Where to find job vacancies
If you are looking for work in the Netherlands, you might want to know where to find job vacancies in the Netherlands. First off, if you don’t use LinkedIn yet, consider using it for your job search in the Netherlands. In addition to being your digital CV and “business card”, you’ll also find many attractive vacancies on LinkedIn, especially for non-Dutch speakers. Before diving into the Dutch job market, polish your LinkedIn profile and add some (not too long) descriptions, catchy phrases and, most importantly, a recent picture of yourself. Having an up-to-date LinkedIn profile is essential to finding work in the Netherlands.
The biggest website for vacancies in the Netherlands is Indeed, which, unfortunately, is unavailable in English. However, Indeed offers most vacancies in the Netherlands because they’re scraping job openings on other websites to offer them on their platform.
Other websites to find work in the Netherlands are:
These are the websites also Dutchies use for their job search. Unfortunately, all the sites above are available in Dutch only. However, some of the job descriptions are available in English, and in most job specifications, you’ll see whether Dutch is required or not.
Some websites (of job or recruitment agencies) offer job openings specifically for internationals. See e.g.
- Iamexpat
- Undutchables
- Jobs in Amsterdam and the other cities listed there (e.g. Jobs in The Hague or Utrecht)
- Together Abroad
- Hoitalent
Europeanlanguagejobs.com often lists vacancies for non-Dutch speakers in the Netherlands. If you come from France or Sweden, try workwid.fr and workwide.se. For German speakers, try Germans abroad and Facebook groups like English-speaking vacancies in the Netherlands or Jobs for German speakers in the Netherlands.
Tips for your application
Finding a job in the Netherlands is not always easy. It might take a while to find work in the Netherlands even though you are highly qualified and possess all the necessary qualifications. Just as with housing in the Netherlands, the most important tip we can give, is not to give up. However, there are more things you can do. Here are some tips for your quest for finding work in the Netherlands.
- Learn (some) Dutch. Even though this one is the hardest one to achieve, your job chances definitely increase if you speak (some) Dutch. Despite the fact that most expat jobs don’t require you to speak Dutch, many companies feel more comfortable to choose you if you do so. If you live and work in the Netherlands, you will benefit from speaking Dutch, simply because you will get the funny comments your colleagues make at the coffee machine and you will be able to integrate much faster.
- “Dutchify” your CV. Next to your working experience, in the Netherlands, it is common to put your Date of Birth, place of residence a recent picture and your hobbies and interests in your CV. However, only mention hobbies and activities that actually ad something to your profile, like volunteering experience or sports. In France e.g. it is common to put the Countries you’ve travelled to in your CV, it is not so in the Netherlands.
ProTip: Mention a Dutch (or international) education which is comparable to your own.
ProTip for applicants outside of the EU: Mention whether you have a residency and working permit for the Netherlands. Not every company will be able to apply for such. - Keep your LinkedIn profile up to date. Make sure recruiters can find you and know that you are available.
- Work with Job Agencies. In some countries, job agencies don’t have the best reputation; Not so in the Netherlands. Consider working with job agencies like Manpower, Undutchables (for internationals), Unique, Randstad (not available in English) and tempo team (no English website).
- Choose the dress code for your job application. In most companies, you are not expected to suit up for your job interview (depending on the branches). Go for casual chic.
- Prepare to be asked direct questions. Dutchies are straightforward, and you will probably also learn that at your job interviews. They try to find out who you are outside of work and might ask questions about your interests, family etc.
