Anastasia Geraskina

How I landed the job 
I found the job search very tough, I’ve spent quite some time on it. I went to lots of job interviews and faced a lot of rejection. At some point, I was definitely losing hope. Despite this, I still continued and now I am happy that I did not get any of the other positions. If I would have gotten them, I would not have become a Russian language coach. And probably I would not have enjoyed myself in the way I enjoy myself now. 

My experiences 
The main thing I like about my job is sharing my language, or, to make it more intricate, giving part of me through the language. I am not a language teacher. I am a "culture-sharer", and I try to give students an idea of what Russian people are like and whether or not they should talk to Russians, smile at Russians and shake Russian hands if they happen to be in Russia (hopefully, not during the winter). As I work in an international environment, I cannot really tell anything about Dutch working culture. The requirement of the Dutch language however is very real, it’s good to be aware of this. Personally, I’m not sure what to think of this. I totally understand I am in the Netherlands, but some mechanic job (like preparing burgers at McDonald's) can be done without the knowledge of the language. 

Job search recommendations 
The advice I can give to those who want to find a job is search, search, search... That is exactly what I did. I looked through a lot of websites, I followed all the announcements on SIN-Online, I kept track of offers on the Career Services website. And, ultimately, after many interviews, I succeeded. If you are a non-Dutch speaker, my first advice would be to start your job search at the university. Erasmus University is very international and practically everyone speaks English. There is no infinite amount of jobs on campus of course, so side-jobs like Showaround or Youbahn could be a good second option. Also don’t forget how important it is to consider all positions carefully, assessing all the information you have about them, and eliminating those you are not sure about. Even if you have the slightest trace of doubt. This way, you raise your chances of getting a job (you are more confident of yourself and interviewers see it) and you decrease your chances of being frustrated after you start working. Finally, the simplest advice is to never give up. Just try, try, try and try... And you will do it!