How to recruit Research Scientists

The shortage of highly skilled candidates across the scientific sector is never far from the headlines. Even during the recent recession, where you would expect the number of jobseekers to exceed the number of available jobs, recruiters were still struggling to fill vacancies. Now economies are recovering, this problem is set to worsen.

Recruiters are having to come up with new ideas to find the candidates they are looking for.

The European Union: A home market of 500 million people

One of the major advantages of recruiting in the European Union is that there are few barriers to trade and movement of people left between EU countries, giving them a home market of almost 500 million people.

In other fields, language and mutual recognition of degree types will often pose barriers to the movement of labour; however, when recruiting research scientists these barriers are minimal. Science degrees awarded across Europe have excellent levels of international recognition, plus larger companies working in English will find that not only will the vast majority of highly skilled workers speak excellent English, but today many European University diplomas are also issued in English.

A collaborative mindset

Scientists are well versed in the benefits of international collaboration. Especially as the scientific questions we seek answers to are growing ever more complicated, this spirit will only become stronger.

This can work to a recruiter's advantage: for the right job candidates are open to the idea of travel and settling in a new location. We see this particularly in younger candidates.

The benefits of an international workforce can also be felt on many levels. A culturally diverse workforce can improve its problem solving capabilities, and its communications possibilities across Europe, and even globally.

Increase your chances of finding the perfect candidate

Working together with EuroScienceJobs, where we specialise in international job opportunities, you can increase the number of suitable applications for your vacancy, and thereby increase your chances of finding the perfect specialist candidate.

We have helped a Dutch pharmaceutical company find Arabic-speaking pharmacovigilance experts, with candidates coming from the UK, Belgium, Germany, France and even further away. We also helped a company based in Barcelona find biochemists who spoke Mandarin.

How to recruit Research Scientists