How to prepare a Resume to Work in Spain

This is a short guide to help you. How to prepare your resume to work in Spain.

The key focus of your Spanish resume should be to persuade the employer to invite you for an interview. Therefore, your Spanish Resume / CV is a marketing tool, which should be adapted to the market in which you intend to use it.

There are no strict rules for a Spainish Resume / CV in Spain.

Give your passport or ID number under your personal details in a Spanish Resume / CV.

List all your former employers, including tasks and responsibilities performed.

In Spain the Spanish are also more forgiving if you do not know the language but, are willing to learn. Learn to speak Spanish

The most important aspect when looking to employ someone is trust.

They also place a lot of importance on dressing well and having good manners.

Work permits in Spain

• EEA citizens are free to move and work wherever they want to, within the EEA (including Spain).
• You must apply for a residence permit. This is valid for five years and should be issued within six months of your arrival.
• Contact the Spanish embassy in your home country for more information.
The application procedure in Spain
• Personal contacts, or networking, are the most important route to a job in Spain.
• The Spanish job centres have a good overview of all available jobs.
• In Spain the Internet is increasing in importance as a medium to look for a job.
• You can work using the Spanish language throughout Spain, but if you work in Catalunya, people will expect you to understand the basics of their Catalan language.

The application letter in Spain

• Accompany your resume / CV with a typed application letter, translated certified qualifications and copies of diplomas.
• Testimonials of former employers are hardly ever requested in Spain.
• Mention the reference number of the vacancy (if applicable) in the letterhead of your application letter.
• Mention your relevant work experience.
• Application forms are widely used in Spain.

Dos

• Be prepared for a long application process in Spain.
• Get a temporary job in Spain; this will help with your networking.
• Provide examples to prove your achievements.
• Ask if you don’t understand the question.

Don’ts

• Underestimate the power of networking in finding a job in Spain.
• Be surprised by psychological and psychometric test during the Spanish application process.
• Raise the issue of salaries in the first interviews; this should not be mentioned until the company offers you the
job plus the recruiter starts the discussion, not the candidate.
• Criticise former employers.
• Go over the top – stay calm and stick to the facts.

Management culture in Spain

• Throughout Spanish business, individualism is predominant in management and team orientation is less important.
• Detailed job descriptions are rarely used in Spain and assessment of staff is rather uncommon.
• Success is seen more as a result of luck, than personal achievement.
• Meetings in Spain are merely to give instructions to subordinates, not to make decisions.
• Most communication in Spanish organisations is through spoken and personal contacts.
• Lunch and dinner are important when doing business in Spain.

Learn to speak Spanish to work in Spain