Notice (8): Undefined variable: page [APP/View/Layouts/frontend.ctp, line 230]
CV Tip Image

Job Search


Depending on your choice of industry and geography, there’s a plethora of jobsites available. A good overview can be found here. In recent years, the importance of professional and social networking sites for the job search has increased exponentially. On such sites, the jobseeker can usually search for people who work directly in the desired company and department. The largest of these sites is LinkedIn.com. For Europe, XING.com is a very useful site. For international internships and jobs, iHipo.com is the site of choice. Usually it is best to start the application process as early as possible (up to 12 months beforehand). However, many companies do not plan their contingency for such a long time ahead and welcome your applications 3-6 months before the desired start date. Initially, one can send an email which contains the covering letter content plus attachments for the CV and possibly also testimonials and academic certificates. The attachments do not turn out to be in the 5 MB + size region, this is not very beneficial as it could take some time for the HR person to download that and it clogs up the mail system. It generally looks most professional when the attachments are sent in PDF format. You may expect to receive a reply from the company within 1 to 2 weeks. If there has not been a message until that time, you can send a short follow-up reminder email or give the company a call. If the application has been successful, chances are high that the company would like to do a telephone interview with you (if you are overseas). In rare cases, interviews can also be given in the office of the company in your home country (in case it is a multinational). Generally it is advisable to write an email with the application documents to the contact person in the company. Application documents generally include: Covering Letter and Curriculum Vitae (CV, resume). The text of the cover letter can be copied into the email text field. Alternatively, a short paragraph can be written that points to the attached application documents. Usually no additional documents should be sent in this first step. In case the company is interested, it will ask for further documents, such as certificates or references. Often it is an advantage to initially inquire via phone about open positions and then send the application documents.

Join iHipo!

Join the iHipo community for international high potentials and discover new opportunities everyday.

  Signup for free