How to get a job in Germany with A1 German?

[bytex 25]

Hi all, I've got Business/Communication degree but I'm thinking about a career change in a healthcare-related field. My other option is becoming a college prof but I'm disillusioned with Business and things like that. I'm not sure a German university

OK, so let me get this straight. As far as I understand, one needs German to really make it in Germany. 

Sure, many English natives could get by on doing EN-only businesses or teaching English (or working in/around the US Army), but I am not a native speaker so that's out. I don't want to do a menial job as it won't leave me enough time to learn the language with 10-12 hr shifts, weird hours, employee abuse and stuff.

 

I would like to train for a degree in healthcare (as a physical therapist, dietician, osteopath, or dental technologist) but all the Ausbildung/study offers require good German and mine's like A1 (My English is about B2/C1 and French B1).

What would you do in my case? Get a job like washing dishes or rather get a degree somewhere else where the language is easier or offers education in EN (like Pilsen, Czech Republic)?

 

I'm not a Czech speaker but it's easier for me than German being Bulgarian. Also we share many common or similar words for body parts and bones etc. which would be helpful for a healthcare-related degree. Do Czech degrees even qualify for working in Germany though? I've heard nurses for ex. need to get a German re-training one on top of their original foreign one. Is it the same for dental techs/dieticians/nutritionists/osteopaths/physical therapists?

 

Also, in your opinion, what degree could give me a better salary/more demand? I've heard dental technicians make quite good money. Are Germans big on Osteopathy and Homeopathy like the French (worked in French health insurance)? What about the demand/pay of physical therapist, dieticians & nutritionists? Then again, all those require quite good German, while dental technicians only talk to doctors and work in lab, so no direct communication with clients directly usually. Of course maybe I could just do a PhD in a German uni but very few interesting options exist in English (things like Business Management or Cultural Studies which I don't think are viable). I would also like to have a job which I can practice in a smaller city like Fuerth, Amberg, etc. I'm also open to commuting to larger communities like Nuremberg or Regensburg.

would accept me in some more interesting scholar field without a prior degree in it (History, etc.). Not sure if an academic career is stable at all in Deutschland. As far as I understand one needs German to really make it in Germany. Many English natives get by on doing EN-only businesses targeting expats or teaching English (or working in/around the US Army), but I am not a native speaker and I prefer cities smaller than 500k so that's out. I don't want to do a menial job as it won't leave me enough time to learn the language with 10-12 hr shifts, nor any time to get a degree with their weird hours, employee abuse and stuff. I could do a part-time option if I study so 20 hrs per week.

 

I would like to train for a degree in healthcare (as a physical therapist, dietician, osteopath, or dental technologist) but all the Ausbildung/study offers require good German and mine's like A1. My English is about B2/C1 and French B1.

What would you do in my case? Try Germany or get a degree somewhere else where the language is easier or offers education in EN (like Pilsen, Czech Republic)?

 

I'm not a Czech speaker but it's easier for me than German being Bulgarian. Do Czech degrees even qualify for working in Germany though? I've heard nurses for ex. need to get a German re-training one on top of their original foreign one. Is it the same for dental techs/dieticians/nutritionists/osteopaths/physical therapists?

 

Also, in your opinion, what degree could give me a better salary/more demand? I've heard dental technicians make quite good money. What about Osteopathy and Homeopathy? Physical therapists, clinical dieticians/nutritionists? Those require good German, while dental technicians only talk to doctors and work in lab, so no direct communication with clients directly usually.

 

Of course I could just do a PhD in a German uni but very few interesting options exist in English, that set you on the path to always work in a college/uni as they're not very viable outside of academia. I don't want to give money to get yet another useless degree like my foreign Business and Communication degrees! I only get 600 Euro in my country.  On the other hand were it not for call centres and so-called Business Process Outsourcing by multinationals, it would be hard for foreigners to find jobs in Greece, Portugal, all of ex-socialist Central and Eastern Europe. There doesn't seem to be such possibilities in Germany, even in the less wealthy ex-GDR places. Those jobs aren't that great but at least you could travel around Europe as an EU expat discovering different cultures.

I'd prefer a job which I can practice in a smaller city like Fuerth, Amberg, etc. but I'm also open to commuting to larger communities like Nuremberg or Regensburg.

[Fietsrad 385]

Try contacting Bulgarian people in Germany, there may be a forum like this one, there may be concentrations of Bulgarians not in Berlin. Some towns near the border cooperate, Zittau cooperates with Poland AND Czechia, 'Dreilaendereck', that might be a good place. Really you do need German language I think.

[engelchen 13,040]

 

On 13/05/2021, 16:13:56, bytex said:

I would like to train for a degree in healthcare (as a physical therapist, dietician, osteopath, or dental technologist) but all the Ausbildung/study offers require good German and mine's like A1 (My English is about B2/C1 and French B1).

What would you do in my case?

 

I'd forget about Germany. It doesn't make any sense with your skill set.

 

The examples you've given are all Ausbildungsberufe i.e. ones which traditionally require an apprenticeship rather than a degree. Although there are a few schools now offering degrees in physical therapy and nursing it hasn't really caught on and employers don't see the need of offering higher salaries to university grads.

 

In order to be accepted into any health care apprenticeship you'll need a minimum of B2 German (and with only B2 it would be very difficult). German for healthcare is much more complicated than in English since many English medical words are derived from Latin and German has invented totally different words (for example, appendix = Blinddarm or thyroid = Schilddrüse). You'd need to be familiar with the Latin derivations, but use the German words with patients. Even if you complete training abroad, you'd still need B2 German to work here.

 

Furthermore, physical therapy is a schulische Ausbildung which means you have to pay for it. IIRC Osteopathy has different training programmes, but is not completely standardized. 

 

Regardless which healthcare-related occupation you choose, you would first need to learn German, then spend a few years back in school in order to finally look for relatively poorly paid positions. 

 

 

[jeba 4,340]

On 5/22/2021, 12:31:42, engelchen said:

In order to be accepted into any health care apprenticeship you'll need a minimum of B2 German

I doubt that would be the case for a dental technologist ("Zahntechniker"). However, they don´t earn much: average in 2020: € 38000/year

Wouldn´t it make sense to get your training in your home country and learn German on the side (if you´re dead set to come to Germany)?