You know what it takes,
we've got the teaching jobs

Education by Hays – Educating can't wait any longer

You are enthusiastic about educational work with children and young people and would like to pass on your knowledge? Or have you successfully completed your teaching studies abroad and would like to gain a foothold in German schools? Then we should get to know each other.

Because we have made it our business to find teachers, who have a qualified background, but are (not yet) considered as fully trained teachers in Germany. This may be either because you have not completed a teaching degree in Germany or because your foreign teaching degree is not recognised in Germany.

In short: We will accompany and support you on your way into the German teaching profession and advise you on how to use your national and foreign degrees for this purpose.

Your
contact person

Experience Reports

"I wanted to be a teacher, but I didn't know how to go about it, as I don’t have a teaching degree. Then I saw the Hays ad and applied."

(Anantha Prasad Subbaraya from India, teacher at a school in Gommer, Saxony-Anhalt, since December 2021)

Education by Hays -
what the media says: 

Your benefits as a career changer
with Hays

We know that the lateral entry as a teacher in Germany is not always easy – for both German experts and international teachers. That is why we are here to help you with all your questions to make your dream come true, so you can inspire your pupils with your enthusiasm.

As a strong and competent partner we offer you:

  • Access to state schools and educational institutions under private ownership
  • Advice and support throughout the application process and beyond
  • A perfect match based on your qualifications and experience
  • Exciting opportunities and possibilities in teaching
In addition, as a foreign candidate you will benefit from:
  • Comprehensive and personal consulting
  • A basic check of your German language skills and of your professional background
  • A contact person at Hays throughout the process
  • Transparency and personal coaching throughout the application process (preparation for job interviews)

Your knowledge relates to one of these
or other subjects?

Then we will find something for you:

A career change into teaching –
this is how it works with Hays

Are you looking for a safe job as a teacher at German schools? In addition, you have professional experience, a university degree, fluent German language skills and you would like to work as a teacher in the German education sector? Then, depending on where you come from, there are different ways to become a teacher in Germany.

Lateral entrants
from Germany

You have successfully completed a Bachelor's and even a Master's degree, but have no educational background or teaching experience? You can still use the knowledge you have gained during your studies to teach as an expert in your specialty in public and private schools.

For example, you have studied biology and can thus prove in-depth knowledge in this subject area? Then you already have the best prerequisites to work as a teacher for biology at general education schools in Germany in the future. You will get the necessary pedagogical basics prior or during your teaching job.

International teachers as
lateral entrants

Have you already successfully completed your teaching studies abroad and even worked as a teacher? If you would like to become a teacher in your subject area in Germany, it is often not so easy to take root. Unfortunately, according to the current legal basis, your degree does not correspond to the German one – but you can enter the German teaching profession through a so-called lateral entry. 

All you need is:

Proof of German language level B2 (during the first year of your teaching job you must provide proof of C1)
Your study record (university diploma and transcript of records translated into German)

You meet all requirements –
what are the next steps?

You cannot simply apply to schools, even though you are an expert in your subject or an international teacher. You need access to the special school lists of the respective federal state. Only then you can see which school needs teachers for which subjects. And only then you can apply for open positions at the schools. You will receive access to the lists after a successful examination by our specialists.

Frequently Asked Questions
(FAQ’s)

When is the start of your teaching job?

Teachers in Germany usually start their service at the beginning of the school year or at half-term. However, if there is an urgent need at a school, it is also possible to join at any time during the current school year.

Teachers in Germany usually start their service at the beginning of the school year or at half-term. However, if there is an urgent need at a school, it is also possible to join at any time during the current school year.


Your support before and during your teaching job

Depending on your personal education and your school, we will support you before and during your teaching assignment. In Saxony-Anhalt, for example, you will need to complete a four-week advanced training course before you start as a teacher at a state school. This course includes didactics and pedagogy and prepares you for teaching and dealing with students.

Private schools sometimes deal differently with career changers and provide you with mentors during the first period of your teaching assignment, who will accompany you in everyday school life and during your lessons.

If you also want to learn another subject and take the second state examination, this is possible by means of an extra-occupational study course.

Depending on your personal education and your school, we will support you before and during your teaching assignment. In Saxony-Anhalt, for example, you will need to complete a four-week advanced training course before you start as a teacher at a state school. This course includes didactics and pedagogy and prepares you for teaching and dealing with students.

Private schools sometimes deal differently with career changers and provide you with mentors during the first period of your teaching assignment, who will accompany you in everyday school life and during your lessons.

If you also want to learn another subject and take the second state examination, this is possible by means of an extra-occupational study course.


Is one subject enough for the subject derivation for lateral entry?

Although two subjects are often required according to German standards, one subject is sufficient for lateral entry.

Although two subjects are often required according to German standards, one subject is sufficient for lateral entry.


Does Hays support cost anything for applicants?

No, the guidance provided by Hays is always free of charge for candidates. Only fees for the certificate examination or similar must be paid by the candidate.

No, the guidance provided by Hays is always free of charge for candidates. Only fees for the certificate examination or similar must be paid by the candidate.


Are the classical state examinations necessary for entry into the teaching profession?

No, state examinations are not necessary to enter the German teaching profession. We will guide you into the teaching profession via the so-called lateral entry. The prerequisite for this is an academic background (at least Bachelor's, Master's, Diplom, Magister or similar) in one or more subjects that can be transferred to school subjects.

No, state examinations are not necessary to enter the German teaching profession. We will guide you into the teaching profession via the so-called lateral entry. The prerequisite for this is an academic background (at least Bachelor's, Master's, Diplom, Magister or similar) in one or more subjects that can be transferred to school subjects.


Germany needs your expertise
in teaching

Germany will have a shortage of over 68,000 teachers by 2030. This makes it even more important to deploy lateral entrants from Germany and abroad at schools in both public and private sponsorship.

These include:

Primary and special schools
Secondary schools I

Secondary schools II

Vocational schools

Join us
in making German schools more diverse!

The challenges are huge – for national and international teachers alike. On the one hand, there are German teachers who have professional expertise and are at least somewhat familiar with German culture and the German school system.

And on the other hand, there are international teachers who have pedagogical training, are experts in their field, but who encounter a new culture and thus a different way of teaching in Germany. Both groups share the will to work with children and young people, to share their knowledge and to pass it on.

Join us in taking the first steps to use your skills to give a school new perspectives and creative methods.

Education by Hays – because education can't wait.