Finding a job is challenging. This is doubly true if you’re applying for a position in a foreign country: besides proving that you can do the job, you also have to convince recruiters to pick you over the many local candidates looking to secure the same role.
While getting a job abroad is difficult, it’s not impossible. By working both harder and smarter, you’ll be able to secure the international position you’ve always wanted. In this article, we’ll go through some top resume and cover letter tips for job seekers applying to businesses in foreign countries.
Keep reading to learn how to optimise your application documents as an international job candidate.
Format Your Documents Properly
While this may seem obvious, you’d be surprised by how many job applications get rejected due to improper formatting. If an employer asks you to submit your resume in .pdf or .docx format and you fail to abide, you may be out of the running before you even get to make your first impression. So before hitting ‘submit,’ double-check the formatting requirements portion of the job description and use a PDF to Word converter and other tools to make sure you’re submitting the right type of documents.
Why is this so important to employers? It’s all about attention to detail. Given the sheer volume of applications companies receive for every opening position, recruiters are always looking for easy ways to weed out low quality applications.
Incorrectly formatting your application documents might demonstrate a lack of interest in the role: if you didn’t bother taking the time to read through the entire job description, recruiters might think you aren’t a serious candidate. So read the application process to a tee before submitting anything to a prospective employer.
Make Sure Your Resume and Cover Letter are Current
When applying for jobs, make sure to keep your resume and cover letter current to show potential employers your full range of skills and experience. If you have a job at the moment, include it in your application. Talk about the responsibilities you hold, the skills you’ve developed and, if possible, the positive results of your work.
The same advice applies if you’re applying via LinkedIn. Make sure the resume you upload to LinkedIn is your latest one: applying for a job using an out-of-date resume won’t give recruiters the full picture of what you’ve done and what you know, and might even lead them to think that there’s a gap in your employment history.
When applying for an international role, it’s crucial to demonstrate as wide a range of skills and experience as possible to give yourself a shot at securing the role. The best way of doing this is by including all your most relevant roles in your resume and CV, including any positions you currently hold.
Tailor Your Resume and Cover Letter To Each Job
Tailoring your resume and cover letter to each job you apply to can be time-consuming, but it’s worth it, especially if you’re an international job candidate. If you’ve been working for a few years, you probably have more skills, education and experience than you can fit into a single resume, even if it’s two pages long.
You’ll have to select the most relevant ones when applying for a specific role. If you want to get a job in IT, for example, you should list down all the different frameworks you know. On the other hand, if you’re applying for an editorial position in a publishing house, you’ll want to highlight your skills as a writer and mention any books or publications you’ve worked on.
If you’re applying for an international position, it’s also important to mention your working rights in the country where the company is based. Already holding some sort of work permit or visa can make you a much more attractive candidate.
You should also make sure to get the little details right. After all, there’s nothing more embarrassing than applying for a particular company and accidentally sending a cover letter addressed to one of their competitors.
Be as Quantitative as Possible
When writing a resume and cover letter, it’s not enough to list your past positions and the responsibilities you were assigned. To demonstrate your competence, it’s important to cite some facts and figures that were the direct result of your work.
For example, if you were responsible for social media management, you might want to mention the rise in Instagram followers since you took over. If you worked in SEO, you can point to an increase in website traffic. Laying out facts and figures is the best way to substantiate the claims you’ve made in your resume and cover letter, so make sure to include an ample amount of them.
Include General Competencies in Your Application
When applying for a job, it’s important to include as many skills as possible in your resume and cover letter. This doesn’t just mean the skills that the role explicitly requires. You’ll also want to talk about basic competencies such as the ability to use software like Microsoft Word, Excel and Google Sheets. For certain roles, you can even include basic skills such as being able to type fast or deliver effective presentations.
We also highly recommend outlining some of your soft skills in your resume and expanding on them in your cover letter by giving concrete examples. Recruiters want to know that you have the right character traits to thrive in their company, and soft skills are a great way of demonstrating this.
As an international job candidate, securing the job of your dreams requires plenty of hard work and strategic thinking. You want to make sure that both your resume and cover letter are perfectly optimised to give you the best possible chance of landing the position you have your eyes on.
In this article, we’ve given you some practical tips for writing the perfect resume and cover letter as an international job candidate. Incorporate these tips into your own application documents today.