A part-time job can facilitate cultural integration by providing opportunities to interact with Danes and understand workplace norms.
How a student job can help you gain experience
Making connections and networking while studying will increase your chances of nailing a permanent job when you graduate.
We'll guide you!
We'll guide you!
Advantages in having work experience while studying
IDAs market insights show that having practical experience in a Danish work place is a clear advantage while studying. Maybe even more so for internationals who want to continue to live and work in Denmark after graduation.
From our market insights we can document that IDA members with relevant students jobs often get full-time jobs in the same place or spend less time unemployed before that first job after graduation.
The benefits of a student job – no matter if it is relevant for your profession or not – can extend beyond the immediate financial gains. They include personal and professional development, enhancing your overall skill set and making you more resilient in your academic and professional pursuits.
Work is never irrelevant
If you work as an intern, collaborate with a company on your thesis or find a student job, you often have an advantage when you enter the job market as a graduate. However, a spare time job at a café is never irrelevant.
Making connections while studying will increase your chances of finding a permanent job when you graduate. And for internationals it is even more beneficial as you get a first-hand experience with Danish work culture from a student perspective.
When asking companies what they recommend students doing to prepare for the labour market, the answer »work while you’re studying« gets the highest score with 73%.
»Companies assign high priority to practical use of theoretical knowledge, and if your CV shows that you’ve been working while studying, employers can see that you haven’t only had your nose in your books, but you actually know how to translate knowledge into output. You know about preparation, cooperation, deadlines and everything you need to be able to do at a workplace. This is a huge advantage,« says IDA career counsellor Sanne Mattebjerg.
Be explicit and show interest
An important point is to verbalise that you want to be employed when you have finished your studies. Because this is not always obvious.
“You should remember to say it out loud. It’s your own responsibility to ask and express a wish. You can’t expect them to guess what you want. Tell your boss: I’d very much like to continue here, and I picture myself doing this and that. Point at the possibilities yourself and do so in good time before you are to leave” says Sanne Mattebjerg.
Stay in touch
If you want to work in the company where you are a student worker, you will have a head start as you are already a familiar face.
“It’s often easier for an employer to hire a person who they already know. They know you professionally and socially. They’ve eaten lunch with you, you’re linked up to the system, you know the culture and so on,” says Sanne Mattebjerg, and stresses that obviously it is important to do a good job while you are there and to show initiative.
If you have stopped working as a student assistant, a thesis student or an intern, it is always a good idea to stay in touch.
This is not only if you want to return to the company in a permanent position once you have graduated, but you never know if the connections you made can help you move forward in other directions. Using your network after graduation to find a job can actually propel you faster into a full-time job than only applying through the same channels every one else is using.
“Try to stay in touch with the place. This may be by offering to present your thesis and by showing up physically if you have a meeting, or just stopping by. Visibility is good!,” says Sanne Mattebjerg.
You can also link up with people on LinkedIn – this is a popular and growing platform in the Danish work setting, where you gain insight into what field others with your profile are working.
Check out our “How to use LinkedIn in your job search” in our From Uni to Job article about “How to find your new workplace” – there are some handy tips that you can use no matter if you look for student jobs or full-time work.
Advantages in having a relevant student job
This many companies recommend:
Working in a café is also relevant
Finally, she states that you should not despair if you have not had a super relevant student job.
"Some people think: I have only been serving brunch at a café. Rather, you should translate what you've done into relevant competences: Have you kept duty rosters? Then you can coordinate. Have you balanced the cash register? Then you can understand finances. Have you worked with many different people? Then you can cooperate. In fact, there is no such thing as irrelevant work experience."
Sanne Mattebjerg
IDA career counsellor