For employment agencies & educational institutions
Everything you need to know about the requirements in Germany's daycare centers and schools - and how we make it easier for career changers to enter the social professions.
→ "Daycare and school" labor market
→ Target groups for lateral entry
→ Details of measures
→ About the sponsor Impact School
→ "Daycare and school" labor market
→ Target groups for lateral entry
→ Details of measures
→ About the sponsor Impact School
"Daycare and school" labor market
Missing in Germany:
0
Daycare center staff
0
Caregivers
for the whole day
for the whole day
0
School attendant/
Inclusion assistants
Inclusion assistants
Drivers of the skills shortage:
Daycare center:
According to the Specialist radar for daycare centers and elementary school According to the Bertelsmann Stiftung, a shortage of up to 242,000 childcare staff is expected in Germany by 2030. This development is influenced by several factors, including the increasing average care time per child, a higher participation rate in daycare and the scientifically recommended higher staffing ratio per group.
According to the Specialist radar for daycare centers and elementary school According to the Bertelsmann Stiftung, a shortage of up to 242,000 childcare staff is expected in Germany by 2030. This development is influenced by several factors, including the increasing average care time per child, a higher participation rate in daycare and the scientifically recommended higher staffing ratio per group.
All-day care after school:
With the legal entitlement to all-day care for primary school children coming into force from 2026, the need for childcare staff will continue to increase. Many more children will spend the afternoon after school in after-school care/open all-day care. The Bertelsmann Stiftung estimates that this legal entitlement will require up to 100,000 additional skilled workers.
With the legal entitlement to all-day care for primary school children coming into force from 2026, the need for childcare staff will continue to increase. Many more children will spend the afternoon after school in after-school care/open all-day care. The Bertelsmann Stiftung estimates that this legal entitlement will require up to 100,000 additional skilled workers.
Inclusion:
Inclusion in German schools has become much more important in recent years, especially since the ratification of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UN CRPD) in 2009, which obliges Germany to educate pupils with and without special educational needs together. For many pupils with special educational needs, attending school without a school companion (also known as an inclusion assistant, integration assistant or participation assistant) is virtually impossible. School assistants support them with everyday tasks in the classroom and thus ensure that inclusion can be implemented in everyday school life. In Baden-Württemberg, for example, the number of school assistants has increased since 2014 increased by a factor of 2.5, In Lower Saxony, expenditure on school support has tripled and the trend is continuing. Similar developments can also be seen in the other federal states. The job platform HeyJobs lists in October 2024 just under 60,000 vacancies for school support staff.
Inclusion in German schools has become much more important in recent years, especially since the ratification of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UN CRPD) in 2009, which obliges Germany to educate pupils with and without special educational needs together. For many pupils with special educational needs, attending school without a school companion (also known as an inclusion assistant, integration assistant or participation assistant) is virtually impossible. School assistants support them with everyday tasks in the classroom and thus ensure that inclusion can be implemented in everyday school life. In Baden-Württemberg, for example, the number of school assistants has increased since 2014 increased by a factor of 2.5, In Lower Saxony, expenditure on school support has tripled and the trend is continuing. Similar developments can also be seen in the other federal states. The job platform HeyJobs lists in October 2024 just under 60,000 vacancies for school support staff.
Specialists vs. supplementary staff
Specialists
State-recognized educators, social pedagogues or curative education nurses have completed several years of vocational training or a degree. Depending on the collective agreement, educational qualifications, professional experience and (managerial) duties, salaries of over EUR 4,000 gross per month (full-time) can be earned.
Supplementary staff
Ideal for a quicker lateral entry are jobs as a supplementary educational worker such as integration assistant, inclusion assistant, childcare assistant, educator's assistant, all-day care worker, housekeeping assistant, etc. Here, lateral entrants work closely with specialists and gain practical hours with children, which can be credited in a shortened, in-service training course to become a specialist. Depending on the qualification, region and employer, you can earn up to EUR 3800 per month (full-time). Supplementary staff are increasingly in demand, as the need for care staff is constantly growing. This is an ideal opportunity for career changers in particular: without long periods of training, they can get straight into practice and work alongside experienced professionals.
Attractiveness of professions for lateral entry
Low barriers to entry:
Supplementary staff do not need several years of training to work in the social sector. Through practice-oriented and well-founded short courses, they can quickly acquire the most important basics and skills that are required in everyday working life and thus get a foot in the door.
Further training perspective:
Many supplementary staff use their position as a stepping stone to a part-time qualification as a specialist (e.g. educator), which improves their earning potential and opens up long-term career opportunities.
Full-time, part-time and family-friendly working hours:
Supplementary staff can choose between full-time work with higher earnings and part-time models that are compatible with working for their own family. In addition, school vacations offer flexible time off, which makes the profession particularly attractive for parents of schoolchildren.
High social relevance:
Childcare workers in daycare centers and schools support children's development and relieve the burden on parents, allowing them to better reconcile family and career. Their work strengthens equal opportunities and social cohesion and makes the job particularly fulfilling.
Target groups for
lateral entry
Jobseekers without a vocational qualification and low-skilled workers
People who have not completed vocational training or have few qualifications and are looking for a meaningful job in the social sector can find a quick entry into the teaching profession through our measures.
Long-term unemployed and people with placement barriers:
We offer with our Orientation course "Social professions" a special support program for the long-term unemployed to overcome barriers to placement and facilitate re-entry into the primary labor market.
People with a migration background:
For migrants and refugees, we integrate special modules into further training, including job-related language support and intercultural skills training, which enable them to start a career in the social sector.
Migrants with socio-educational qualifications in their country of origin:
With our specialist language course "German for Educators", we prepare immigrants who have already worked as social education workers, nursery school teachers, teachers etc. in their home country for a career change in Germany.
Single parents and people returning to work:
Our continuing education program with family-friendly learning times is ideal for single parents and women and men returning to work who would like to return to a career with children after a family phase or care leave.
Academics and university dropouts:
We offer unemployed graduates and university dropouts career prospects in the field of education. Our further training program enables them to acquire theoretical and practical skills and quickly gain a foothold in a socially relevant profession.
Older jobseekers (50plus):
Our services are also aimed at unemployed people over the age of 50. Their life experience benefits them at work, particularly in childcare.
Rehabilitants:
For people who are no longer able to carry out their previous profession due to illness or accident, a new start in the socio-educational sector offers excellent opportunities for professional rehabilitation and reintegration. For example, retraining as a pedagogical specialist can pave the way for a former craftsman with physical limitations to find a fulfilling and less physically demanding job.
Details of measures
Our further training courses combine theoretical lessons online and practical phases in daycare centers and schools to offer our participants sound preparation for lateral entry.
Orientation course "Social professions"
Online + on-site company visits
4 weeks full-time or 8 weeks part-time
Target groupPeople who are interested in working with children and want to better understand whether a corresponding profession suits them and how they can learn it.
GoalInsight into various socio-educational professions in order to make an informed career choice.
Focal pointsPersonality test and aptitude test, visits to daycare centers and schools, discussions with employers and successful career changers (= role models), theoretical vocational knowledge, imparting basic socio-pedagogical knowledge, identification of various qualification paths (studies, training, retraining, further education).
AVGS measure
Orientation course on Kursnet:
"Orientation course for social professions - entry into daycare, school & care" (arbeitsagentur.de)
Further training "Learning and development assistant"
Live theory lessons online in the morning and practical training
Duration: 9 months full-time or 14 months part-time
Group measure with Individual coaching with optional specialist language course "German for teachers".
Target groupPeople who have decided to make a career change into a profession with children.
GoalParticipants receive dual training for a broad profile of complementary socio-educational professions and can be deployed flexibly in daycare centers and schools immediately after graduation.
Focal pointsBasic pedagogical knowledge, nursing and pedagogical skills, cooperation with colleagues and parents, work processes in schools and daycare centers, acquisition of various certificates (e.g. first aid course for children, daycare mother/father certificate), state-specific qualifications, application for a police certificate of good conduct, language test, language skills.
Practical component: Regular deployment in a
Practical component: Regular deployment in a
Practical partRegular deployment in an educational institution ensures the direct transfer of what has been learned into the world of work and initial contact with employers.
Additional servicesInternship guarantee for a weekly internship day, personal support during the internship and application coaching.
BGS measure
Specialized language course German for teachers
Live theory lessons online
4 weeks full-time or 8 weeks part-time
Target groupPeople who have already worked with children in their home country and want to improve their professional German (and better understand the daycare and school system) before working with children in Germany.
Individual measure.
GoalLanguage and professional preparation of immigrants with (social) pedagogical experience and training for everyday working life in German schools and daycare centers, as well as for the Telc exam.
FocusIntensive language training that is specifically tailored to the requirements of everyday pedagogical work. Participants gain a sound understanding of the school and daycare system in Germany and learn to master the daily challenges of dealing with children, colleagues and parents confidently in German.
About the training provider
Impact School
SIS - Social Impact School UG is an AZAV-certified training provider and works with numerous employers throughout Germany.
Our most important success factors:
Our most important success factors:
Enables lateral entry into attractive professions in the highly regulated education system.
Seamless qualification chain: those interested in a career first complete an entertaining and motivating training program. Orientation coursebefore they are subsequently Further training be prepared for the job. For non-native speakers, we offer an intensive Specialized language course "German for teachers" to.
High success rate: Our dual training program includes weekly practical days that quickly bring participants into contact with the real world of work and potential employers.
Modern curriculum: Our curriculum is developed in consultation with employers by socio-educational experts and is constantly updated.
Strong employer network: We work with over 200 employers to secure internships and recruitment.
We stand for the compatibility of further education, career and family: both further education and later career often take place in the morning/lunch. In the afternoon and during school vacations/closing times, employees are flexible and have time for their own families.
The Impact School is certified by CERTQUA as an educational institution in adult education in accordance with the "Accreditation and Approval Ordinance for Employment Promotion" (AZAV). CERTQUA is a certification body recognized by the Deutsche Akkreditierungsstelle GmbH (DAkkS). This recognition means that the Impact School meets the requirements nationwide to enable various funding opportunities, including education vouchers (BGS) and activation and placement vouchers (AVGS), which support further vocational training or qualifications.
Potential
Employer
Employer
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