Stocking Stuffers That Can Boost Your Career

Gift that keeps on giving: a Germany-USA Career Center  certificate

Happy Cyber Monday! Did you know that the Germany-USA Career Center offers gift certificates for its bi-national / bi-cultural resume writing and career consulting services?

In time for the holiday season and effective immediately, gift certificates are available for services like job search or interview assistance from an English or German-speaking Germany-USA Career Adviser for Germans and Americans in both countries.

You now can purchase single gift certificates, like for a complete Resume and Cover Letter Translation / Writing package, or even multiple GUCC vouchers, for example for a whole series of Career Adviser consultations.

Career Center users can book Career Adviser consultations, which now can be gifted via voucher(just enter "Gift Certificate" and the name, address and email contact of the beneficiary with your order on our website), via the Career Adviser page in the For Applicants section of the Germany-USA Career Center website.

My GUCC Experience: Ron Diaz, Albany, NY

"Very helpful. The service has provided me practical advice, and made me aware of excellent jog hunting resources.

Professional service. Excellent resources at your fingertips. Saves a lot of time for job seekers."

On a scale of 1-10, 10 being "excellent," Ron Diaz rated the service rendered by his Career Adviser a "10."

Career Services user Ron Diaz
Albany, NY

Three Apps for Your German / American Job Search

Is there an app for that? Well, yes! Three smartphone / mobile device tools that can help with finding a job with an American or German company doing business in both countries.

Have something to add to our shortlist? Let us know!

Read more »

USA / Germany: Five Rules for Job Hunt Success via Social Media

Like it or not, LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus & Co. are here to stay. Recruiters use social media when searching for candidates. Hiring managers frequently use them to learn more about a proposed job candidate.


Your grandma is using it. "This social media stuff is so not my generation" - not an excuse for you at a time when
many companies consider social media skills mandatory for new hires in departments such as customer service.


What does this mean for you? Follow our five rules for job search success on social online networks, and you will avoid common traps, and may even receive job leads or attract the curiosity of a headhunter or potential employer:

• Sharpen your professional social media profile.
  
  If you don't have an account yet on LinkedIn (USA), Xing (Germany), Google Plus (everywhere) or a platform like About.Me yet, set one up. It's free.


• Don't mix messages.
  
  If you already have a Facebook or Twitter account where you discuss flings, dining experiences, music or politics with peers, set up a separate Twitter account or FB page strictly "for business." Use a professional portrait photo of yourself in the account profile, include your designated job hunt email address, and...


• Become a resource.
  
  Help others in your industry and share useful or actionable information from your professional field, and people will seek you out, become "followers" and - the main thing - remember you.
  
  Recruiters in your industry can identify you as someone with the expertise they are looking for in a possible candidate. Some well organized job seekers even launch blogs for that purpose.


• Play it safe.
  
  Stay on message, which should always reflect how you would like to be perceived professionally. Equally important: Select a secure password for your social media accounts, store it safely (if at all), and change it frequently.
  
  It takes some effort to acquire business-minded "followers" through a social media job search campaign. If they get spam-flooded by that billionaire oil prince who has money to give away via your social media or email account, they will head for the exit.


• Follow (the Germany-USA Career Center), and participate.
  
  Don't just "lurk" in the background. Contribute by starting or adding value to ongoing discussions in areas where you can sharpen your profile in your industry, and highlight your accomplishments, for the benefit of your job search.
  
  "Following" others - or attracting "likes" or "followers" - just "because" will keep you busy, but not accomplish much, except perhaps for being perceived as a social media busybody.
  
  Follow social media accounts that make sense for your jobhunt "market research," and those of peers and players in your industry who may be open to more person-to-person professional networking, online and offline.
  
  For your job search with American / German companies, in the US or in Germany, a good starting point is the Germany-USA Career Center "quick bits" service on Twitter. Follow us at @jobsGUCC.

You may even want to share your thoughts on the topic (i.e., "has helped me" or "colossal waste of time"), or share tips, tricks and useful resources with other Germans and Americans looking for a job in Germany or in the U.S. The Germany-USA Career Center's job search blog is always open for guest post suggestions:

Source: Germany-USA Career Tips

Respond Only to Job Ads That Match Your Profile!

It should go without saying... yet, some basics cannot be emphasized enough.

Let's say you are an accomplished IT network administrator, and now you are applying for a paralegal position. Not because you acquired a paralegal certificate in evening classes. You do so because the opening is in the U.S. or German city where you would like to work - let's say Munich, or Los Angeles - and because it sounds exciting, like "paratrooper" and "big law firm."

Save yourself the effort - there is only one likely outcome. You would be perceived as unprofessional or, worse, as a dimwit. Not a chance. Not even in America!

Source: Germany-USA Career Tips

Ten Things to Know Before a Job Interview in Germany

#1 is the easiest: "Things will be different." Very different.

Now that we've got that out of the way, let's see how you can learn about nine more German job interview basics. What should you expect as an American who is looking for employment with a German company in Berlin, Munich, Stuttgart or Hamburg, for example?

Americans in Germany (and Germans in the U.S., of course) commonly experience a "culture shock" when entering the foreign work environment for the first time.

Newcomers are often humbled by their own lack of actual knowledge about the other country's (workplace) culture. Those are important lessons to learn. Don't waste the opportunity with "better" or "worse" comparisons. Think "different."

To help you prepare for a successful outcome, we have prepared a quiz for you on the Germany-USA Career Center website. It highlights some common situations American applicants face in their job interviews with German companies, Job Interview Basics for Americans in Germany on the Germany-USA Career Center website.

Enjoy!

Source: Germany-USA Career Tips