
Ask HN: How to pass an HR interview with relocation - Ifozest
I&#x27;m from Belarus (Eastern Europe, non EU) willing to relocate in Amsterdam(Netherlands, EU) I&#x27;m looking for a job as a front-end developer and faced with the most stupid problem I could ever imagine.
3 times in a row i can&#x27;t pass standard HR interview. Responses are the same, like I&#x27;m not the best fit for them or they&#x27;ve got better candidatures for this position. And that without any technical interview! Insane! I&#x27;m sure in my skills I&#x27;ve got more than 5+ years of experience<p>So I&#x27;ve got a feeling I&#x27;m doing something wrong<p>Why do you want to relocate? answer is simple - for better life, but I do know that it&#x27;s not an answer HR want to hear so my answer here - want something new, new challenges\experience, work in international team.<p>Your last experience? My last project was absolutely annoying with old fashioned technologies. 6 months on support - refactoring\unit tests, absolutely nothing new, so I&#x27;m telling about my previous project. (architecture and build process I did with using new technologies) at least it sounds better<p>Now my top of questions I don&#x27;t know what to answer:<p>Why do you want to work in our company? seriously, you&#x27;ve got an open position with visa support and paid relocation.I don&#x27;t know what to answer on this question but hopefully it&#x27;s the rare question nowadays.<p>What is the most valuable criteria for you to choose project to work on? Hell, no idea. In Belarus almost 95% of IT companies are outsource\outstaff oriented so we don&#x27;t have such questions. But looks like that those questions are in the trend, got them on any interview<p>Have you ever worked in product-owner companies? No. But really want to. In outstaff you can even sit in product-owner company(your customers), but you are still not their employee<p>What&#x27;s going on? Maybe you know good answers for current questions? Or you know how to competently present myself in my situation? Asking for useful tips. I really need help with that
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byoung2
_Why do you want to relocate?_

To seek out opportunities that are just not available where I currently live.
Amsterdam is a tech hub and a center of innovation known for X and Y...

 _Your last experience?_

Not every project can be groundbreaking. My last project actually involved
refactoring a large legacy codebase, writing unit tests, etc. Not the most
exciting task, but I was able to demonstrate mastery of coding best practices,
documentation, etc. which aren’t sexy but are important for any established
project.

 _Why do you want to work in our company?_

I'm eager to work on X product/with Y engineer who is respected in his
field/with the company that pioneered Z (pick one). If they aren't an
innovator, go with I'm excited to work at a
big/small/young/established/profitable/growing (pick one) company since it
will give me a chance to round out my skill set and contribute as the company
opens a new chapter.

------
brudgers
_I 'm from Belarus (Eastern Europe, non EU) willing to relocate in
Amsterdam(Netherlands, EU)_

Your goal is to relocate to Amsterdam. It is not to work for a particular
company. There is nothing wrong with that.

But a company may be concerned:

1\. Will you become homesick?

2\. Will you look for a better job once you are in Amsterdam?

3\. Will you be unhappy with the work, even though you are happy in Amsterdam?

4\. Is it worth the cost in time and money to relocate you given these risks?

In summary, candidates who are relocating across cultures are at a
disadvantage because there are more risks for the company in terms of
retention. Even during hiring, a candidate from another location may decide
that relocating is too large of a commitment.

\---

Random advice from the internet:

If you want to live in Amsterdam, move to Amsterdam. That shows potential
employers that you are really committed to living in Amsterdam and reduces
their percieved risk.

Good luck.

