Isn't everything the same over there?
Fortunately for the Germans, the Dutch CV indeed doesn't differ too much from the German one. Likewise to the German CV the Dutch contains personal details, education and work experience as well as language and computer skills. Personal interests or hobbies are considered as a plus as well. However, an element, that's not part of the German CV, but can give a big edge in the recruitment process in the Netherlands, is the personal profile providing the recruiter with a kind of summary about the applicant's most essential advantages on top of the CV:
While in Germany the jobseekers tend to spend a lot of time on the perfect motivation letter, it is considered as less crucial in the Netherlands. The document should still be included in the application, but can normally be shorter than according to German standards.
Although many Dutch speak the German language, applications for jobs in the Netherlands should be held in Dutch or English, unless a German one is requested in the vacancy. For Dutch CVs and motivational letters the language skills should be high enough in order to avoid mistakes in the application documents.
If there isn't anything stated about it in the vacancy, it is common to only send the CV and the motivation letter and only provide the recruiters with job-, university- or other certificates, if they ask for it at a later time. However, it is advisable to bring possibly important certificates to the job interview.
Strange behavior of recruiters?
Other than the CV and motivation letter not differing seriously, the recruiting process as a whole in Dutch companies can be unfamiliar for Germans. For instance, it is common for Dutch recruiters to address the applicants by their first names. Even though in Germany this might be considered as a lack of respect, here it solely mirrors the Dutch culture of low hierarchies.
Furthermore, connections can be the key in finding a job in the Netherlands. LinkedIn is an important platform many recruiters use. Advantageous is therefore to create an appealing profile and to start building a network.
Additionally, recruiters tend to call applicants before deciding whether to invite them to an interview more often than it is common in Germany. Jobseekers should therefore be prepared for unannounced phone calls.
Still in doubt?
In case you still have some doubts about your application, it's better to let it check by a local with knowledge about Dutch recruiting. Our career coaches are experts in the field of job applications by expats and support you in landing a job well matching your skills and expectations.
By: Dorothea Schweinefuß