Hi Jen & Yvonne, I just wanna say a big thank you for your videos. I recently just got a job last week from the advice given in one of your videos on how to and, what to include in a German CV and it worked perfectly. I'm on the next move to get a Driver's License this month also thanks to your very belligerent content, fluency in communication, and the variety of content you have provided on your channel. Really! Big Shout Out to you guys and making life easy for foreigners to integrate. Danke Schön!
Every time I watch your videos, I feel very thankful, really. With every video, you break my fear more and more about entering the German market. Don’t ever stop what you guys are doing!! ❤
Also thank you for the note about being honest about German proficiency coz I was always worried that I won't stand out of the crowd unless I showed I was above and beyond with not just my raw skills but language proficiency. Right now my German is A2 at best and there's no way I could confidently hold a conversation in German in a professional setting. Honestly hearing it from you guys kinda sets my heart at ease 😇
Hi Jen & Yvonne, I will be moving to Bonn from India in May where Yvonne was born & brought up. I heard it in one of the video.😊 Requesting you both to please make a video about the Bonn city as no one has shared anything about small towns. But I hope you can share us some helpful information about Bonn.😊 Thank you very much for sharing such a helpful content.
I do agree with the statement to be Honest especially about Language. I can communicate in German. But I did all my studies in English and the technical terms in German are so different. Anyways,Thank you so much both of you. This video is very helpful.
Well well, found the perfect channel at the perfect time. Finished crafting my cv and just checking to clarify the right and wrong. Heard a lot of people saying to fit in 1 page, but I guess I can go upto 1.5 pages. Not with the flufs! Just to free some space in between ^^ Thank you!! Would be great if you all did a quick CV review. I live in Germany and would be starting my career now in Machine Learning and Data Science , so it would have been helpful
I bought the ebook and must say, it’s totally worth it! I even received an invitation to a job interview that I already applied before and got rejected.
Great video! You did an amazing job. I especially enjoyed the way you explained the topic in a clear and concise manner. Keep up the great work and I look forward to watching more of your content in the future! For your next video, I would love to see a tutorial on how to write a perfect cover letter (German style ) that stands out to employers.
Happy to hear! 😊 Regarding the cover letter, we have an in-depth guide on how to craft it with a free template: www.simplegermany.com/german-cover-letter/
You have to adjust your CV to every job you apply for. Check the job advertisement what is required for the job? After the section with your personal details, make a short summary of your experience that match with the job and mention how many years experience you have in the position you are applying for. Elaborate your matching experience in your CV, make key words from the advertisement visible in your CV.
I will be starting my masters in Germany soon. I have to say I have been binge-watching you videos for the last 2 weeks. All your videos are quite helpful. Thank you for making such informative videos. I have a question, would you recommend applying online for a job or visiting the place of work and dropping the CV in person :)
We are so happy to hear that! 😊 Most job applications happen online but to totally stand out and show that you are willing to go the extra mile dropping your CV off in person could really go a long way. We would say it just depends on the size of the company, whether you would just give it to reception or whether you would be able to speak to a person involved in the hiring.
CVs are really hard. You can't know before what the employer wants, while different people recommend very different things. I had 4 different courses about how a CV should look. In school, during my Bachelor, from the job center and later from the career service of the university (specialised more in different areas while the course during my Bachelor probably was more how it would have been in my field). Some say 1 page, some 2, some 3. Some say include descriptions of what you did in certain positions, some not. Some say include "soft skills" or hobbies, some say black and white, some say colourful...
Personally, I don't want to work in a company that will punish me if they don't like my cv. As long as the information they need can be easily found, there is a logical structure and overall it is readable (which can be checked with a couple of friends looking at it), than they they should be able to handle my persepctive, also at work later on. Merry Christmas
Nice one! I remember you guys recommended a specific job board that was developed by someone based in Berlin, but I can't find or remember it anymore 😔
Thank you for useful content you provide. Quick quation, is introductory part (Cv summary/objective) in German CV important? to provides employers with the first impression of an applicant.
We have listed some of the most popular job portals in our guide: www.simplegermany.com/work-in-germany-without-german/#5_Tips_to_help_you_find_an_English-speaking_job_in_Germany
Hi, your video was super helpful. My most recent job was of a freelancer for few months as I was busy making applications to uni and learning german and appearing for IELTS exam/Goethe German exams. I am currently studying at TU Ilmenau and have been applying for werkstudent jobs. Since I have been getting rejected lately by most of the companies, I decided to revamp my cv. My uni friend shared this video and I found it quite knowledgeable. I had one question here - since my last job was a freelancer and ou did mention under the video that we can specify and explain a break from a full time job, I would first like to know if I need to explain in a line why I was freelancing and secondly how I need to explain it under my cv. Will look forward to your response. Thank you.
Cool! Good to have you here. You don't need to explain freelancing, especially if one can tell based on the structure that you did that along other things (like studying and learning German). It then goes without saying that you worked next to being a student. We would interpret that as a good thing 😊. Of course pay attention to whether your freelancing is relevant to the field/job you are applying to.
Thank you for all the information you have shared. I have a few queries regarding the German CV for designer. I am an architect with 6 years of experience. I am currently pursuing my masters degree in product design and in my last semester. To apply for an internship or a feshers job in product design, what should I show in my work experience first? Can I show my 2 years of academic projects first explaining as a freelance product designer and then showcasing my past 6 years experience as an architectural designer and how it is related to product design? Also, can I show any boot camp as work experience? It you could reply to this, it would be a really great help.
Hi Jen and Yvonne , bought your template and I am grateful to have a smart CV format in hand.. However I will be glad to hear from you on my specific situation... I am doing my masters in Germany and applying for student assistance jobs ( in ML/DL /AI). My previous IT experience is not relevant to these jobs though it was for a long duration with couple of mentionable achievements. Instead of keeping them moderately summarized by mentioning the milestones in different time periods (like in case of relevant job experience) ,I am mostly skipping them by saying literally 2/3 sentences as they are not that relevant...I hope that's fine but How to fill up the professional intro in my case ... I have nothing to mention at the moment except for the subjects I have studied so far ... but how does that look like in a CV as a professional intro ? if I mention my motivation then it slightly looks like I am repeating my cover letter ? Also how relevant it is in this case to provide my linked In .. since it is like no information to them ? Thanks in advance 🙂
Happy to hear you find our CV template and writing guide helpful. Usually students who don’t have work experience would mention internships or similar in that section. If you don’t have any at all, skip the section and hone in on how your studies and thesis topic provide value to the positions you are applying to. Agreed, the cover letter and CV should complement each other and not repeat each other. All the best for your job hunt! 😊
Actually what is being scanned by ATS software are your answers in questions you may have to answer during the online application. Not so much the CV itself. So should your answers pass the scan, your CV will most often always be scanned by a human 😉
@simplegermany This is very useful, thank you so much! Can you please tell me what is the minimum timeframe that should be mentioned as a gap in a CV?
@@simplegermany In this ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-LstCCLOqES0.htmlsi=KRdZhgErZPgwJBNX&t=230 Jen said anything more than 3 months should be mentioned as GAP. So I getting confused? I have 4.5 years of experience. I have a 5-month gap between my job and my Bachelor's and a 6-month gap between my job and master's in Germany.
It's not a black and white thing and depends a bit on the situation. As you describe it it is perfectly normal to have a few months break before and after studies and it implies that you were job searching. In this case we wouldn't mention the gap. But if you would have a longer break just in between jobs or such, it is a different story. If you would like more personal advice on your CV, you can book our personal CV review: simplegermany.shop/pages/german-style-cv-template-packages
Yvonne, I'm genuinely curious, you mentioned that when you were hiring you weren't hiring people with 20-30 years of experience. Is this because older people aren't hired as much in Germany? Or that there just aren't many people with 20 years experience? I'm wanting to relocate to Germany with my family from the US, but I am someone with 20 years of experience. Is this going to be a problem more than an asset? Thanks in advance, you two are making great videos.
Hey Mark, good question 😊 I would say go for it and it shouldn't be a problem at all. My comment was referring to the fact that the company I worked at was generally very young and I was hiring for entry level positions. Hence, I didn't interview anyone with such a long track record. I did have a few with 10 years though 😉
That depends on how you deliver the application. Sometimes the cover letter is part of your email or online form. But you definitely should have a text (aka cover letter) introducing yourself.
Thank you for all the information you have shared. I have a few queries regarding the German CV for designer. I am an architect with 6 years of experience. I am currently pursuing my masters degree in product design and in my last semester. To apply for an internship or a feshers job in product design, what should I show in my work experience first? Can I show my 2 years of academic projects first explaining as a freelance product designer and then showcasing my past 6 years experience as an architectural designer and how it is related to product design? Also, can I show any boot camp as work experience? It you could reply to this, it would be a really great help.
I have been in Berlin for the past two months on a job seeker visa. I have sent out more than 200 applications, but I have not yet landed an interview. Could you help me? Could you please review my resume?
Any suggestions on interview day in Germany? For example the clothing choice or German culture thing that foreigners should know? like I was told once that when they offer you something to drink you should accept it and not turn down the offer because it’s kinda show that you are more likely to be an open kind of person, more likely to be good at socialize but if you turn down the offer you will look like you are not very socialize and are closed kind of person. But you know that’s totally something different from my culture. We are often refuse because we think that it will be too much of an afford for the employer, like it will be a burden to them or something ,so we refuse it ,not like we are not socialize or anything.
Hi, thanks for your effective video, I have a question for you, I am applying as an afresh high school graduate do I need to write a professional profile? Thus, for reference should I add my teacher's information and what font and font number?
If you should only include the jobs that are relevant to the one you are applying for, how do you explain the gaps in your CV? I am 39 and have 20 years of job experience so it feels odd to just leave out huge chunks of time. Appreciate any advice!
You should mention them, just not focus on them. If you did several non related jobs back to back, maybe just summarize that time in your life as did xyz in xzy.
I have a quick question about my resume: should I use my legal name or the name I prefer (and that everyone calls me)? My legal name is too long and confusing, and I've had issues with the government and banks in the past because of it. Additionally, my legal name implies that I'm Muslim, which I'm not,, and I don't feel comfortable using it. I have not changed my name officially because it is illegal in my country.
Very good question. The way you describe it, we would use the (first) name you go by but definitely put your legal last name. Should you progress in the hiring process, be sure to let the employer know your legal name though for the contract. Often employers will use the name you go by (if you let them know) for the email address or similar. It depends a bit on the flexibility of the company. Hope this helps! 😊
I couldn't locate the dates because I was too distracted by the cute pic. But, seriously, they want to scan your CV quickly and we all know that they are looking at the photo first, so isn't it time to get rid of this practice?
I recently purchased the template and am curious about its age. Can you provide information on when the template was created? Also, the template is 3 pages.TIA!
Thanks for purchasing our template! Our template and writing guide are from this year. The template is 3 pages long because it explains every point. Once you fill it out with your information, you should have a maximum of two pages. You can check the CVs in the Example folder for an idea of how the final product should look like.
When it is not relevant, mention it briefly. The fact that you already did work is relevant if you are of typical student age. If you are older, it is even more important. Not mentioning it would create a gap in your cv, and that is bad. HR people usually assume the worst if they see a gap, like mental illness, alcohol rehabilitation center or a prison sentence. 🙂
I have a question. I'm currently trying to rewrite my CV from scratch and can't get it shorter than 4 pages. The catch is, I have 7+ years of raw experience in the field (9 with gaps, but I wrote 7+) and 8 previous jobs, the last one (first chronologically) is a list of my previous titles before I switched to software development, "various" in place of company name, and the city. That's it. Am I doomed?
Focus on which skills and achievements bring value to the company you are applying for. Cut anything irrelevant or any fluff and be razor sharp in your wording. Maybe reduce the bullets per job and don't list all 8 if they are not relevant to the role. Best of luck 😊
@@simplegermany Thanks for the reply. It's 7 relevant jobs plus an umbrella entry to show that I didn't go unemployed before 30 😅And I have 1-2 bullet points per job (except the 2 most recent, those are 3 points each) plus short description and base stack.
hey! one question about gaps. I quit my job in November 2019, and I started my Masters degree in June 2020. So the gap between that is of roughly 6-7 months, do I need to explain/mention it too or is it ok to leave it out? I have absolutely no explanation. I just quit my job and next Masters intake in my country wasn't starting until June, and I did nothing in those 7 months. Not to forget that the pandemic hit shortly after I quit.
Indeed summarizing 20 years of experience on 2 pages can seem like a challenge. However, you need to be critical as to the steps in your career that are really relevant to the position you are applying for now. You can use your personal profile or cover letter to convey your vast experience but keep it highly relevant in your CV.