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My fiance (who, oddly enough, also has a PhD in yeast and a degree in molecular biology), says that it's entirely possible that the only reason you're having trouble is that you're not Danish.  He tells me that it's not uncommon for employers to go with Danish applicants over foreign ones, in spite of qualifications.  Danes are slow to warm up a lot of the time, and are more comfortable with fellow Danes.  Unfortunately, his best advice because of this is to "hang in there.  Once you're in, you're in."  Networking will be more difficult in Denmark than it would be, for example, in America.

Dear 'ThisGirlSaysOw',

I actually am beginning to come to that conclusion myself. It's extremely frustrating. I have a network, but obviously it won't be as big as the network of a Dane, it just seems to hard to 'crack into'. Did you fiance find work in the end?

Karen

Absolutely.  In fact, now that he's "in," he seems to be getting emails from people interested in hiring him away from his current company pretty regularly.

okay, so there is hope

I am living here and getting married to a Dane at the end of the year, and it is our plan to stay here for the forseeable future, of course depending on jobs. He is finishing a PhD, so we both have the challenge of finding suitable jobs.. Fingers crossed..

On the side, I have been told by a recruitment mentor that my qualifications are not as good as the Danish qualifications, despite the fact that they are actually ratified as being equal according to the EU standards. Have you come across anything like this before? I was shocked, and I've been trying to ask around to see if this is a general consensus, I would be surprised if it were, but if it is true, then I feel like I am at absolutely nothing trying to get ahead here.

Thanks for your quick feedback - it's nice to hear from someone who's been through it in some way

My fiance says the thing about your qualifications not being equal to that of a Danes is "nonsense."  It's mostly just a matter of prejudice on the part of the Danes.  They do like to think that everything Danish is the best out there.  They're right with regards to some things, but certainly not all.  It's going to be especially tough in this economy, with a lot of qualified Danes looking for work, and a lot of employers just more comfortable hiring a Dane.