IT Jobs in France

France is the largest country in Western Europe sharing borders with Luxembourg, Switzerland, Italy, Belgium and Spain. The main business sectors in the French economy include telecommunications, pharmaceuticals, banking/insurance and construction.

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Over the past decade the use of the Internet and the implementation of good business information systems has been of prime importance to companies across Europe including France. As a result, the demand for IT professionals has risen dramatically and consequently France is now suffering from an IT skills shortage. The skills in strongest demand appears to be for analysts including data analysts and systems analysts, as well as programmers and developers with skills such as Java, C#, SAP and Oracle.

Nationals of the EU (including Norway and Iceland) have the right to live and work in France without restriction and without a work permit under the EU’s freedom of movement provisions.

Working practices

The working practices in France are not hugely dissimilar from those of the UK but it might be worth taking note of the following:

• Businesses in France are highly organised and well structured with many of their organisational practices focusing on rules and administrative practices.
• There exists a strong, vertical hierarchy in French business culture. French bosses generally take an authoritative approach.

Applying for jobs

Like nearly all countries in the EU the application process in France consists of a CV and covering letter. It is important to tailor your CV and covering letter to each company that you apply with, highlighting your relevant skills and work experience. Most of the IT vacancies are now advertised online with some requiring you to fill out an online form. If you are sending your application via email it is important to maintain the same formality you would in a letter whilst emphasising your interest in the company.

Living in France

The cost of living in France can be cheaper then living in the UK. France however is a hotspot destination for tourists and as a result the cost of housing has increased dramatically over the past couple of years.

Rental prices in the suburbs of some of the major cities can cost around 500 euro per month whilst centrally located apartments can cost from 1500 to 2000 euro a month. Rental accommodation is priced according to location, condition and quality. As you would imagine Paris is one of the most expensive places to live in France with prices close to those that you would expect to pay in London. The majority of specialist IT jobs will also be based in Paris.

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Finding IT jobs in France

The IT skills shortage in France has resulted in a strong demand for IT professionals across a broad range of industry sectors. The most common IT jobs in France currently in demand include the expected developer and programmer skills such as Oracle, PHP, SAP, Java, Linux and Perl as well as for analyst roles including data analysts, systems analysts and financial analysts.