The question every graduate or economic immigrant addresses- How to get a job in Denmark? Luis and Paula, originally from Spain, Gran Canaria came to Denmark 5 years ago. Today they both work in the industry they love- Mechanical Engineering. Paula is happy to share her knowledge, teaching at VIA University College, while Luis is part of an international company. They were happy to share their Danish experience with us and some tips to help you get the job you want and eventually make Denmark feel like home.
As a matter of fact, the number of international students and economic immigrants coming to Denmark increases every year. 55% of the international students choose to stay here after they finish their studies. Some of them manage to get a job in Denmark, in the field of their study. Others don’t. Making the Danish dream come true may be challenging. 40% of graduating international students are pushed to return home within the first 12 months. Most of them because they cannot find work. What are the things one should pay attention to feel at home on this land? How long does it take to feel integrated, and are there any concrete steps one can take?
An International’s story
There is no better way of finding out the formula of success than from the ones that already made it. Luis and Paula graduated as Mechanical Engineers in Spain. After graduation, they understood that although it is possible to obtain a job related to some extent to engineering in Spain, they wouldn’t be able to work on meaningful projects and unlock their true potential.
Their first destination was Germany. There Paula should have done her Master’s thesis. Some of the courses were held in Denmark. Once she arrived here, she was proposed to complete the Master’s thesis in Denmark; instead, a proposal she accepted with much enthusiasm, as the opportunities were way more promising. So, afterward, followed the question- Why not Denmark? Luis was encouraged in this decision by a former Dane colleague who told him that landing a job here as an engineer wouldn’t be very complicated. Denmark seemed a safe environment with a good work environment.
Based on all the impressions they had before starting a life here, they were expecting the Danes to be very punctual people that also knew how to have fun. Their assumptions were true to some extent. They found Danes flexible, responsible, and pretty organized in all the sectors- public, health, social institutions, etc.
The Cultural gap
When moving to a new country, you start analysing everything you see and experience through the cultural lens you brought with you. Some things seem strange to newcomers. It was a surprise for Paula and Luis how quiet Danish people are. Also, the fact that Danes do not talk much during their meals or had dinner around 18 seemed unusual. In Spain, people spend a lot of time out of their houses. They tend to communicate over food and, even after they finished their meal, still sitting at the table. This beautiful tradition gave birth to one of the untranslatable Spanish words- Sobremesa.
An opinion shared by many other internationals is that- not everyone makes it. And it’s okay. Not everyone can adapt to what the weather or the Danish culture have to offer.In the first period of time, our heroes were mostly interacting with the international community. This made them feel like being in a bubble.
One of the main reasons Internationals choose Denmark as a place to study and live is the work environment.
We really like the way they treat employees in Denmark. Even if you did something wrong, they will approach you and ask you to give it a second glance. They will calmly say to you: “Okay, but what if we tried this instead?”. Rather than giving concrete tasks, they let you organize your work as you consider it more effective. The Spanish culture of managing people is quite different. For instance, it is common for a manager to raise his/her voice with and without reason.
So, how exactly does one get a job in Denmark?
5 tips to get a job in Denmark
#1 Learning Danish
Sometimes the limits of your language are the limits of your world. Specifically, they are also the barriers you will encounter when trying to succeed in your career, enlarge your network, form meaningful friendships.
The Danish language is the price you have to pay to enter Danish society, and, at the same time, it is a way to demonstrate your gratefulness for what this country offers to you.
Paula and Luis signed in for the language courses once they got to DK. Combining work, studies, and language learning was tough. The homework required at the language school was not a manageable task for most students who had a busy schedule. It was nice to have teachers that made sure that attending the classroom was enough to make progress.
We didn’t take any breaks between the courses, feeling that if we would take a break, we might not come back. Even so, we felt like being pushed to pass to the next level, and sometimes we would rather have stayed a bit longer on the same level. We would spend a lot of time practicing the exams, and sometimes that does not equal learning. In addition to that, every time new students were joining the class, we felt like having to take a few steps back to make it possible for them to adapt.
Using all the available resources can be a real game-changer: books, TV series, newspapers, infographics, stickers. Finding compelling TV series in danish can help a lot.
We watched Rita, Luksusfælden, Broen. Even if we didn’t understand everything, in the beginning, the effort paid off.
Danish at work
Their work colleagues would talk to them in English in their try to make them feel as comfortable as possible. Despite this fact, having Danish colleagues sometimes makes a real difference.
One of my colleagues at some point started talking to me only in Danish. Sometimes I wouldn’t get it at once. Then he would repeat the phrase two, three times until I could understand. Later, he convinced all my other colleagues to also talk to me in Danish. This helped me a lot. – Paula
Getting a job
Knowing Danish to some extent will facilitate the job-seeking process.
From my experience as a teacher, the first students to land a job are the ones speaking Danish.- Paula
On the other hand, as we well know, beginnings can be hard.
I started my journey of getting a job in Denmark by taking an internship. My first internship was in Danish, starting with the Cover Letter and continuing with the interview and working process. I could feel that because of my language skills, I could not really show what I was capable of. At times, I would feel like the less smart person in the room. Of course, you are not in a competition, but you still want to identify yourself as effective and productive.
Being among Danes without being proficient with the language can be challenging. At the same time, you cannot become proficient without going through this struggle. Even if you do not speak the language yet, employers appreciate seeing that you started and keep trying. – Luis
#2 Networking
It is hard to make Danish friends. Especially in the same age group. With Internationals, it usually happens naturally. There are plenty of opportunities when it comes to Networking. And every opportunity is worth giving it a try. Taking part in Social activities as football, in Luis’s case, helped a lot to know how it is better to approach and communicate with Danes.
As time goes by, you will be able to identify more and more places you could make contact with Danes. For those who entered the great world of Parenthood, Daycare or Kindergarten can be a good place to get started. You can practice small talk and share your opinions on care and education.
#3 Hard work
Paula got proposed the teaching job while being at the Research center. At the question- what helped you get noticed? She said that, first of all, it was hard work. Working hard and being excellent in what you do will eventually pay off.
#4 Getting specialized
Being very good in a certain field increases your chances to get employed by a lot. This can be applied certainly to domains like engineering, architecture, and IT. It is the same with knowing a foreign language that has demand for domains like Sales, Business Development and Marketing. Additional skills put extra points to your CV, and very often, it doesn’t take a lot of time or effort to acquire them. Let’s not forget about the multitude of resources we have available.
#5 Proactiveness
You have to promote yourself out and show what you are capable of. Take all the opportunities that are out there. One chance that you took will bring another. Paula’s goal at the beginning was to raise funding for a Ph.D. In this process, she made a lot of presentations, organized a lot of meetings.
Although it wasn’t possible to raise the necessary funds, she met many people and, ultimately, got proposed the job at VIA University College. In her practice as a teacher at VIA University, there were cases when students would land a job with the help of an external examiner after they showed their best self at an exam. We bet that this will motivate you enough to show your best self at the next external exam.
Courage is knowing what not to feat
Sometimes people unconsciously put barriers between themselves and the language, culture, society of the new country they’ve chosen to live in.
Of course, it is way more comfortable to communicate only with people from your country. But it is getting out of your comfort zone that will ultimately help you achieve what you came here for.
We wish you good luck in finding your way to this beautiful land. Hope that the tips above will facilitate your process of getting a job in Denmark. May you have enough curiosity to explore the Danish culture, the courage to enter society, and the patience to learn the language!
Remember, no pain, no gain! When creating the Danish course, we concentrate all our efforts on making it attainable to acquire the language with as little pain as possible. Join our free weekly lessons to extend your vocabulary, understand the grammar and try to make peace with the Danish pronunciation.
Check out this article in order to find out more about the Danish culture!
Paula and Luis, thank you for sharing!
