Miten haet työtä?

"If you want apples, you have to shake the tree."
(Bulgarian saying)

Prior to Job Hunting

When you are job hunting, there are various places where you can go for help. Do remember, though, that the most important thing is that you yourself are active. Make sure all your certificates are up-to-date. It is recommended that you get all your qualifications and certificates translated into Finnish or Swedish. It is also worth considering the Recognition or Equation of any vocational qualifications or degrees from institutions of higher education, as this helps employers understand your education history. Recognition and Equation of degrees is subject to a charge.

If you do not know what kind of work you would like to do, book an appointment with a Career Counsellor (ammatinvalinnanohjaaja) at the Employment Agency. Your local Employment Agency will be able to give you more information.

People seeking employment shall not be discriminated against. When employers choose new employees, they must not set conditions not pertaining to the performance of the tasks. Nobody shall be discriminated against on the basis on age, ethnic origin, nationality, language, religion, belief, opinion, health, disability, sexual orientation, gender or sexual identity. Discrimination on the basis of wealth or pregnancy, for example, is also prohibited.

View the Info Bank Who can help in cases of discrimination? webpages.

CV (Curriculum Vitae)

Remember to update your CV. Click on “Työnhaku” and then ”Työnhaun asiakirjat” (”Hakemuksen liitteet”) on the Job Seeker’s Guide (Työnhakuun -opas) on the Employment Agency Website to find instructions in Finnish on how to write a CV. To help you apply, we have produced a CV template in Finnish (doc).
Translations of the template are available in the following languages:

Arabic (doc)
English (doc)
Serb Croat (doc)
Russian (doc)

Europass CV

The Europass is a pan-European CV or resume. It consists of five documents whose purpose is to help students and workers show their know-how in Europe. The documents are in use in the same form in all the EU/EEA countries. You can use the Europass when looking for work or applying to educational institutions. The Europass is especially useful for people who seek work tasks in another European nation or apply to a foreign education programme.

CV models for filling out a Europass (Bulgaria, Czech, Danish, German, Greek,English, Spanish, Estonian, French, Croatian, Icelandic, Italian, Lithuanian, Latvian, Hungarian, Dutch, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovenian, Finnish, Swedish, Turkish).

Finland’s Europass pages.

Job Application

Always write a new job application for each position you are applying for. Take your time in drafting the applications. The purpose of an application is to arouse the interest of the employer in order to get an interview with them. Click on “Työnhaku” and then on ”Työnhaun asiakirjat” on the Job Seeker’s Guide for instructions on how to draft a job application. Always read through the whole job advertisement carefully before you start writing your application. To help you apply, we have produced a template of a typical job application in Finnish.
Translations of the template are available in the following languages:

Arabic
English
Serb Croat
Russian

Guide to reading job advertisements, in the following languages:

Finnish
Arabic
English
Serbo-Croat
Russian

Job Interview

Always prepare yourself carefully for job interviews. Think about questions the employer is likely to ask you and also think through a few questions that you would like to ask the employer. Click on “Työnhaku” and on ”Työpaikkahastattelu” on the Job Seeker’s Guide for tips on how to prepare for a job interview. 

If you are looking for a new job while you are still working for someone else, take a temporary reference or your employment contract to the job interview.

Where to Find Work –page of the Info Bank contains information on sources where you can look for vacancies.

Expat Finland

Good Luck!