to worry too much about making ends meet. Trying to find somewhere to live here while studying and working may be asking too much of him. Is this his idea or yours?

  2. I’m Italian (in Ireland since 2014), and I know the situation in Italy isn’t the brightest, however a few points:

    – Education:
    Middle school is very low, not really sure if there are courses that lead to job placements and internship at that level

    – EF:
    As far as I remember, it’s a language school, I wouldn’t 100% trust them for future job placements (also, I do remember them as expensive as hell)

    – Housing:
    We have a big housing crisis here, finding a place to rent at a decent price isn’t easy, and major cities (Dublin, Cork) are expensive as hell (we’re talking 1500/month for a one-bed apt).

    If your brother suffers depression, coming here on his own might not be the best choice.
    I agree on the “change of air”, which would be good, but if he then struggles with accomodation, it might make things worse, as social isolation doesn’t help.

    If he has a budget that can allow for a few months of renting, that might be possible.

    – Work:
    I’d recommend checking LinkedIn and Indeed for jobs, to have an idea on what skills are required and what kind of jobs are available.
    A LinkedIn profile would also be useful, for visibility.

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