Our lives are digital. In the car, when shopping, when working from home. Both in our private lives and at work. Looking for a job, applying for a job, and even interviews: everything is online. Reason enough to take a closer look. Is your digital business card up-to-date? How do your chances improve online? Here are five tips to ensure a successful application in the digital world.

Making a profile stand out

Who am I? What am I like? What skills can I offer? Anyone asking themselves these and other questions can successfully upgrade their digital profile quickly and, consequently, leave nothing to chance when recruiters are on the lookout for new people in the business networks. Get your own AAA rating. Authentic, articulate, accomplished – for a strong online profile.

Content ist King

A strong profile? Great! But you can do more if you want to market yourself because content is king in the digital world. Design thinking, AI, or electronic commerce: your interests explain who you are. Create or share specific content needs to be the motto for your “social me”. However, quality is more important than quantity.

Let's talk

Do recruiters really want to be called up? Yes! Personal conversations remain very important, especially in the digital world. “Simply” note down your questions, call up, and talk about everything. As an added bonus, there is often information to be had about culture, strategy, and much more. Often about topics that you hadn’t thought about. So, by picking up the phone, you can benefit from real insider knowledge and make yourself known.

One, two, check

Your cell phone rings, the video tool acts up, there are voices in the background. There are many things that can go wrong during an online interview. But this can be avoided: find a quiet place without background noise, put your cell phone on silent, and carry out a check of the tool and its functions in advance. Block out unnecessary stress. Focus on the interview and your objective.

Applicants welcome

The employer market became an employee market a long time ago. Good times for applicants, even in the digital world. So be open and positive in the application process. It’s a discussion where both parties can make their ideas clear. Do you have any relevant deadlines? Would you like to meet the future team? Then speak about it! That’s how a good collaboration starts.

Your application is made up of three components: a covering letter, a CV, and your certificates and references.

Covering letter

A covering letter is part of every application. Make sure it is clear and concise - your covering letter should take up no more than one page (A4). Our recruiters want to know things such as why you are interested in working for Deutsche Telekom. Tell us about your aims and ambitions. In particular, we want to know about the practical experience you have which qualifies you for this role. It is always best to refer back to the position which is being advertised and be specific. That helps us quickly work out if you are right for the vacancy advertised. It’s great to use your covering letter to show us what you're like as a person. Emphasize your strengths.

CV

Make sure your CV is uncluttered and clearly structured, e.g., personal details, education with specialist subjects and grades, career background. Remember: less is more. Elaborate on the points which are relevant for the job in question or interesting aspects which you would like to highlight. Remember to link your strengths or expertise to the job requirements. You can use your CV to show our recruiters and units what you have done in an internship or previous job, for example. What were you responsible for? Tip: feel free to give information about your voluntary work, especially if you are just starting out in your career. Your non-professional activities and interests give us a special insight into your personality and show us what you’re made of. And what to do if you run out of room? Use links and refer to your Xing or LinkedIn profiles, for example.

References and certificates

Please only include references and certificates that are relevant to the job. Details of additional qualifications are welcome, provided they are useful for the job itself. What we do like to see is evidence of internships, periods spent abroad giving the exact dates, and language courses.
Important: if you are hired we will ask you to send us certified original copies of a range of documents as well as a private clearance certificate. You will receive these from the residents' registration office in your local area.

Application photo

You are welcome to send us your photo. If you decide to do so, the photo needs to be done professionally – no holiday photo or cropped photo taken in your free time. For best results, talk to your local photo studio. If you like, don't be afraid to play with colors and design elements in your application dossier. If you are a unique applicant, your application should reflect that! We welcome individuals and creative minds.

Set up an applicant profile

So you’ve found an interesting job posting with our job search? Then we recommend you get registered right away and set up your applicant profile. There are a lot of benefits: once you’ve created this single profile, you can use your digital application folder to apply quickly and easily to any job vacancy at Deutsche Telekom worldwide. In the application overview, you can see the status and dates for the next step in the application process at any time. You can also prepare the application in your own time: process documents, save at any time, finish it off later, then finally send it all off.

Online application with a personal touch

If you already have your application documents ready – ideally in PDF format – on average it will only take five minutes to submit your online application. We would like to get to know you, which is why for some job vacancies we will ask you in more detail: What can you bring to the job as an applicant? How are you going to contribute to the company’s success? Allow yourself enough time to answer our questions. You can save your online application at any time and go back to it later on.

Don’t forget your documents

Have you gathered together all the documents you need? Covering letter, certificates, and CV? Great, you can send everything directly to us online. We recommend uploading your documents into your applicant profile as individual PDF files. Other common formats such as .doc, .jpg, .rtf, .png, or .txt files are also supported. Please note that your files should not exceed a maximum of 10 MB each. By the way, if you run into difficulties with your online application then we are there to help with the career hotline. We will be happy to guide you through the application.

Just one click to your future

Finally, please double-check all the information you have provided, and click on "Apply" to submit your application to us. You will still be able to see an overview of your applicant profile and it will be saved automatically for future applications. However, please note that once an application has been submitted online, you are no longer able to make any changes to it.

As soon as we receive your application, you will get a confirmation of receipt. After this you can check your applicant account at all times to track its progress. You can, of course, withdraw your application at any time.

Barrier-free job search and applications

Applicants no longer have to use a mouse to look for jobs or submit an application: Everything can be done easily using a keyboard. Access keys are used for controlling the keyboard: Key combinations let users access the important navigation options. Applicants can also use their keyboard and screen readers to complete the forms used in the application process. Crucially, the portal and application forms are adaptive, i.e. users can modify the font size, color, and contrast to suit their needs.

Click here to access the barriere-free application portal.

Support for hearing-impaired applicants

Applicants with hearing impairments can also contact us by phone. For almost 15 years, we have operated a hotline that provides support via a videophone: Using sign language, it supplies hearing-impaired people with information, including details about applications.

Using Telekom’s deaf hotline:
Fax: +49 (0) 421 10986-511
Videophone: +49 (0) 421 10986-286
Videophone: +49 (0) 421 10986-505
E-mail: deaf.hotline@telekom.de

Text-to-speech function

Every article in our careers section has a text-to-speech function, marked with the “Read out” button. This reads out the text, and also describes any embedded pictures, allowing those with reading difficulties or visual impairments to receive all information on Telekom as an employer. The picture descriptions provide an even better understanding of the Group and applicants’ future co-workers.

You will receive confirmation of receipt when your documents reach us. First, we check if your profile matches the vacancy. We generally need up to four weeks to complete the initial assessment stage. If someone isn’t a suitable candidate, they receive notification by e-mail. Make sure that our recruitment experts can access your profile. This way, we can contact you if we identify a vacancy that matches your details. If you pass the first round of the evaluation process, we will send you a mail inviting you to an interview.

If you already have work experience or are applying for a direct-entry position as a graduate, the length of the application process depends to a large degree on timing: Does your schedule match the needs of the unit interested in hiring you? We’re looking forward to meeting you in person.

Applicants to our Start up! trainee program will get about two weeks’ notice when we invite them to one of our assessment centers. People who perform well will then be asked to an interview. The overall recruitment process for the program takes between eight and ten weeks, and we sent prompt notification of acceptance or rejection every time a step is completed.

If you apply for an internship, it takes about a week for us to send you an invitation to an interview. It takes a further two weeks for us to finalize our decision, and we will inform you immediately.

Well done! We really liked your application, and we think your skills and qualifications will make a real contribution to our company’s mission. Now, we’d like to get to know you in person. Use the interview to show us what kind of person you really are. You might be nervous, but there’s no need to worry. Recruiters are people too, and we don’t grade each of your statements with a plus or minus. What counts for us is the overall impression.

Preparation is all-important

Preparing for your interview means that you can be relaxed. Start with your choice of clothes. Think about what matches the position. Don’t be too informal. A shirt, blouse, or suit can boost your confidence. Getting your responses ready is even more important. Your potential team is interested to hear about projects that you have worked on in the past. Your future boss and one of our recruiting experts normally take part in interviews at Telekom. Think about interesting tasks you have undertaken, for example when you were a student or working on previous projects. Have you volunteered as part of a social project and assumed special responsibilities during this time? These kinds of factors are of interest to us, so it makes sense to prepare your answers so that you can describe your experiences well – and in a way that gets our attention.

The interview

The interview itself lets us all get a better idea about one another. Tell us why your strengths make you ideal for the vacancy – and also tell us how you cope with your weak points. What makes you who you are? What special expertise do you have? The interview is your opportunity to impress us. Do you think outside the box? Show us how. We are looking for people, not academic titles.

Curiosity about our company is something we really like to see, so have your questions ready. Top tip: Take a good look at our website. After all, interviews are also there to give you the opportunity to get to know us as well and enable us to see if you suit Telekom.

After the interview

You will hear back from us within two weeks of the interview. If our response is positive, we will give you some time to think about our offer. Ultimately, it is up to you if you want to join our company. If you accept the position, we will discuss the details of your contract with you, either in person or by phone. This process should be completed within five weeks at the latest. Once we have all of the necessary documents (staff questionnaire, etc.), we will mail your contract to you.

We make it easier for you to get started in our Group and give you guidance even before your first day at work - so you can hit the ground running from day one. In addition, we will continue to support you after the first few weeks with regular feedback meetings and an individual training program. You can find more information here.