Off to the UK: How to apply for a job or internship in Great Britain

London, one of the world’s largest financial centers, elite universities and many international companies are just some of many reasons why the UK is a great choice for an internship or a job abroad. But do you honestly know what to consider when applying for a job there? Our German partner access.de asked one of our authors, the British career expert Paul Brisk, what a successful application process in the UK is all about. Let’s take a look at some of his answers! 

1. Should a student call the company before applying for a job?

It is not usual practice to call a company before applying for an advertised position unless there are certain aspects or questions which are not fully understood by the applicant which they feel that further clarification is required.

That may be different if the job searcher is sending a speculative letter where information is not readily available from a company website and when I give recommendations to clients I work with, I always say that if taking this approach, you need to find out who by name is operationally responsible within the firm and then address your letter accordingly, as this creates that all important 1^st impression.

Addressing a letter to the Personnel or Human Resources Manager in my opinion is incorrect on these occasions as is starting this with either Sir or Madam.

2.   What is more popular in the UK: a traditional application or an online application?

There is strong evidence that online applications are becoming the way in which large corporate companies prefer to receive formal applications for vacancies.

More traditional methods of completing application papers, submitting these by post are more often used when dealing with medium or smaller companies, but as in most aspects of life there are always exceptions!

3.   What enclosures should be contained in a normal application? And what is meant by “complete dossier”?

The key here is just to ensure that what is required from the advertisement is followed 100% and likewise “complete dossier” is again making sure that everything asked for has been fully completed and that there is no missing information or parts of the application not answered.

My other suggestion here is that once an application has been completed, it should be fully checked by an independent person (friend/family member) for errors etc.

4.   What should students consider when references are required?

The request for references and their content do and can vary e.g. a company may want a reference from an employer who the student has worked for during their course of study (here in the UK the majority carry out part time work too in order to provide some additional income) and may also request a personal character one.

In the latter they will not want this from a family member for obvious reasons, so it has to be someone else who personally knows the student well – again normally a pier as opposed to just a friend from University!!

In all cases if they have to show who their references are within a job application, they need to make their referees aware that they may very well be contacted on every occasion.

5.    How do companies take on job interviews with foreign candidates?

There may well be a variety of different ways, so due to the distance involved, there may well be an initial telephone interview or an interview using the net via Skype.

If called for an interview it would normally be common practice for the company to fly the candidate over and reimburse them for any associated costs from their travel and any accommodation costs etc. They would need to be checked out at that time!!

6. How does a student follow up after sending an application?

Firstly, if sending in an application via the post, a follow up call should be made a few days later to ensure that it has arrived safely. Always keep full copies of everything submitted just in case it goes missing!!

If submitting this via e-mail, ask for the respondent to acknowledge safe receipt (as in this wonderful time of technology, e-mails do & can go astray!!) or set up your e-mail tools to do this automatically as a “read receipt”

7. What would be the appropriate Dress code for a job interview?

Appearance is more important than we think. It is a well-known fact that creating that positive impression on meeting someone for the first time will take place immediately as you walk into that room. In fact some consider that even before that time it starts as soon as you walk into their building and meet the receptionist.

Unless it’s a well-known fact that the company dress code is informal, play safe every time. So for the ladies, it’s a suit, skirt & blouse/jacket or trouser suit combination and for the gentlemen a suit with tie or a really smart jacket and trousers, again with a tie. In both cases don’t let yourselves down by displaying dirty shoes or boots!

If you want to learn more about the application process in the UK and elsewhere you can have a look at Brisk’s two popular career eBooks “Essential Job Searching Tools” and “Creating your CV as a self-marketing tool”.