How much do junior nurses earn in Germany?

Specifics of German medicine

In each federal state of Germany, the healthcare sector is the responsibility of local authorities. They are the ones who determine how much money should be allocated to this industry from the federal budget.

The German healthcare system is based on the principle of solidarity, that is, medical care should be accessible to all segments of the population, regardless of their financial situation, and it should be financed through insurance contributions.

Therefore, every citizen is required to have insurance, since outpatient or inpatient medical care can only be obtained if you have an insurance policy. Most German citizens benefit from public health insurance, but private plans also exist.

Every patient in Germany has an electronic card, which contains his medical history and records all appointments. Therefore, the examination can be done in any hospital.

The patient has the right to choose a medical institution, but only among those included in the state program.

Information about the German healthcare system is provided in the article “What you need to know about medicine in Germany.”

Which doctors are most in demand in Germany?

A doctor with any specialization can get a job in German clinics. You can almost always find available vacancies on the websites of medical institutions and job search sites. True, some specialists will find work faster, while others will have to wait.

If your specialty is not one of the most in demand, this does not mean that it is time to stop searching - you just need to accept certain rules. Don't be afraid to change your specialization, especially if it is quite narrow.

For example, you are a heart surgeon. There are many such specialists in Germany, and they are all very qualified. Therefore, you can try to start with general surgery. There are a lot of such departments in both large and small clinics. Work there, and when you gain experience at the local hospital, transfer to cardiology. The same rules apply to therapeutic specialties.

At the moment, the most in demand are family doctors, specialists in the field of general therapy and general surgery. It will be a little more difficult to find work for an orthopedist, psychiatrist, anesthesiologist, neurologist, gynecologist and rehabilitation specialist.

It will be most difficult for ophthalmologists, ENT specialists, forensic experts, vascular surgeons, neurosurgeons, cardiac surgeons and pathologists.

In this regard, upon arriving to work in Germany, a doctor can change his specialization.

Features of work

The German “Working Time Law” requires residents of the country to work no more than 8 hours a day with a half-hour break for lunch. In practice, doctors often neglect rest due to high workload: the aging population causes an acute shortage of qualified personnel in medicine.

Work in healthcare institutions usually takes about 10 hours daily, covering weekends (the legal day of rest is Sunday) and holidays. The minimum vacation is only 20 days per year.

Today, Germany actively welcomes young doctors from Russia and other countries. To obtain a position, you need to pass fairly complex paid exams, the cost of which is about 5 thousand dollars (329,930 rubles). The most popular specialties include family doctors, neurologists, psychiatrists, anesthesiologists, therapists and gynecologists.

Figure 4. Germany is trying to fill the shortage of highly qualified personnel by attracting young specialists from abroad

How to confirm a doctor's qualifications to work in Germany

The medical profession in Germany is one of the regulated professions, that is, those that require confirmation of a diploma. In order to confirm your diploma, you should contact the German Embassy in your country. There you can also get all the information about the documents that need to be provided to an applicant with a Russian diploma.

Issues of diploma nostrification in Germany are discussed in the article “Confirmation of a diploma in Germany in 2021: easier than it seems.”

Documents required to confirm your diploma

For all foreign specialists in the field of medicine, including Russians, a list of documents that should be provided has been approved. It includes:

1. A resume compiled in accordance with the rules of employment in Germany.
2. A copy of the diploma and insert with grades.
3. An extract from the examination record, which can be obtained from the faculty by submitting an application addressed to the dean. This is necessary in order to confirm the number of hours attended in a particular academic discipline.
4. Documents on internship. Completing an internship or practice in Germany will be a big plus.
5. Copies of documents on additional education (advanced training, residency, postgraduate studies).
6. A copy of a certificate confirming knowledge of the German language. It must contain a note about the language level.
7. Residence permit in Germany. It can also be a work visa or Blue Card.
8. If you are moving to a country with a certain status, you will need a copy of the document that confirms it. The reason for moving may be Jewish roots, family reunification, or the status of a late immigrant.
9. Medical certificate of health.

All documents must be notarized and translated into German. The translation must be performed by a professional who also provides a legal guarantee. Translations are confirmed by the German consulate or by a sworn translator.

Level of German language knowledge for a doctor in Germany

It is impossible to work as a doctor or even as a doctor’s assistant without knowing the language in Germany. A prerequisite for obtaining admission to medical practice is knowledge of the German language at a level of at least B2. In some federal states, for example in Bavaria, this is quite enough.

Many regions require proof of proficiency in professional German. To do this, you need to pass a special exam called Fachsprachprüfung, which is held at the place of your future work.

During the exam, a situation is simulated that is as close as possible to working conditions, which allows you to test the doctor’s ability to talk with patients, exchange information with a German doctor, fill out medical documents and prescribe appropriate treatment.

Hospitation as the first step to employment in Germany

Hospitation is essentially a passive practice that can be completed on a short-term Schengen visa for up to 3 months. A specialist who has passed it has a much better chance of getting a job in Germany.

Hospitation takes place in the same specialty that the doctor received in his home country. As a rule, this internship is not paid (the fee is about 300 euros per month), but some clinics provide accommodation and food for interns.

To pass it, you do not need a medical license and you do not need to enter into an employment contract. During practice, you can observe the work of doctors and nurses, attend patient appointments, during medical procedures, and study the rules of paperwork. You can communicate with medical personnel without any restrictions, but performing any medical procedures is prohibited, because the trainee does not have a license.

This practice is needed primarily so that the applicant can get acquainted with the future place of work: after completing the internship, the clinic can sign a contract with the doctor or give him a letter of recommendation.

What is Approbation and how can you get it?

Approbation is an indefinite permit to work as a doctor in Germany. However, this document is not a license to conduct your own practice, but only permission to work as an assistant doctor. However, only with this document will you be able to obtain a license to practice medicine in the EU countries.

Some clinics do not even hire specialists who have not passed Approbation. The fact is that doctors who studied in Germany receive this document immediately upon completion of their studies. Therefore, the requirement for this document is always indicated when describing the vacancy.

To obtain Approbation, you must take the following steps: after the expert commission has reviewed the package of documents you submitted and made a conclusion about the level of your qualifications as a specialist, you need to pass an oral exam.

The preparation time for the exam may vary: 6 months in Hesse, one and a half years in Saxony, Thuringia and Lower Saxony, two years in Bavaria. The applicant has three attempts to pass the exam.

The exam consists of 3-4 subjects. The main ones are surgery and therapy, the rest depend on the federal state or are optional depending on the specialty. There are options such as: pediatrics, anesthesiology, pharmacology (if you are a pharmacist), radiology (for working as a radiologist), clinical chemistry and others.

A month before the exam, the applicant receives a letter containing a list of examiners, the location of the exam and the amount to be paid. The exam lasts approximately one and a half hours. After successfully passing the exam, the applicant is issued a standard certificate.

How to look for a doctor's job in Germany

You can search for a suitable workplace either independently or with the help of intermediaries - recruiting agencies that search for personnel based on requests from employers.

To find a job in Germany without intermediaries, you first need to create a resume. It should be drawn up according to a certain pattern.

This document must indicate:

• first and last name, full home address and contact details (telephone, email) of the applicant;
• applicant qualifications;
• experience;
• language skills;
• extra skills.

All important information in your resume should be listed in chronological order, follow the structure, and describe your positive qualities in detail. It is recommended to attach a photo (preferably studio quality) of you smiling. Don't forget to include your professional experience in your resume (as specifically as possible) and translate your documents and diplomas into German.

You also need to make a so-called job application. The Bewerbung, or job application, includes a short biography and answers to the questions: “Why do you want to work at our hospital?” and “What can you give to this hospital?” The document is drawn up in German.

After you receive a response from a clinic, you will most likely be offered to undergo a preliminary interview via Skype or directly in Germany, based on the results of which a decision on your employment will be made.

The easiest way to find a job in Germany is to contact a recruiting agency. The organization’s specialists will help prepare a resume and other necessary documents, translate them into German and select a suitable clinic. However, you will have to pay a considerable amount for searching and selecting a vacancy - from 200 to 1000 euros.

Where to look for work

The main place to look for work today is the Internet. There are several types of sites that post vacancies for doctors:

1. On the website of any clinic there is a section with a list of vacancies. Not only doctors, but also nurses, laboratory assistants and many others can find work there.
2. On websites specializing in employment: meinestadt.de, jobbörse.de, jobomat.de, meinestadt.de, gigajob.com, aerzteblatt.de/aerztestellen, etc.

The most in-demand professions

Today, Germany is in dire need of medical specialists. Private and public clinics are looking for qualified employees. The Federal Republic is doing everything possible to attract as many foreign specialists as possible. Thus, graduates of Russian and Belarusian universities are valued. It is clear that these are real graduates, and not those who acquired their diploma during the transition.

Among the variety of medical profiles, specialists in the following areas are most likely to get a job in Germany:

• anesthesiologists;
• therapists;
• gynecologists;
• family doctors;
• psychiatrists;
• neurologists.

If you consider that the salary of a gynecologist in Germany is much higher than what our domestic specialist receives, then you shouldn’t be surprised why the highest minds are flowing to Europe.

How much do doctors earn in Germany?

The salary of doctors in Germany depends on the federal state, clinic, specialist qualifications and a number of other factors. Below in the table we show average salaries in Germany in 2021. The salary amount is indicated excluding tax deductions

How much do doctors earn in different regions of Germany?

The standard of living of citizens of different regions of Germany differs significantly: the gap in their income reaches 35%. The best working conditions are created in the south and west of the country.

Table 3. How much do surgeons earn in the German states?

Source: Tupa-Germania

Figure 3. Salaries of German surgeons working in different states. Source: Tupa-Germania

Most graduates prefer to stay in the Berlin area after completing their education, despite the fact that the average salary in the capital is not very high. Finding a well-qualified surgeon in provincial hospitals is becoming more and more difficult every year; only family general practitioners remain there.

On a note! How much is the work of Russian surgeons valued at?