What goes in a German CV, and what does not
The format is more conservative than most countries and the cover letter still matters. Both are easy to get wrong from the outside.
A CV that works in London or San Francisco can quietly underperform in Germany, not because it is bad but because it answers different questions. German hiring is more document-driven than most markets, and the conventions are worth knowing before you send fifty applications.
The shape
A German CV is a tabellarischer Lebenslauf: reverse chronological, factual, one or two pages. It is closer to a record than a pitch. The long achievement-led summary paragraph common in English-language CVs is not expected and often reads as padding.
Gaps get noticed. A German reader expects an unbroken timeline and will treat an unexplained six-month hole as a question. One line naming what you were doing removes the doubt.
The photo question
For decades a photo was standard. Anti-discrimination law has made employers wary of relying on one, and international companies increasingly ask you not to include it. Traditional German employers and smaller firms still expect it.
In practice: include a professional photo when applying to a Mittelstand company or anything conservative, leave it off for international tech. Neither choice will sink an application on its own.
The cover letter has not gone away
This is the single biggest difference from the anglophone market. The Anschreiben is still expected by a large share of German employers, and a missing one reads as a lack of seriousness rather than efficiency.
One page, addressed to a named person where possible, and specific to the role. The bar is not literary quality; it is evidence that you read the advertisement.
Zeugnisse
German applications often include Arbeitszeugnisse, the written references former employers are obliged to provide, plus degree certificates. If you have worked in Germany before, attach them. If you have not, nobody will hold their absence against you, but say so rather than leaving a blank where a reader expects a document.
What to leave out
- Date of birth, marital status and nationality. Traditional, increasingly omitted, never required. Leave them off unless applying somewhere very conservative.
- References available on request. Either attach the Zeugnisse or say nothing.
- Skill bars and percentage ratings. They read as decoration and give a reader nothing to check.
- A photo of anything other than you, and anything that would look out of place in a filing cabinet.
One thing worth adding
State your German level explicitly, using CEFR (A2, B1, B2, C1). Leaving it out invites the reader to assume the worst, and if your German is decent it is one of the strongest signals you can send in a market where most international applicants have none.
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