Unemployed

Here below are a number of tips to help you keep working on your (study) career. 

• Use the available channels: job vacancy websites (for example LU Jobs & Events Portal) are a good place to begin your search, as they contain concrete and recent vacancies. However, there are more channels at your disposal. Many first-time job seekers find work via their networks. So extending your network and putting out word of your job search is an important step. 
   
• Keep an overview of your job applications: a common mistake made by many job seekers is to spend a lot of time looking for vacancies, but little time sending applications. Keep a concise overview of your application and networking activities to give you a realistic picture of what you’re doing. How many applications are you sending per week? How many contacts have you notified of what you’re looking for? What is the status of your applications? 
   
• Work on your job application skills: are you sending lots of applications but getting few invitations for interview? Or do you regularly get no further than the first round of interviews? You can learn job application skills. Ask f.i. for advice about your CV, do a job application training course, or work on your networking skills. Leiden University’s Career Service is on hand to help, also after you graduate. 
   
• Rejections are all part of the process: no matter how good your CV is and how well the application process goes, there’s still a chance you’ll be rejected, often more than once. For every position there are many candidates and, in most cases, only one person will be hired. Use the lessons learned from your rejections to improve your job application skills. 
   
• Keep working on your CV: as well as good job application techniques, it’s also important to gain experience that can be added to your CV. For example, how about volunteer work for a student association committee, or helping to organise an event? In this way you can learn new skills, extend your network and remain active. If it’s taking a while to find a job, these sorts of activities can help to minimise what would otherwise be a gap on your CV.  

After obtaining a bachelor's or master's degree from a research university or university of applied sciences in the Netherlands, non-European students can apply for a residence permit under the Orientation Year for Graduates Seeking Employment scheme.