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Thursday 28 September 2017

How to find an english speaking job in Berlin

Because I lived and worked in Germany, many people assume that I must be fluent in that brilliant(ly difficult) language. The sad case of the matter is: I'm not. Even with my German background and having lived in Berlin for almost two years, I remain woefully inept at speaking Deutsch. Except perhaps to order a beer - I became pretty good at that!

Then how, you may ask, did I find an English speaking job in Germany?

Most people will tell you, many of whom are on the internet, that it is impossible to find a job without knowing at least a little bit of German. I am living proof that this is not the case. It took me a solid two months of applying, so here's a few tips and tricks I learnt along the way that may make it easier when it comes your time to join the job merry-go-round.

Job searches and aggregators

  1. Google is your friendStart off by Googling "english speaking jobs Berlin" - a lot of sites come up, many of which I've listed below.
  2. Monster: In my experience, Monster.de isn't the greatest search engine for jobs - I've never had a lot of luck with finding good jobs on it. However, it seems many recruiters use it to CV sift, so it's a good idea to put your CV up on it. Can't read German? No worries. Put your CV up on the UK site (monster.co.uk), fill in your details and then when you return to Monster.de, most of it will transfer into German. Another little tip is to re-upload your CV every week, as it seems to put it back to the top of the sifting pile again.
  3. Jobs in Berlin: A job aggregator, but it lists a lot of roles where English is required (either natively or not).
  4. LinkedInFacebook for grownups! I'm pretty sure I ended up finding my job here on LinkedIn in the end, but a lot of large name companies advertise here so don't rule it out.
  5. The LocalAs it says straight up on the home page, 8,360 English-language jobs in Germany.
  6. IndeedIndeed it is one of the largest growing job aggregators on the web at the moment. They even have a search dedicated to English jobs in Berlin.
  7. Berlin Startup JobsBerlin having had such a divided past, is not the home to many large name corporations. However, it is an absolutely booming hub for startups, many of which are English speaking. The pay may not be quite as good, but you'll get some warm fuzzies from being part of a breakthrough company's story.
  8. GlassdoorThis site is primarily an employer review site, and to be honest it's not that popular in Germany, with preference going to Kununu. However, you can still find a lot of jobs that have been aggregated here as they pull jobs from countless websites every day.

Big English only companies in Berlin


However, here are a couple of companies that I know of that hire a lot of people who speak English.
Note: I will keep updating to this as I find out more companies, and also feel free to let me know if you have some more to add!
  1. ZalandoHuge Europe-wide online fashion retailer. They hire an insane amount of people every 2 weeks (not sure if I'm at liberty to say how many exactly!) and at any one time there's about 500 jobs on their website (in Berlin alone) in any area from IT, to sales, to marketing. Also, you get pretty sweet staff benefits (discounts, anyone?)
  2. RocketYou can either work for Rocket or work for companies which Rocket recruit for.
  3. SoundcloudNot many jobs at one time, but their office language is English and Berlin Mitte is their headquarters.
  4. WoogaPretty cool industry, searching a lot of engineers and designers but other roles in there as well.
  5. AmazonDirect competitors to Zalando, Amazon have a big base here in Berlin and at any one time have a couple of hundred jobs available.

Helpful things to know

  1. 3 month notice period
    One thing that would have been nice to know in the beginning was that, in general, Germany has a 3 month notice period when people leave a company. Like wut. In Australia, it's 2-4 weeks and even then sometimes you're shown the door the moment you've put your resignation in. Due to this extended notice period, it can often take companies a very long time to get back to you.
  2. Put a photo on your resume (maybe)
    Another big no-no in Australia is putting your photo on your resume. However, here it is not only expected, but you get tax reductions for what you've paid for professional photos to put on your resume. This could be a two edged sword, though. In my case, my resume stood out to my employer because they were specifically looking for someone not from Germany. However I think in many other cases, my resume was overlooked. You decide and perhaps keep two copies of your resume, one with and one without a photo.
  3. 1st of the month
    Due to "insurance reasons" (everyone who tells me this just shakes their head), in many instances you can only start working on the 1st of every month (or in Zalando's case, the first and third week of every month). This can be mildly problematic if you get your job offer on the 2nd of the month and then have to wait a full month until you start, but that's German bureaucracy for you! Sit back and enjoy the ride.
  4. Not in IT?
    Don't worry - there are jobs out there for you. Berlin is known as a tech hub, specifically for systems engineers who won't have any problems finding a job. The list above is largely for those who are not tech-related, who still want to try to find a role in the field they studied/already work in.

And finally, good luck!


Just remember to hang in there and keep trying. I know it's demoralising, the lack of response, the rejections (although at least you've heard from them, right? Right?) I was reasonably picky about my roles because I wanted to stay in my field (Communications and Social Media) and it paid off in the end. 

You can do it. Stay positive. Get yourself a bier and start sending off those applications. Good luck!