Austria : Work experience

Work placements and internships

As in the UK, there are a number of ways of gaining work experience in Austria. No distinction is made between placements and internships. They are common and flexible, ranging from just a few weeks to a year, and are available throughout the year. Opportunities are advertised through job websites or the Austrian Employment Service (Arbeitsmarktservice) .

In addition, there are some work placement opportunities for those studying vocational subjects. IAESTE (The International Association for the Exchange of Students for Technical Experience) offers paid course-related work placements abroad for degree-level students in science, engineering, technology and related fields. The placements usually take place in the summer for up to 12 weeks. Students pay for their own travel, but employers pay a salary to cover living costs. AIESEC (Association Internationale des Etudiants en Sciences Economiques et Commerciales)  also offers students and graduates the opportunity to work abroad.

Exchange programmes

Your institution may be involved in the Leonardo da Vinci Programme , through which vocational training exchanges and work placements are arranged with partner organisations in other countries. Contact your institution’s international office or careers service for more information.

Teaching

The market for teaching English is mainly for business purposes, but there are summer opportunities for teaching English to children and young people. Search the usual TEFL websites for openings (for a list of these, see the English as a foreign language teacher).

Useful information about teaching English in Austria is available from Virtual Vienna - Career .

Longer-term teaching posts in other subjects may be available in the English-language schools in Austria. A list of these is available from the UK in Austria - Living and Working in Austria .

Volunteering

Voluntary job opportunities in Austria include caring for the elderly or disabled, and conservation work. Voluntary opportunities are available through various organisations including International Voluntary Service (IVS) in Britain .

Casual work

Graduates are most likely to find seasonal or holiday employment in ski resorts and hotels. You can also work picking grapes in the autumn. Information on seasonal and casual vacancies in tourism can be found in special brochures available in all the Austrian jobcentres or look for advertisements at Anywork Anywhere . Another useful resource is Working in Ski Resorts - Europe and North America.

Short-term opportunities

Apart from casual work, opportunities exist for au pairs. You will probably need some childcare experience but you may not necessarily need to know German. Try New Au Pair for openings.

Gap year opportunities

The concept of ‘gap year’ is relatively unknown in Austria. Specific, gap year-related work opportunities are therefore rare.