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How to find a job in Germany

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There are a million reasons why someone might want to get a job in a German company and move to Germany. We will not dwell on them, because everything is obvious: high salaries, high standard of living, leading global companies, social security, huge pensions, etc.

How to find a job in a country where you do not reside and are not entitled to work? Not simply, but quite possible. Having read this article, you will know exactly in which direction you should work.

Let’s start with a popular misconception. Who needs us there behind the hill? Very much even it is necessary. The growing German economy is constantly demanding a new workforce. Historically, Germany has always attracted migrants to meet its needs, and if you are a qualified specialist with higher education, you do not need to ask.

With open arms you are welcomed by people who have mastered difficult professions: engineers, doctors, programmers. But there are enough unqualified staff there without you. It is worth remembering that the country is primarily interested in employing its citizens.

There are such types of work visas:

Blue card:
To get such a visa you need to have a higher education recognized in Germany, or 5 years of professional experience in your field. The signed employment contract, which states that your salary will be no less than 52 thousand Euros per year or 40 thousand Euros for particularly valuable personnel (engineers, doctors, IT-specialists…).

Visa for highly qualified specialists:
Issued to foreigners with unique skills and specialized training, who are offered a job with a salary of 86.4 thousand euros a year or more.

General employment:
Every year, the government determines the list and quota of professions that are likely to be in short supply in Germany and will be in need of an economy. This quota is filled at the expense of foreign specialists. You do not have to have a higher education to do this.

You can find this list at: https://con.arbeitsagentur.de/prod/apok/ct/dam/download/documents/dok_ba015465.pdf Last update for August 2018.

First of all, we start looking for vacancies.

Suppose that you already know exactly what you want. This would be the ideal option. On the site of each big company there is a section “career”. Enterprises employing tens of thousands of people are looking for new employees all year round.

The second option (more likely), when your goal is to change the situation and you will agree with almost any position that you are ready to take. Then we open websites for job search. Experience shows that the most effective are www.stepstone.de/, www.jobware.de/, www.monster.de/.  The differences are mainly in the interface. Try all the sites to find more jobs and therefore send more resumes to more suitable positions. There are also sites that scan other job sites: www.jobworld.de/, www.jobanzeigen.de/ and www.adzuna.de/.

And, of course, specialized sites: toplanguagejobs.de (for translators), itjobboard.de (for IT professionals), hoteljob-deutschland.de (tourism, restaurant business).

It is impossible not to advise to visit the state German labour exchange: https://con.arbeitsagentur.de/prod/jobboerse/jobsuche-ui/

Prepare yourself for what you need to do individually for each employer. Your motivation will play an important role. If you have sent the same cover letter everywhere, the probability of getting a job tends to zero.

Finally, let’s discuss what is required of you as an ideal candidate.

This may upset someone, but you will need to know the language. Usually you are expected to have a good command of German (B2-C1), English can be an advantage. If you do not have German, then good English is required. But the national language of the country you want to live in still needs to be pulled up to at least a basic level. If you know other languages or don’t know any foreign languages at all, your chances are very low.

Next, you need to confirm your qualifications. This is often a diploma that is recognized in Germany, but if you can prove that you have at least five years of experience in your chosen field of study, it may also indicate your qualifications. This means that specialists without a university degree also have a chance of obtaining a visa. For some professions, a recognised diploma will not be sufficient. You either need to study in Germany or take a local state examination. There is a large list of exceptions, and you will have to deal with this in each case.

As you can see, not everybody is welcomed in Germany, but if you want to go to work in the country of your dreams and do your best, you will succeed.

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