How to Frame Your CV When Applying for Jobs Abroad?

Eligible professionals are looking out for lucrative and bright career options outside India. Some of the top reasons are – they are trying to take up new challenges and explore new opportunities where they can sharpen their skills, leverage their past experience and earn in Dirhams, Pounds and Dollars. Some of them aspire to expose their children to another culture, climate and language. Few professionals want to acquire global work experience so that when they return back to India, they can start their own venture with global expertise. But, the real challenge is getting hold of a job outside India. If you are one such individual who wish to fly down to another country for attractive job opportunities and huge packages, you have to prepare an impressive resume.

Depends on the country you are applying

Employers, over the globe, look for same qualities and skill sets in their applicants, irrespective of whether the position is in London, UAE or USA. Hence, it can be said that there are no hard and fast rules for creating a CV for an international job. However, applicants should be aware of the minute conventions related to the application process in different countries. The brief one or two page resume which Indian employers want is not necessarily what is expected overseas. For example, an organization located in Greece opines that ‘bigger is better’. If your CV is comprised of more than 4 pages, it is advised to include summary in the first two pages, featuring all the details in a compressed form.   

When you are an immigrant, the organization, located abroad, wants to know about you in detail. This will help them to do the initial screening and judge whether you can fit into their work culture, environment and timing. 

Follow the instructions carefully

Different countries make use of different terms to explain the info that a CV should have. Let’s consider a few examples. “Cover letter” is termed as ““motivation letters” in some countries and “letter of interest” in others. Attaching photographs are not considered appropriate in U.S., while according to companies, based in countries like UAE and Singapore, it is a standard procedure to affix photograph or have it printed on the resume.

It is a good idea to do some homework. Find out what corporate culture the particular company possesses, the culture of the country, the recruitment procedure and lots of other stuffs. If you are applying (for a position abroad) in a company that has branches in India, your task is going to become easier.

What is to be included in the CV content?

The content of your resume will not vary greatly when applying for positions in different countries. In some situations, it is better to hide more and in others it is best to show more. Do not exclude the necessary details like previous work experience, your job roles and responsibilities, area of functioning, domain expertise and skill set, personal information, professional memberships and references.

Include an appropriate title that expresses your job profile and experience. It may be possible that employers in some countries will ask for your religion, passport number, etc. But be careful while providing bank details as several fraud cases have been observed recently. Resumes are generally structured in reverse sequential order. This means, the most recent activity will come first. 

If you want to make a little effort and yet want your CV to stand out from the masses that attract companies from abroad, it is recommended that you rely on international recruitment consultants in India. 

About the Author:

Jay kumar S is a global manpower specialist. In this article he describes how to catch the attention of the employers overseas with an appealing CV. He also recommends counting on international recruitment consultants in India to maximize the chances of getting jobs in other countries.