Learning German and building a successful career

Gresa Kabashi came to Germany for vocational training

It was a stroke of luck for Gresa Kabashi that in 2005 a new school opened in Prizren, her hometown in Kosovo, offering German as a foreign language. She was eleven years old at the time. Today the 25-year-old says: “The German language influenced my career path and has helped me not only with my vocational training, but also in my studies and my work. Without language skills I would probably not have made it to Germany.”

There was another lucky coincidence: Loyola High School, where Gresa graduated in 2012, maintains a vocational training partnership with major German companies. Once a year, they offer students in 12th grade the opportunity to complete an internship and then a training programme in Germany. “I was one of them and am very grateful for that,” she says.

Gresa now lives in the small town of Oelde in North Rhine-Westphalia, where she is employed by a small privately owned technology firm. “In 2015 I completed my training as a technical product designer. Since then I have been studying industrial engineering part-time while I work and am now in the process of writing my Bachelor dissertation.”

Siyana Dimitrova made it to university with a scholarship

Learning the German language and having a clear goal also paid off for Siyana Dimitrova from Bulgaria. Her enthusiasm is infectious: “I would like to tell others how wonderful it is to study in Germany and how many opportunities that opens up. And I’d also like to prove that you really can make it.” 

The young woman learned German at a PASCH school in her home country. She wanted to study in Germany, but knew that would be very expensive for her family. Then her big chance came at the end of 12th grade in the shape of a scholarship from the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD). Siyana’s application was successful, and in 2012 she came to study in Magdeburg. Today she has completed her studies and holds a Bachelor in journalism and a Master in media education.

Siyana is now active at her university as a study ambassador, supporting school-leavers from abroad on their way to a university course in Germany.

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