Boost your CV, Work Abroad!

When it comes to delivering a presentation, a sure fire way to success is good content. Interesting and unique content has the power to captivate an audience, purely for the fact that they are hearing news, not regurgitated facts. The same principle applies to how you present yourself – in accordance with the previous analogy, the mode of delivery is of course the CV and your audience, the potential employer.

How to stand out?

All the good candidates, that is to say your real competition, will have all the plus points you have (good grades, positive references, plenty of enthusiasm….) and maybe more (for example, if you are a recently graduated candidate, you are likely to lack the solid grounding of experience required for many top posts that only the older candidates could have any chance of having). Bearing this in mind, to ensure yourself success, you have to apply yourself to augmenting the variety of your CV’s content; luckily, this can be really quite an enjoyable stage of your application progress!

Consider your strengths and the most valuable traits for the types of jobs which interest you. Speaking generally, leadership skills, independence and a will to learn are always considered highly by employers. A way to prove to your employer all these traits are reflected in your personality is to do something for which they are necessary; by moving yourself away from your comfort zone, this is easily done.

Working abroad is an ideal option. By doing so you gain and demonstrate a great degree of confidence, you exemplify your adaptability to new situations and you show your enthusiasm for learning (employers rate this very highly; due to the ever developing technology world and internationalising businesses, staff training has a very prominent role in the work place). So, although a viaggio studio in Rome learning the beautiful Italian language may only be for two weeks, it could land you the job of a lifetime!

You could even combine your studies with work experience – something which really would raise the eyebrows of any employer reading your CV! To expand, someone who has chosen to learn French in France could further impress their potential employer on being able to describe their integration into the French culture and provide their view point of the foreign work place (a fresh view could bring great benefit to the company you’re applying to!). What is more is that working abroad gives you the chance to gain experience living independently and managing your finances. The extra money could also give you the option of paying for a private language or various excursions around your destination country and so consequently optimising your time abroad. One should also remember that as a student (and especially if working abroad), there is often the opportunity to claim taxback – another factor which can help in terms of your study vacation’s financial planning!

With respect to moving out your comfort zone, one must do it step by step. It is not good to plan a year long trip the other side of the world, your first time away, and return after a week because you’re home sick. Europe is a great place to start. There is significant cultural difference, even after just a very short journey, and furthermore travel is budget-friendly and flexible (especially when one considers options such as eurorail passes and frequent traveller deals). You can use your wages to upgrade to first class (this is at a significantly low cost on trains!) and so making travelling home a pleasure.

Travel is so easy nowadays that there is really no excuse for not doing it. Stay ahead of the crowd and make sure you are taking best advantage of what it is you decide to do whilst away. Finally, do not forget to let your employers know how you have changed – for the better! – as a result of your adventure.