Germany : Help and advice abroad

Public employment services

The German equivalent of the Jobcentre is the Bundesagentur für Arbeit (German federal employment agency), which can help you find permanent or casual work, as well as offering advice on jobs and careers. These agencies are located throughout Germany and their services are available to European Union (EU) nationals. Addresses can be found on the Bundesagentur für Arbeit website and it is worth registering as soon as you have even a temporary address.

You can get contact details for European Employment Service advisers in Germany through the EURES - European Job Mobility Portal . EURES advisers are trained specialists who provide information and guidance to job seekers interested in working in Germany.

Higher education careers support

Most German universities have a student advisory service, which is primarily involved in giving educational advice. However, the student advisers and the Bundesagentur für Arbeit (Jobcentre) work closely together where possible.

There are, of course, many informal contacts between recruiters and individual professors and student advisory services.

Many institutions, especially technical universities and Fachhochschulen (vocational colleges), have a service for dealing with practical placements, which are often obligatory.

Some German universities have a Studentische Arbeitsvermittlung (student employment bureau) which advertises casual work for students.

Help in an emergency

The consular section of the British Embassy Germany (in Berlin) and the Consulates in Munich and Dusseldorf (contact details on the Embassy website) can offer some assistance to UK citizens who have been the victims of crime or bereavement or in the case of a natural disaster or terrorist incident.
Other emergency contact numbers in Germany include:

• 112 - emergency (general - ambulance/fire department);
• 110 - police.