Medical practice in Germany for a foreign graduate
The high standard of living in Germany and good salaries of doctors attract foreign specialists.An assistant receives on average about 50,000-60,000 euros per year.Let's take a look at what the process of applying for and obtaining a license for "residency" in Germany looks like.
Residency in German
There is no residency in Germany as we understand it.Here, graduates immediately begin medical work - Assistenzarzt, which lasts about 5 years.This is not training, but a job as a doctor's assistant.At this stage, you can already prescribe diagnostics and treatment to patients, however, under the supervision of another doctor.
To start an internship or work, a foreign graduate must obtain a license, which is issued if the education qualifies for German.They are divided into two types:
Approbation , which is issued for life, is valid throughout Germany.It can take a long time to get it.Note that this license only allows you to work as a doctor's assistant within the Assistenzarzt.You will then be able to apply for a private practice license.
In some cases, doctors are looking for work only with Approbation, because clinics are not interested in foreign graduates.You can find open vacancies on the university website and at (German Federal Employment Agency) .If you have been offered a job and need to get started as soon as possible, you can get a license below, if this option is acceptable.
Temporary Berufserlaubnis , which is issued for up to two years depending on the land.During this time, you must pass an exam to assess the equivalence of your education - the Kenntnisprüfung test.If you take the exam, you get an Approbation.
The main problem for a foreign graduate is the big difference in practice with German graduates.For example, the last year of study of a German student includes practice not only in the specialty, but in differentdirections. Hours by subject also vary greatly. The exam shows how willing you are to work on an equal footing with German doctors.The subjects on the exam will differ depending on the land.
Knowledge of German
For the license you need knowledge of General German at B2 level and medical German at C1 level.You may be asked to take the Fachsprachenprüfung language exam, which tests your knowledge in practice. The requirements and examination process may vary from state to state in Germany.For example, in Saxony, it includes three parts:
Interview, or rather a conversation with a patient, in the role of which is the examiner.You must tell about the proposed diagnosis, possible treatment, additional examination.In this case, you need to use a language that will be understandable to the patient;
Maintaining documentation in a given form;
Transfer of patient information to another doctor using medical English and terms.Thus, the commission will check how willing you are to communicate with both colleagues and the patient.
The good news is that you can retake it an unlimited number of times.However, in each case, a contribution of 425 euros must be paid.
Useful links
On our site there are several articles on learning German that may be useful:
Currency
EUR
GBP
KZT
INR
RUB