Switzerland is an excellent illustration of this trend. The fact is that Swiss Companies have extensive foreign operations owing to the small size of their home market.


The Advantages


The advantages of any stint abroad are obvious. Not only does it offer one of the most enriching professional experiences , but it also makes for interesting personal development through interaction with different cultures and lifestyles. As these are usually hierarchically senior positions, it goes without saying that they will not be entrusted, a priori, to novices and that a certain seniority is required if the indispensable relationship of trust is to be forged. Even so, the needs in the areas of research and developement, information technology, marketing, the financial services or in the technical fields are frequently open to young graduates with recognised capabilities, not least of all because of the premium also placed on younger candidates.
In most instances it is single person or young couples who embody the ideal expatriate profile.

Working in Danemark

Queen Margrethe II, the Little Mermaid, football and votes on joint EU affairs may be some of the first things that come to your mind when confronted with the word Denmark. And true, all of the above aspects are central to Danish culture and the Danish self-understanding. However, if you decide to come to Denmark to work you may also come to appreciate other aspects as well: The social welfare system, the concern for the environment, women's equal status with men, the Danish openness and informal behaviour, and much more.
This article gives you a brief introduction to the Danish labour market and provides you with some ideas of where to look for work in Denmark, how to apply for a vacancy, and how to behave during a job interview.

About Denmark

With about 44,000 sq.km. spread on one peninsula and many islands, and with a population of about 5.3 million, Denmark is one of the smallest countries in the European Union. Denmark has been member of the EU since 1973 and is today generally recognised for having one of the strongest economies in the Union. Many decades ago, agriculture formed the cornerstone of the Danish economy. Today, however, two-thirds of the Danish GNP derives from services provided by the public and private sectors, while the lion's share of exports comes from industrial goods and services rather than agricultural products. Danish business life is dominated by small and medium-sized companies; the bulk of Danish industrial companies - more than 75 per cent - employ less than 50 people.
The Danes are subject to one of the world's highest tax rates, on average 50 per cent of the salary. Consequently, the reception of social benefits and education are free of charge and, additionally, these public services ­are of a high quality.


The Danish Labour Market

As an EU citizen you have the right to reside in Denmark for the purpose of employment. Permanent residence is given to those workers of EU member states who can prove that they have obtained employment of unlimited duration in the host member state. Foreign employees have equal rights as Danish employees regarding salary, working conditions, social security etc. Resident foreign nationals from all over the world comprise 4.5 per cent of the total population in Denmark.
Despite an average unemployment rate of about 8 per cent of the labour force, the need for qualified and well-educated employees in­creases rapidly in Denmark. One of the topics in today's political debate is bottleneck pro­blems, which in some industries have resulted in serious difficulti­es in recruiting adequately qualified employe­es. There is a general increasing demand for graduates from almost all fields of studies. In particular, graduates with quali­fi­cations within the areas of high-tech research, information and comput­er-tech­nology, and medicine are highly demanded. A final tendency worth mentioning is employers' increasing focus on international - and especially European - business markets. Thus, the need for employees with good and diverse language skills is currently growing. Consequently, there are good opportunities for foreign graduates to get a job in Denmark, although, in the long term, a knowled­ge of the Danish language will be essential.

How are Vacancies Advertised?

In general, a large number of vacancies are advertised in the national newspapers on Sundays; for instance in "Berlingske Tidende", "Jyllands-Posten", "Børsen" and "Politiken". Some vacancies are advertised in professional papers, published by the trade unions. Finally, companies in Denmark are using the Internet as information channel in their search for future employees.
However, it has also been estimated that more than 60 per cent of all jobs in Denmark are attained by word of mouth and, thus, a majority of vacancies are not advertised in either newspapers or other media open to the public. Therefore, an additional method is to send job applications on one's own initiative, which is commonly done by Danish gradua­tes. Foreign graduates would be well advised to adopt this approach in addition to traditional advertisments. Finally, the Danish volume equivalent to this guide for graduate students - "Karriere Vejviser 2000" - contains a great number of company profiles, on the basis of which foreign graduates may forward their uninvited job applications to potential Danish employers. "Karriere Vejviser 2000" can be provided from the publisher of this graduate guide.

Internet

There is a Danish equivalent of Success and Career called " Karriere Vejviser ". www.go.dk

Working in France

Finding a job

To successfully find a job, you have to start by organizing things from your home country. Be realistic: if you do not have a good knowledge of French, it is naïve to think that you can find work in France. Another important point: top-level degrees or vocational qualifications will provide you with a wider range of employment opportunities. Lastly, you should have experience in your chosen field before applying for a position in France.
Your application for employment is also more likely to succeed if you gather a maximum of specific information about the French employment market from your country of origin and if you continue looking for work once you are in France.

Looking for a job from your home country

Stage 1 : have a well thought-out professional goal

Before burning your bridges in your home country, make sure that your professional goal meets a realistic need in France. Ask yourself the right questions: what are my qualifications? What experience do I have? Do I speak French fluently? What is my medium and long-term career plan? How long do I intend to stay in France? Gather as much information as you possibly can about career opportunities in France.

Stage 2 : finding information

Find out about your line of work, about companies that are hiring in your field, and about French labor legislation and economic policy from Eures network European employment counselors.
Get in touch with the cultural center at the local French Embassy to obtain information about opportunities for working in France, possible contacts in your field, and companies from your country with subsidiaries in France. Failing that, you can always contact the Chamber of Commerce and Industry in France for this type of information.

Stage 3 : the canvassing stage

Once you have a good list of contacts you can write letters to them. Ask for a member of the personnel department to give you an interview to discuss the company's recruitment policy and employment opportunities in their French subsidiaries.

Stage 4 : looking for vacancies

Consult the situations vacant listing on the Eures system, international publications and French newspapers available in your country. Also bear in mind opportunities for seasonal work abroad (tourism, holiday camp co-ordinator work, working as an au pair, etc.).
Lastly, have a look around the notices at your local job center and ask someone who knows about European job opportunities where the nearest office is that posts announcements for work abroad. Bear in mind, such notices are few and far between and the applicants selected will doubtless be bilingual and very well qualified.

Once in France, your job-seeking efforts as a foreigner will be similar to those of French people.
Employment agencies
Register with the ANPE (National Employment Agency), the goal of which is to assist all EU and European Economic Space citizens (including the 15 European Union member States and Iceland, Norway and Liechtenstein) in finding work. For managerial posts, you can also consult APEC (the Managerial Employment Association). Also bear in mind the CIDJs (Youth Information and Documentation Centers), which provide useful information on each profession, with details on professional organizations and the names of recruiters in each sector.

"I sent my resumés from Germany"
Frank Seidel, a 28 year-old German, is a multimedia designer who has been working for ADN Communications in Grenoble since December 1998.

"After attending the Berlin Arts University, I completed a Master's at Grenoble under the Erasmus student exchange program. The lifestyle there was very pleasant and the multimedia employment market is very open, so consequently I decided to look for work in Grenoble early in 1998. I did my research in Grenoble and from Germany. When I was on holiday in France, I took advantage of the opportunity to set up contacts and see my old lecturers, most of whom work professionally. In Germany, I sent my CV via mail and e-mail to arrange interviews in Grenoble. In the end, I found the post I am in thanks to a French student friend of mine who told me that ADN were hiring staff. Currently, even though my French is all right, I am not able to work as a designer-editor, which was nonetheless what I initially trained as. If I had wanted to write, I would have looked for work in Germany."

Internet

There is a French equivalent of Success and Career called "GO-Le guide des Opportunités de Carrières". www.e-go.fr

Working in Germany

JOB APPLICATION
The customised application – the ideal way to start a career

There are people whose back hair stands on end if only they imagine the word ”application” and whose adrenaline level is rapidly raised by the term ”personal interview”. But this problem can be remedied. Here is some advice for college graduates who are looking for an adequate means of making a start in the professional world.

Self-analysis and occupational guidance

First of all, we have to be aware of the fact that the success of an application is substantially influenced by the planning of professional targets. The very best exam results and exotic training abroad will be of no use if the graduate has not thought about his later career. Those who cannot decide on a definite area of activity or do not want to do so should at least be able to describe alternative occupational goals with conviction. With this, entering professional life represents the foundation in one’s professional career. Furthermore, one should always keep an eye on the possible consequences for the next stage when deciding about the first one. It is true that the first application will not necessarily be a ”decision for a lifetime”, but, nevertheless, should not be regarded as a waiting position for further applications but rather serve as a springboard for the subsequent career. Those who, for example, aim for employment in the private business sector should ask themselves if they want to reach a managing position in the long run or are better suited for more qualified staff activities. Depending on the examination system – i.e. exams conducted over a longer period or concentrated into a block – the candidate should begin writing applications three to six months before the exam. But in order to obtain a general view of the employment market and the positions offered, it is advisable, however, to regularly read the job advertisements in the weekend issues of the supraregional newspapers even before that time. Taking into account that the average graduate today needs several months before finding the right job, an early application strategy is strongly recommended.

Current vacancies for executives and college graduates are, above all, to be found in the weekend issues of the three leading regional newspapers FAZ, Welt and Süddeutsche Zeitung as well as in the supplement ”Karriere” to the Friday edition of the Handelsblatt. The adverts for the job market in the Süddeutsche Zeitung focus on the South German area. Die Zeit publishes job offers especially in public services and in the areas of research, teaching and higher education as well as public health. Job advertisements are also published, for the most part, in trade journals and bulletins for certain professional and industrial groups. It is true that not all advertisements provide the same level of information. Not all of them express themselves clearly enough to make it possible to unmistakably identify the characteristics of the position and its activities as well as the requirements to be met by the applicant. An analysis of job advertisements according to the following pattern can help to filter the most important information out of the text:

1. Information about the company
2. Information about the position and the area of tasks
3. Applicant requirement profile

The tailor-made application

Sending out mass applications, i.e. like ”circulars”, rarely leads to success. The art of applying lies in a combination of information about one’s own qualifications and prerequisites orientated to target a specific position and its skilful presentation. In one word: you should know the job market and how to sell yourself. What is more a ”perfect” application insinuates that the applicant is able to handle other tasks just as well. A personalised application stands out as a contrast to the mass of other applications.

Observing the following rules will be decisive factors in your favour :
- Arouse the interest of the reader
with an individual letter and explain your reasons for applying
- Refer briefly to the most important criteria expressed in the advertisement by elaborating on the connection with your qualification profile. In your letter of application you should only refer to certain subjects or to the topic of your thesis if those are relevant to the position offered. Otherwise this information is to be integrated by all means into the tabular curriculum vitae. In addition, all extra curricular activities such as practical training, subsidiary offices, and social activities should be mentioned. Even if these activities are not directly related to the position advertised, they are nevertheless an indication of initiative, a wide-scope of interest, independence, and the ability to communicate for many Human Resources managers. Moreover, provide an explanation regarding an unusually lengthy period of studies as well as mediocre exam results. Financial reasons or above average social activities are, in this case, a convincing explanation. Further, you should restrain from making false statements or exaggerating about your own knowledge, abilities, and future job planning. Particular importance should be given to the tabular curriculum vitae and its layout ; your CV should be complete and clearly arranged and thus contain all relevant information about your life and education.

Internet

www.hochschulkompass.hrk.de

There is a German equivalent of Success and Career called "Absolventen Berufswahlratgeber". www.az-online.de

Working in Holland

1999 is a good year for job-hunting in Netherlands. The Polder model is bearing fruit, the Dutch employement engine is running at full speed and, if the signs do not deceive us, this trend is set to continue. In 1997, 150,000 extra jobs were created. Expected growth in 1998 is much the same, and the forecast is for continuing economic growth in 1999 to create 140,000 extra jobs.

Unemployment amongst the highly qualified in the Netherlands is lower than for the population of working age as a whole. Just less than five percent of the one and half million highly qualified are looking for a job, while the overall unemployment rate is six percent. For starters on the labour market, it is important to note that school leavers, including students, are the main beneficiaries. Unemployment amongst young people has more than halved in recent years.

In some sectors of business, the labour market is already very tight, as the demand for staff is exceeding the supply. The most notable example is the IT sector. Software companies, computer firms and the large banks and telecommunications companies are leaving no stone unturned to provide for their growing need for staff. IT companies pride themselves on also recruiting abroad, so this industry provides promising opportunities for foreign graduates who wish to work in the Netherlands.

Engineering is the second industry where deficits have arisen. The demand for engineers is expected to rise in the next few years. For the first time in ages, employment in Dutch industry, always an important area for engineers, is growing. The large infrastructure projects on the agenda are leading to increased demand for civil engineers. The government is setting the Netherlands to work, so road-building and hydraulics engineers can roll up their sleeves and pitch in.

This growing demand for engineers contrasts with the relatively small number of Dutch students choosing to study technology and science. Industry and the government are seriously worried about this, while universities and colleges do their best to attract more students to these courses. Qualified engineers from abroad are welcomed with open arms.

Vacancies arise not only when new jobs are created but also when people change jobs. About 170,000 vacancies arise every quarter, a large proportion of which are advertised in newspapers and weeklies. For highly-qualified job-seekers, the Saturday editions of de Volkskrant, het NRC Handelsblad, de Telegraaf and het Algemeen Dagblad are a rich source of vacancies, as well as the weekly Intermediair.

Companies do not only recruit via the newspapers. They also introduce themselves at universities and colleges at careers fairs. They make their initial contacts here and reinforce their reputation. A good image must lead to a sufficient stream of speculative applications. For recent graduates, such a speculative application is a very useful way to get a foot in the door. Foreign applicants can also use this route.

'Temping' work is much more common in the Netherlands than in most other countries. It is very often a stepping-stone to a permanent position within a company. This also applies more and more to highly-qualified job seekers. One in five college graduates make their initial contact with companies in this way.

Starting salaries for highly-qualified employees in the Netherlands are relatively low and have risen significantly more slowly than for other workers. Fifty percent of new university graduates starting at large companies earned between NLG 45,600 and NLG 59,500 guilders in 1997. A quarter earned less and a quarter earned more. Of college graduates, fifty percent earned between NLG 41,200 and NLG 51,000.

As new graduates often have to prove their worth, they are often given a temporary contract to start off with, perhaps for one year. Employers see this as an extended probationary period.

Internet

There is a Dutch equivalent of Success and Career called “ Intermediair Jaarboek ” www.bpa.nl/intermediair

Working in Italy

1999 has been a “hard” year for Italy, that has met a lot of difficulties in re-launching the employment.

The European Union has forced the Italian companies to a re-organisation, in order to face, with good possibility of success, the global competition.

Unfortunately this phase has penalised the labour market and the unemployment remains substantially stable.

It is important to report that the Italian industrial system, making the right exceptions, was structured mainly in a patronal way. The biggest companies gave job each other and the home market was substantially protected by norms that often allowed monopolistic regimes.

With the process of European unification, the public administration was forced to start a privatisation of many enterprises at public participation and this would not have been successful if the budgets had not been put in order.

First of all, many public enterprises had to become limited companies, then it got necessary to slim the staffs through pre-retirements, stimulated dismissals and blocking of engagements. In the meantime the alert eye of Europe was looking to us.
Many other enterprises, even if they were not public, worked in a market substantially closed at the foreign competitors (just think about the Japanese automotive industries, which had been kept for years at the window).

Then, a Governmental politic, which was to much engaged in making square the budgets to be admitted in Europe, has not been able to organise a support to the companies and a re-launching of the occupation.

Fortunately, in a so negative setting, a new revolution happened in the most industrialised countries of the world, and therefore also in Italy; the new computer science technologies and the telecommunications.
Thanks to this enormous industrial sector it has been possible to keep the occupation stable.
The fixed telephony, the mobile telephony, Internet, Java, E-business, the millenium bug had offered, and will continue to offer for years, extraordinary job opportunities.

Practically, it is necessary to rewrite the software of all these companies. Never, like at this moment, the pages of newspapers have been therefore full of announcements of enterprises searching for young people (even not graduated) with good computer science knowledge.

We have pleasure in informing You that Mercurius has realised a software, which can be FREELY downloaded in Internet http://www.mercurius.it and which helps You in writing Your Curriculum quickly and easily.

Internet

There is an Italian equivalent of Success and Career called “ Azienda Informa ” www.mercurius.it

Working in Spain

Current tendencies of recruitement of young graduates

After the economic slump of the early 90’s, and specially since 1996, Spain has very quickly put its economy back into shape. Inflation and interest rates have come down, unemployment rates are slowly but steadily decreasing, the currency has been stabilized, the public sector debt has been reduced, state-owned industry is moving towards privatization, outlooks for trade are optimistic, and billions of dollars are being invested in far-sighted high-tech projects which are attracting the interest of many multi-national corporations.

As many analysts had foreseen, Spain was among the first European Union nations to join the European Monetary Union in 1999, and some have gone as far as to say that Spain is not only laying the groundwork to become Europe’s economic engine in the south, but is also on the way of becoming the most dynamic european economies.

This new situation is of course reflected in the current tendencies of recruitment and hiring of young graduates.

Technical careers are today those which have the best professional perpectives, and the most demanded graduates are currently Engineers (Industrial, Telecommunications and Informatics), Economists, Physicists and Mathematicians, Lawyers, Chemists and Maketing experts.

When recruiting graduates, company priorities have shifted. MBAs, and other Masters, are no longer a passport to success - i.e. a good job - and companies no longer value them as highly as they did a few years ago. Today it is more important to have a good knowledge of languages (English plus a third language, usually German or French), computer literacy, previous experience (obtained through student placement schemes, EU stages, or other jobs, preferably in the same economical sector), and specific personal qualifications. In this sense, companies are looking for graduates which are motivated, flexible, pragmatic, dynamic, responsable, intellectually aggresive, and able to work both independently and in a team.

The economic sectors which currently demand most graduates are informatics, telecommunications, trade, services, consulting, financial and engineering. It is important to point out the growing demand for graduates, in the past four years, on the part of SMEs.

Job offers are easiest to find in the service and industrial sectors and the best perspectives for the future creation of employment are to be found in the areas of: telecommunications, transportation, leisure and tourism, environment, and personal services.

Although the unemployment rate is still the highest in the European Union (15.3% for the fourth quarter of 1999), it is important to point out that it has progressively been going down since the end of 1994, when it reached its highest historical level at 23.9%. Graduate unemployment only accounts for approximately 7% of the total unemployment rate.

How are candidates recruited?

In Spain, there are not specific seasons for graduate recruitment as in other countries. Recruitment is carried out all year long, although the summer months of July and August are practically inactive.

Candidates are recruited principally through advertisements in the national press (in particular, the Sunday editions of “El País”,“ABC”, “El Mundo” and “Expansión”) and specialized publications, followed by alumni networks, recruitment agencies, and direct contact with graduates (word of mouth, personal contacts, spontaneous candidatures). Companies do not recur to recruitment and student fairs as much as in other countries, but the tendency is changing and their participation in these events is growing quickly.

When recruiting foreign graduates, companies also contact Universities and Business Schools directly, and they recur to commercial/business contacts in other countries.

Internet

There is a Spanish equivalent of Success and Career called “ Guia de las Empresas que Ofrecen Empleo" [email protected]

Working in United Kingdom

	Population :	60 million
	Area :	242,910 square km
	Capital :	London
	Main cities :	Birmingham, Leeds, Manchester, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Belfast, Liverpool, Cardiff
	Languages :	English, welsh (in some areas of Wales)
	Currency :	Pound(s)
	Unemployment rate :	5,4%
	Number of Universities :	174
	Number of students :	1,85 million

Two-thirds of first degree graduates find jobs within six months of completing their course.
6.6 million holders of higher education qualifications are working in the UK.
Employers increasingly expect graduates to be self-reliant and manage their own career and personal development.
Nearly two-fifths of employers are unhappy with graduates’ business awareness.
On average, male graduates earn 55% more than male non-graduates and female graduates earn 63 more than female non-graduates by the age of 30-34.
Only 5.7% of new graduates in Britain are unemployed, compared to 7.9% of all 21-24 year olds.

How many graduate jobs are there ?

The employment figures for the class of ‘98 confirmed that a large number of employers want to recruit new first degree graduates, with almost 120,000 in jobs by the beginning of 1999. A survey of the members of the Association of Graduate Recruiters (AGR), representing more than 600 of the largest employers of degree holders in the UK, forecast an increase of 5.1% in the number of vacancies for new graduates between 1998 and 1999. Although most employers are still cautious about making long-term predictions, more than half of employers in the survey expected to increase their graduate recruitment during the next three years.

The winter 1997/8 Labour Force Survey estimated that there were 6.6 million economically active holders of higher education qualifications of working age in the UK, of whom 96.8% were in employment. The highest numbers of recent graduates are working in the Public administration, business services, education and health, and Banking, finance and insurance sectors.

Despite the rise in the number of jobs targeted at graduates, the spectacular growth in student numbers in the last decade means that degree holders need to broaden their sights beyond securing a place on a blue chip company’s graduate recruitment scheme. Large recruiters now have to compete against a growing band of small and medium-sized companies who hire one or two graduates at various times during the year

The distinction between graduate and non-graduate jobs is also becoming blurred – Moving On, a recent survey of graduates three and a half years after graduation, found that nearly half of those regarding their current job as career-related had not required a degree on entry. Conversely, around a quarter of those who did not regard their job as career-related were in graduate-entry posts. Graduate opportunities have opened up in non-traditional areas such as retailing, and more than one in eight working graduates in the 1998 first destination survey started in secretarial and clerical posts. Even if their first job does not require a degree, many graduates quickly progress to higher level posts.

Employers no longer offer a job for life, and a graduate’s career is now likely to consist of a ‘portfolio’ of jobs, with training and experience acquired through a variety of periods of employment. Employers increasingly expect graduates to have self-reliance skills and manage their own career and personal development. There is a lower emphasis on degree subject studied, with one third of all vacancies open to graduates from any discipline. Accountancy, for example is open to all types of graduates who are then trained “on-the-job”.

Have employers’ expectations of graduates changed ?

Inevitably, a perceived glut of graduates has forced companies to re-think their recruitment strategies. Sorting applications is a time-consuming process and according to the Association of Graduate Recruiters survey, employers received 59.5 applications on average, for each vacancy. Some employers are responding by targeting particular institutions or departments which they think will supply good quality candidates. Others are raising their minimum qualification requirements, such as degree class.

But with so many degree holders clamouring for work, employers are now also concerned about whether graduate job applicants possess so-called core or personal, transferable skills. The skills in highest demand during the 1999 recruitment season were interpersonal skills, team working, motivation and enthusiasm, initiative and proactivity, and flexibility.

Employers regard a lack of business awareness as the primary deficiency amongst new graduates. Most recruiters recognise that work experience is the best way for graduates to acquire business skills, and regard candidates as more employable if they have had vacation jobs or sandwich placements.

Internet

Web sites which may be of interest to young graduates:
- Universities - www.scit.wlv.ac.uk/ukinfo/uk.map.html
- Employment opportunities - www.prospects.csu.ac.uk

Other Publications

National newspapers:
- The Guardian, The Times, The Independent

Recommended reading:
- Local and regional newspapers like The Evening Standard (London), Manchester Evening News.

There is an English equivalent of Success and Career called “ Prospects Directory ”
www.prospects.csu.ac.uk