Work and Professions in German

This article is about jobs and all of the phrases, verbs, and words that you need to be able to talk about the topic. If your German is advanced, you can also read this article entirely in German.

 

Asking about someone’s job:

• Was bist du von Beruf? – Ich bin Arzt.
  
• What is your profession? I’m a doctor.
• Was machst du von Beruf?  – Ich bin Lehrer.
• What do you do for work? I’m a teacher.
• Als was arbeitest du? – Ich arbeite als Hausmeister.
• What do you work as? I work as a janitor.
• Welchen Beruf hast du? – Ich bin Krankenschwester.
• What is your profession? I’m a nurse.
• Was hast du gelernt? – Ich habe Medizin studiert und bin jetzt Arzt.
• What did you study? I studied medicine and now I’m a doctor.
• Welchen Beruf hast du gelernt? – Ich habe eine Ausbildung zum Bäcker gemacht.
• What did you train to be? I did a training program to be a baker.

Asking children what they want to be when they grow up:

• Was willst du (später einmal) werden? – Ich will Polizist werden.
• What do you want to be when you grow up?
  
• Als was willst arbeiten? – Wenn ich groß bin, will ich als Feuerwehrmann arbeiten.
• What are you going to do when you grow up? When I’m older, I am going to be a fireman.
• In welchem Beruf möchtest du später einmal arbeiten? – Ich möchte später einmal als Tierpflegerin arbeiten.
• What job do you want to have when you are older? I want to work as a zookeeper when I’m older.

Asking about training and education:

• Was hast du gelernt? – Ich habe (den Beruf) Einzelhandelskaufmann gelernt.
• What vocational training have you done? I did a training program to become a retail salesman.
• Welchen Beruf hast du gelernt?  – Ich habe Mechaniker gelernt.
• What kind of vocational training did you do? I did a program to become a mechanic.
• Was hast du studiert? – Ich studiere BWL (Betriebswirtschaftslehre).
• What did you study? I studied business.
• Hast du eine Ausbildung gemacht? – Ja, ich habe eine Ausbildung zum Maurer gemacht.
• Have you done a vocational training program? Yes, I did a training program to become a bricklayer.

The verb „arbeiten“

The verb ‚arbeiten‘ can be used with multiple prepositions:

• arbeiten als + job: Ich arbeite als Architekt.
• arbeiten bei + company: Ich arbeite bei Siemens.
• arbeiten für + company/boss: Ich arbeite für Volkswagen/Herrn Meier.
• arbeiten an + project/assignment: Ich arbeite im Moment an meiner dem kaputten Auto von Frau Schulz.
• arbeiten mit + colleagues: Ich arbeite mit Herrn Hoffmann an dem Projekt.

The difference between „lernen“ and „studieren“

The verbs „lernen“ and „studieren“ aren’t used the same way as they are in English or the romance languages. „Man studiert“ is only used when talking about attending a college or university,  and it only refers to the general idea of attending such an institution, not learning a specific topic in a specific course while there. In comparison, „lernen“ is used for everything else. When you are at a normal school (not a college or university), you „lernst“ instead of „studierest.“ Additionally, when you are preparing for a test or exam, you „lernst“ instead of „studierest“ (even if it’s for a test at your university!) because you are learning about a specific topic, not talking about studying in general.

Examples lernen/studieren:

• Ich lerne für die Matheprüfung.
• I am studying for the math exam.
• Ich lerne heute Abend Deutsch.
• Tonight, I’m studying German.
• In meinem Deutschkurs habe ich gestern viele neue Wörter gelernt.
• Yesterday, in my German class, we learned a lot of new words.
• In meiner Ausbildung zum Koch habe ich viel gelernt.
• During my vocational training to become a cook, I learned a lot.
• In meiner Lehre zum Bäcker habe ich gelernt, wie man ein Brot bäckt.
• In my training program to become a baker, I learned how to bake bread.
• Ich lerne Deutsch in der Abendschule.
• I am learning German at night school.

BUT

• Ich studiere Medizin.
• I’m studying medicine.
• Ich habe in Syrien Mathematik studiert.
• I studied mathematics in Syria.
• Ich will gern Architektur studieren.
• I really want to study architecture.
• Ich habe Deutsch an der Universität studiert. (–> Es war dein Hauptfach an der Universität).
• I majored in German at university.
• Nach dem Abitur werde ich studieren.
• After I graduate high school, I will go to university.

Important vocabulary regarding the topic of jobs

• die Ausbildung/die Lehre  – The terms „Ausbildung“ and „Lehre“ refer to a 2-3 year training program at a company. Sometimes this is combined with 1 or 2 days a week learning theory in a „Berufsschule.“ This is done for jobs that involve working with your hands and where experience is more important than being able to explain every detail. Examples include: roofer, cook, waiter, secretary, plumber, janitor, baker, butcher, mechanic,… . In Germany, the training is on-the-job and takes place at a company, not at a university. The student is paid a salary and the company pays for the school if theoretical knowledge is also needed.
• das Studium – „Studium“ refers exclusively to studying at a „Hochschule“ or „Universität“ (college or university). There is no „Studium“ at a normal school. Warning! „Hochschule“ does not mean „High School“! It is more similar to a college or university.
• das Praktikum (Plural: die Praktikas) – A job, usually unpaid, to gain practical experience.
• das Abitur – Graduation from a „Gymnasium“ and a prerequisite for studying at a college or university in Germany.
• der (Realschul- / Hauptschul-) Abschluss – Successful completion of school that’s not „Gymnasium.“
• das Gymnasium – 12/13 year schooling (until age 18/19) → You can study at university or start an „Ausbildung.“
• die Realschule – 10 year schooling  (until age 16) → You can do almost any „Ausbildung.“
• die Hauptschule – 9 year schooling (until age 15/16) → You can start any job or „Ausbildung“ that involves no or little contact with customers.

The different professions

It’s impossible to know every single profession. Even your German friends don’t know every single one. It’s of course necessary to know your own profession, since it’s the most important when you are looking for work in Germany. Many professions, especially ones that require a „Studium,“ use the English term nowadays. For example, a manager will rarely be called a „leitender Angestellter.“ One reason for this is that the German terms are often very specific, while the English ones are simpler and more general.

In this slideshow from Sprachzentrum Buenos Aires, there is a list of nearly 50 different professions. In case yours isn’t there but you would like to know it, simply write it in the comments below and I’ll try to find the appropriate designation in German.

Additional Material:

A nice video about this topic: Street Survery – What is Your Profession?

[su_youtube url=“https://youtu.be/iyoptTjDtz0″] [youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mb5jTYWVjzY&w=854&h=510][/su_youtube]

Two Videos for Children and Beginners

[su_youtube url=“https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Y5Jd-QUn48″] [youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mb5jTYWVjzY&w=854&h=510][/su_youtube]

[su_youtube url=“https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZIRquKQnQS8″] [youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mb5jTYWVjzY&w=854&h=510][/su_youtube]

A List of All Professions that Exist in Germany

http://www.alleberufe.de/berufe-a-z.html

Exercises on the Topic of Professions

http://www.schubert-verlag.de/aufgaben/uebungen_a2/a2_kap1_berufe.htm

https://shop.hueber.de/media/hueber_dateien/Internet_Muster/Red1/978-3-19-107245-2%20_Muster_1.pdf

https://www.schule.at/portale/deutsch-als-zweitsprache-und-ikl/detail/berufe.html

Want more music recommendations? Follow me on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube, where I regularly publish tasls and all new articles! Sign up for my newsletter and at least once a month you will receive a summary of all my published articles and tips related to learning German online!

[easy-social-like facebook=“true“ facebook_url=“https://www.facebook.com/EasyDeutsch“ twitter_follow=“true“ twitter_follow_user=“EasyDeutsch“ google_follow=“true“ google_follow_url=“https://plus.google.com/b/103119812796307817812″ youtube=“true“ youtube_chanel=“UCluY2ph0_l4rwlYEz_xHM6g“ pinterest_pin=“true“ skin=“flat“ counters=0 align=“left“] [easy-social-share buttons=“facebook,twitter,vk,google,weibo,whatsapp,mail“ counters=0 hide_names=“yes“ template=“clear-retina“ facebook_text=“Auf Facebook teilen“ twitter_text=“Auf Twitter teilen“ vk_text=“Auf VK teilen“ google_text=“Auf Google+ teilen“ weibo_text=“Auf Weibo teilen“ whatsapp_text=“Per Whatsapp schicken“ mail_text=“Per Email an Freunde senden“] [su_divider top=“no“] Bewerte die Lektion: [yasr_visitor_votes] [et_bloom_inline optin_id=“optin_1″]