Documents, referees and deadlines

Public recruitment disqualifies more applicants on paperwork than on merit: an uncertified copy, a missing reference number, a referee who does not answer, a certificate never collected.

• Write the reference number on every page and in the subject line of every email.
• Ask referees before you submit, tell them the role and the timeline, and confirm the phone number and email on the form are current.
• Keep certified scans in one folder, with the certification date visible; several countries require certification within the last six or twelve months.
• If the advert asks for a hand-delivered file, get a receipt stamp. Without one, a lost file is your word against theirs.

Follow-up etiquette

One polite follow-up after the stated shortlisting date is reasonable; a weekly chase is not. Public processes publish shortlists on a portal or notice board — check those first, then write once, briefly, quoting your reference number.