Career advancement through the recognition of qualifications

As Shorn Carter opens the cover of a control cabinet, he confidently reaches for his screwdriver and testing device. Every move is second nature – and also the fulfilment of a long-held dream. Now aged 51, Shorn grew up in the Caribbean and completed his training in electronics in the UK. Today, he works in Germany as an electronics technician in the field of mechanical engineering and drive technology. He is employed as a skilled professional in Germany because he went through the process of getting his foreign professional qualifications officially recognised. Skilled professionals in Germany benefit from attractive salaries, good career and training opportunities, and long-term prospects for residency and integration.  

Recognition of foreign vocational training qualifications 

Shorn Carter initially began his career in Germany as a fitness instructor, but he then discovered that it was possible to obtain official recognition of his original qualification as an electronics technician. He initially took a job as an assistant at an electrical company and started to prepare an application to have his qualification recognised. In order to gain full recognition, he needed to acquire knowledge of German regulations and standards in the electronics field – which he was able to do by taking an on-the-job adaptation programme. He was then granted full recognition of his qualification and was able to start working as a qualified professional.  

Recognition means that a professional qualification acquired abroad is officially recognised as equivalent to a German qualification. In Germany there are regulated and non-regulated professions. Anyone wishing to work in a regulated profession – as a doctor or teacher, for example – is required to go through a process of formal recognition. Recognition is mandatory for regulated professions and advantageous for non-regulated ones. All the main information is provided on the German government's information portal for the recognition of foreign professional qualifications.  

For Shorn Carter, going through the recognition process was well worth it: “The official recognition of my qualifications has opened up lots more opportunities for me on the job market – and I now earn a lot more, too. I’d like to stay in Germany and eventually go on to obtain a master-level qualification.”