Germans have their own way of doing things. True, not all Germans are alike, but... The German way of life is not the same as the American way of life, nor should it be. But US Americans (that's a German influence I've adopted as a US American) and other foreigners...
The GW Expat Blog
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Unemployment in Germany
Not the most upbeat topic for the day after Christmas, but one that has been on many people's minds as we emerged from the pandemic into an initial economic upswing, quickly followed by a collapse in many industries. I work as Talent Acquisition (an internal...
Startups in Berlin
Recently I was conducting one of my first interviews, showcasing my new company and covering what it means to work in a startup. It struck me as a little surreal. This was a real "fake it til you make it" moment as I had just started in my first startup the month...
Looking for Work and Starting a New Job in Germany
After a 2020 that threatened to end civilization as we know it, I allowed myself to be hopeful for 2021. Sure, Silvester (New Years Eve) was downsized to a quiet night at home (fireworks still blasting outside by people gloriously ignoring regulations) and we were...
Teaching English in German-Speaking Europe
The Good News and the Bad News So you think you want to teach English in Germany (or Austria, Switzerland)... Well, you're certainly not the first American or Brit, etc. to come up with that idea. The good news: There is a demand for qualified native speakers of...
A Nine-To-Fiver in Germany – What’s in the Bag?
What's it like to be a nine-to-fiver in Germany? A very hard question to answer since everyone has had their very own experiences, but after a while in Germany, and more than one job in this land behind me, I feel like it could be safe to make some general comments...
How to work remotely whilst living in Germany
A new employment opportunity or study is often the reason for people moving to another country. However, this is not the case for this expat. It was my partner's career which brought us to Bremen, I continue to work for a company I was employed with in the UK. I am...
Mahlzeit!
For the first time since we moved to Berlin over five years ago, I am required to go (most days, at least) to an office with lots of German people. Up until a few months ago, I'd either worked from home or from a small co-working space. But now, from behind computer...
Babysitting in Germany
It was not that long ago that the concept of babysitting (das Babysitten/Babysitting; Kinderhüten is the old-fashioned term) was little-known in the German-speaking world. When it did happen, it was usually Oma, a neighbor, or one of the older children watching over...
Resist the Ramen: Financing your Student Life in Germany
So you've heard the good news: you can get your university degree for free in Germany. It almost seems too good to be true, an education from a highly-respected institution of higher learning, the opportunity to learn and grow without the stress of thousands of...
Expat Tip: Want to Find Work in Germany? Have a Job.
There are some major cultural differences between German work culture and U.S. work culture, and many of them have been covered here on The German Way already (follow the link for the complete list!) From attitudes toward working mothers, or attitudes toward working...
Co-working at first hand
Two years ago I wrote a post about co-working spaces and their blossoming popularity with Germany’s freelancers. Though the idea appealed, back then I was still enjoying the quiet and ease of working in my own living room. More recently my feelings changed - why, I am...
Birthdays at Work (or the Joys of Raw Meat)
My first job here in Germany was in a publishing house (Verlag) in Freiburg, and that job was actually my first real job after college. It was certainly a different way to be indoctrinated into the world of work. It was the early nineties and it was the Schwarzwald....
From freelance to Angestellte to Arbeitslos
Remember my last post where I talked about my wonderful new job? The one I was excited about after the eight months of freelancing and running around in many directions trying to make a living? Well, one of the perils of working for a start up company is the very...
Au Pair in Germany – the Hosting How to Guide
Like Sarah did several years ago, I mentioned our foray in having an au pair. We had had one from South Korea last summer, a relationship which ended pretty miserably. Despite our efforts to have fair and adjusted expectations of a young woman, age 20, from a culture...
Teaching ESL in Germany
I recently finished a two-week stint of teaching intensive English for a company that has been contracted to provide training for unemployed people. The unemployment office sends a lucky few - in this case five people - to take a course that is meant to help make them...
Say cheese
It is not allowed, you know, to require photos from job applicants in the UK. CVs arrive as faceless email attachments. There was even talk, a while back and possibly still ongoing, of making applications completely anonymous, removing the name in bold across the top...
The German health care jungle
Since becoming self-employed, which was not so much of a choice for me, but more a forced path, I have had to become privately insured when it comes to health insurance. I had very much hoped to avoid doing so, but it turns out that public health insurance gets very...
Return to Freelancing
I've been away from the blog for a while because we moved to Ireland in 2010 for a new job for me. For years I have been working as a technical writer and editor at large corporations (SAP and IBM, to be exact), but as of April, I have returned to my roots in more...
50 Years of the Korean Diaspora in Germany
There is an interesting anniversary being marked here in Germany right now that means something to me. It's one of those events that leads you to think about all of the parallel lives you could have led: "What would my life have been like if my parents had never moved...
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