Advice on getting a job at Hamburg zoo

Hi all,

I move to Hamburg in August to live with my gorgeous man. It is an exciting new start for me and I cant wait. I have been working as a Medical secretary for years. It is not something that I have ever wanted to do but it was good money and I am now debt free. Now that I am moving here I would like to do a job that interest me and I could do forever. I know for the first year I will have to take any job going until I have perfect German but Im a hard worker and dont mind that.

I have tryed for a long while to become a firefighter in Ireland but to no avail as my daddy isn't a firefighter (sorry still a bit annoyed with the selection system). My boyfriend has explained to me that it is very different over here and having turned 30 I am too old to join the police or the Fire brigade here (since when is 30 old). I love working with animals and I would like to be a zoo keeper in Hamburg zoo.

My problem is I dont have clue where to start or get information etc. If I did get it I would probably be the oldest trainee as I have been told that people choose their careers here when they finish school so they have a good 12-15 years head start the little buggers . If anyone has any information or knows any sites I can look up it would be most grateful.

Thank you very much in advance

Bernie

Ireland > Hamburg Zoo
There's something about that particular move that smacks of something.

Wishing you luck. On Hagenbeck's German site they say they get around 2,000 applications a year. There are some job openings, however, and they do train. How's your German?

I am sorry to hear that you couldn't become a firefighter in Irland. I get the impression that the Irish cant do anything else than fight fires and be coppers (do they still "collect" donations from there country men?). IBM and all those call centers are sure giving them work now that they aren't throwing stuff.

oh yeah I do like Bailey's

If you are a professional electrician plumber etc. u can start with Hamburg FD.

Good luck in your hunt.

I am moving here to live with my girlfriend, and you are right; people in Germany tend to choose their careers very early on and stick to an educational path until they find work. Kind of makes things rather difficult for the rest of us!

I don't see why you can't study part time and try and get some type of part time work at the zoo. I imagine they would benefit from having a native English (Irish) speaker, what with all the torists, maybe this could be a strong selling point.

Anyway, good luck, and no 30 isn't old! I'm 31 and will be looking for work myself shortly so hope this won't count too much against me!

Garibaldi mate - if you have't got anything constructive to say...you know the rest. :-)

Cheers

My brother retrained here in Germany in his late twenties after many years in the airforce and so did my cousin. Wasn't a problem, a lot of places get thousands of applications for an "Ausbildung" from 18 year olds and often your age can be your unique selling point, some places prefer someone with life experience etc.

Why don't you volunteer at an animal or wildlife centre whilst jobbing? That would at least get you on the right track and you can take the rest from there.

Thanks silty1 and barri

My German is ok but not as good as I would like it to be. I hope that when I move here in August it will be better.

Good luck to you barri. I hope you love it in Germany as much as I do.