Following is the list of documents which are supposed to be attached along with job application: 

• Covering Letter (This is placed just place loose above all)
• Cover sheet
• Curriculum Vitae(CV)/Resume
• So called „Third Page“ (if required)
• Photo (placed on the cv or the cover sheet)
• Copy of Certificates (School passing certificates, Diploma/ Master/ Bachelor/ Internship’s certificate.)
• Likewise copies of designations respectively Certificates

Now that you have collected all the documents, you should prepare to send your application with great care either via e-mail or via postal mail:

• Use clip files of neutral color. (unless you are applying for in the marketing department or similar)
• Avoid the simple clear plastic folder
• Keep covering letter lose at top in job application file.
• Use folder ONLY one time.
• Sort the contents of the folder either in ascending or descending order.
• sufficiently large envelope (maybe with reinforced back)

Congratulations! You have successfully passed the stage of job application and got invited to the interview. Before you go to the interview, a systematic preparation is important. Gain at least current accurate information about your prospective employer. – How many employees does the company have? What is produced in the company? What is the philosophy of the company? etc. – Usually you get this information from the internet or from newspapers/ data bases etc. Next, you should plan priory how you would proceed in your interview. Because an interview is always a „Marketing of your own matter“ and „You`ll never get a second chance to make a first impression.“ So pay attention to your hairstyle and your clothes. It is advisable to wear e.g. a blazer or a suit and tie. Avoid striking colors (better to be more conservative first time, later you can still orient yourself according to the colleagues; there can be exceptions to this rule). Drive off early enough to avoid delays caused by congestion, breakdown etc. If you need to travel long for an interview please ask beforehand whether you will get reimbursed for travelling expenses. So you do not have discussion about that afterwards.

The Assessment Center (AC) is a method of selection of personnel with the help of exercises and tests. This should help to identify the competencies of the potential employee better. In the AC's that can go over one or more days, the participants are confronted in individual exercises, group exercises, oral and written exercises with situations, tasks and problems, which you can also encounter in daily work-life. During the exercises participants are being observed by staff experts or specialists and managers. Particular important things:

• Stress resistency / Stress withstanding capability
• Communication skills
• Ability to work in team
• Analytical thinking
• Social competence
• assertiveness

In a self-initiated application one has the possibility to apply without having any specific job offer in mind/hand. This type of application is especially suitable, when you have the wish to work with a specific company that in the moment does not have any specific job to offer. With a self-initiated application, you have quite good chances of getting invited for an interview since your application might not have to pass through piles of other applications. Moreover, by such an application you show engagement, initiative and motivation. However, being well informed about the desired company is a basic requirement for such an application.

For a self-initiated application the following things should be noted:

• Different types of such applications are: The written application, the application via telephone, online application and application as per recommendation by relatives and/or acquaintances.
• What can you do? What will you do? What is possible? What abilities and qualities do you have?
• Self-initiated applications can be short or long, therefore without further application related documents (Covering letter, photo, Curriculum Vitae) or with all attachments.
• Before you send out your resume, gather information about the company, if possible, pick up the phone in advance to contact the company, then send your CV and stay mainly in contact. Ask again after two weeks on how the status of application is.

Here are more options for self-initiated application forms:

• Your own job search in the newspaper, online (Xing/ LinkIn), Arbeitsamt - Database
• The job search on the home page of the desired company
• The Job Vacancy at various job sites where you can register yourself most of the time free of cost
• You go to a recruitment fair, a congress or a general fair of the branch you want to start in (www.auma.de)

The application for the Internet is like the "blind" application and the application via phone. Recently, this form of application is becoming a more and more popular choice. Some branches – like the IT Branch is meanwhile working without paper applications. With this type of initiative application you have the possibility to make yourself noticed. But you also have to make sure you catch up on it.

You can do it

• Through applying on homepage of a company.
• through a job search on your own website
• through an application on the website of various job sites

You can use either a short application (cover letter and resume / photo) or send a detailed application but (with all scanned documents).

How to write an online application?

• What are you applying for?
• What skills and knowledge do you have?
• Pay attention to clarity of passages.
• Keep your cover letter as short as possible.
• Write your resume in word-editor first and then copy it into the e-mail program.
• Send your application to a specific contact (not to "ladies and gentlemen")if possible.
• Put your e-mail address and mailing address.
• Send the scanned documents in one of the following formats "* pdf", "txt", "doc *" or "* rtf".
• Important: Create an online application with the same high standards as a formal written application.

This type of application is particularly interesting for you if you want to take the initiative to apply (not to apply for an offered job), or to learn more about an advertised position. Before you make a call, you should plan priorly, how you would proceed and what you would like to achieve. You shall keep following 4 points in mind:

A (attention) Win the attention of your correspondent

I (interest) Arouse his/her interest

D (desire) Make sure the contacted person has the desire at this point to learn more about you

A (action) someone takes actions… 

• attention What do you have to offer? Why have you called? Does correspondent have time for you?
• interest Which qualifications and knowledge you possess?
• desire What work experience or other experience do you have that might be of interest for the company?
• action You will be invited to send your application. If you hear nothing after 2 weeks, ask again by phone.

It is recommended that you have prepared a small script before actually making a call, in order to avoid stumbling during a call. While asking a question you need to be careful about your questions and about asking them openly, with which he shall not just answer ‘yes’ or ‘no’. This will keep conversation in flow/going. An example of an open question: May I know, what are the career opportunities for a graduate of… in your company? How do you judge the career opportunities for a graduate of a German master in….with an international background/ little German language knowledge/ very good English language competencies etc. An example of a closed question: Does your company have a job offer at the moment for a position of… to fill/occupy?