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A One-Year Update as a Nurse in Germany
Or rather, the fruit of a four-year-long struggle
I came to Germany amid a pandemic in February 2020 as a social worker. Uncertainty about our future as immigrants in America and the inability to find ample opportunities in journalism and singing forced me to make this move.
Germany was home to my mother, who could help watch the kids in case I didn’t learn enough language to secure a place in nursing training in October or April of the following year. When applying for a freiwilligendienst (social worker) visa at the embassy, I was not aware that I could not bring the children with me until I started work as a trainee nurse. This meant I had to quickly learn the language and secure a place in the ausbildung (the paid nursing training) this year — in October 2020.
September — October 2020
From jinxed September to hopeful October, every year for the past four years, this time of year has been rather dreaded. In September 2020, my days were filled with uncertainty. Even though I secured a spot in the Pflege Ausbildung in Germany, the job center did not approve my application, leaving me unsure if I could start the course.
In Germany, one cannot start work in just any field of choice as a foreigner. Germany restricts foreign…
