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University graduates pick Audi as best place to work

Germany’s most attractive employer among this year's crop of university graduates is Ingolstadt-based luxury carmaker Audi, a survey showed this week.

University graduates pick Audi as best place to work
Photo: DPA

Published in by monthly Manager Magazin, the survey of 21,000 engineering, business and economics students found that despite the serious challenges facing the auto industry, German car companies dominated the rankings because they “stand for innovation and dynamism.”

Berlin-based consulting company Trendence, which conducted the study, found that behind Audi, the next most popular German employers were BMW, Lufthansa, Porsche, Siemens and Deutsche Bank. Volkswagen also jumped from 17th to 9th place in this year’s survey.

The top five companies that fell into the coveted “High Potential” group for business and economic students were US-based consulting companies Boston Consulting Group and McKinsey, followed by Lufthansa, Audi and the German Foreign Office. Engineers chose Audi, Bosch, BMW, Siemens and Porsche for this category.

Meanwhile the students surveyed said they believed their prospects of finding job at a coveted employer were improving. In the 2009 Absolventenbarometers, or “Graduates Barometer,” almost two-thirds of those polled said they feared finding a position would be difficult, but in 2010 only 48 percent said this was the case.

Students’ salary expectations also improved slightly, according to the magazine.

While companies have indeed begun recruiting again, they are being more cautious than in the past, Trendence expert Holger Koch told the magazine.

“The companies are in the comfortable situation where they currently select from a certain oversupply,” he said, citing good grades, flexibility, internationality, and efficient completion of studies as applicant must-haves.

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WORKING IN GERMANY

Which Bavaria-based companies regularly hire English speakers?

Bavaria is no doubt a beautiful state with a strong economy, but can be a hard place for non-German speakers to integrate. The Local takes a look at job opportunities in Germany’s southeastern 'Free State.'

Which Bavaria-based companies regularly hire English speakers?

Munich ranks third in German cities with the highest total GDP, behind Berlin and Hamburg, but in terms of GDP per capita, it’s higher than both of them.

It also consistently ranks high, often highest, in terms of average household income.

As of 2023, nine of the 40 companies listed on DAX, Germany’s stock index, were based in Bavaria. Seven of those are based specifically in Munich.

While Frankfurt is commonly known to be Germany’s business capital, Munich can claim the title of Germany’s insurance capital, which is saying something, as Germany is home to some of the largest insurance firms in the world, like Allianz.

Beyond the state’s capital city, a number of international companies are based elsewhere in Bavaria, particularly in the Franken region, near Nuremberg.

Which companies actively hire English speakers?

Bavaria, and Munich in particular, is home to a number of companies at the forefront of international business. But the state is known for its traditional, sometimes conservative, culture, which affects its business culture as well.

Whereas companies embracing English as their primary business language are easy to find in Berlin, the practice is less common in the south. That said, there are some notable exceptions. 

Sportswear giants, Adidas and Puma, both have their headquarters near Nuremberg in Herzogenaurach, and regularly recruit English speaking international talent.

“As an international company, our teams reflect the rich diversity of our consumers and communities,” Jon Greenhalgh, Senior Manager Media Relations for Adidas told The Local. “Fostering a culture of inclusion where we value and leverage differences, ensures that we can authentically engage with our employees and truly connect with our consumers.”

He added that around 40 per cent of Adidas’ Germany-based employees are foreign nationals, from over 100 different countries.

Siemens and BMW rank among Bavaria’s top employers, and are also known to hire their fair share of foreigners.

“In Germany, we recently had around 2,000 open positions,” Konstanze Somborn told The Local on behalf of Siemens AG.

He added that Siemens operates in 190 countries. “That is why we value international teams very much…English as a common language is very usual.”

READ ALSO: ‘Which German companies want to hire foreigners?’

Similarly, BMW hires workers from a variety of backgrounds. 

“Every year, we hire lots of internationals and welcome them to the BMW Group,” Dr. Hans-Peter Ketterl, a press spokesman for BMW Group told The Local. 

But not all of these positions are available to non-German speakers.

Ketterl added that BMW’s working language is German in the country, even though, “English is an indispensable entry requirement as the second corporate language in many areas of the company.”

Check job boards and follow best practices

If it’s your first time applying for jobs in Germany, make sure to change your resume to the German format, even for English positions.

While Germany is home to its own job boards, like Xing, LinkedIn is probably the best place to start. In addition to searching for positions based in your preferred location, you can check relevant groups, like Munich Startups, to broaden your horizons.

The English Jobs in Germany website is also a good resource to start with. 

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