u/Themuscleupguy

Hello,

I just wanted to share how I landed my first job in Germany based on my own experience; and I hope this post would be helpful to some of you.

Before coming to Germany, I lived in France for some time , then I came to Germany but I made sure to learn German and reached C1.

Job searching was very exhausting, as my previous internships in France were not recognized, so I started as a fresh person with literally 0 experience.

I sent around 366 applications(I save all my applications and all details in an Excel), had 30 Interviews and received two offers.

What really helped me? Here are some points

• German: If you have no German, then your chances will drop by 80%, as soft skills including proper German/Cultural fit are as important as your hard skills. Most of the interviews were in German, except in some situations where the company doesn't mind English.
• Flexibility: Once you reach advanced rounds, in most cases they asked me to come on site for an interview with the Ceo, and I had to do hundreds of Kms, sometimes I spend the night in the stations, and if I have some money I book an hotel, so it depends on the situation, and I know this might be a bit wrong, but showing that you are open to come on-site is a good sign.
• Technical Interviews: It honestly depends on your profile, but to me all technical interviews were basic, 90% of them were live coding challenge. Coding challenges aren't about delivering perfect code or a working solution, but it is more about how you solve the problem, the way you think, and how you communicate, and AI was not allowed, even though all companies are abusing AI usage during their workflow, but technical interviews are a different story, as they need to check your skills.
• My CV: I have a tabular CV, no icons, no charts, just a simple and well structured CV, I used to apply only on roles that exists on my CV, this means that I don't apply on something I do not know or understand, a role that perfectly matches my CV. I used to customize my CV a bit, and regarding motivation letter, I never sent a standard one, I always customize it depending on the role I am applying for.
• Salary negociation: If you don't have an idea regarding how salaries work in Germany, then it's better to check it before applying. For master's degree I am not allowed to get less than 48000 Eur Brutto a year, this means that some roles are limited to a lower range, and in that case you can get rejected just because of your Diploma. Another issue I discussed with my friends is salary negociations, as some people think that asking for a lower salary will get them the job which is not true and it is actually the opposite. If you ask for a salary lower than what your master’s degree qualifies you for or permits, this can create a significant issue. First, the employer may perceive it as a sign that you are undervaluing yourself. Second, even if both parties agree on the salary, the Ausländerbehörde and the Bundesagentur für Arbeit may not approve it.

What I didn't like:

• Ponctuality: I attended my interviews on time, as I prefer to come early, and enter the building or the online meet 5 minutes prior, but in most cases there is alwasy 15mn delay, and in some cases the recruiter never shows up.
• Ghosting: I've done 3 rounds interviews and until this day I didn't get any reply, and that's why I always advice people to keep applying and never trust verbal promises, you stop applying only when you sign the contract yourself.
• Multiple Interview Rounds: It's a pain in the a$$, especially reaching 3 rounds interview and still a couple of them, but usually the average rounds are between 3 and 4, and in some companies for specific roles 7 rounds( I gave up on the 4th)

What helped me during that depressive period:

• I love Germany, but I never considered it my home. I see myself as a guest, and I probably always will. That means I am not willing to sacrifice my mental or physical health for it. I also never paid much attention to what my family said. Most of them encouraged me to hold on and keep applying, but I still remember the moment I was packing my things and preparing to return to my home country. I have seen many people damage their mental health in similar situations, and in my view, it is simply not worth it. What also helped me was the fact that I had done everything imaginable to find a job.
• I tried every possible way, and I had always been a hardworking student, so I had no regrets. I believe that sense of having truly given it your all is something many people are missing.

I hope this helps a bit eventhough I know it's hard.

Good luck!

Field : IT | Full Stack Dev