Positive experiences from summer job programme in Germany

The Labour and Employment Agency of BiH has implemented the student summer job programme in Germany for the sixth year in a row now. Some students have shared their experiences with us:   

S.A. says: “I have worked as cashier at Burger King but my duties also included cleaning of the premises, making fries, shakes etc.  It was somewhat hard in the very beginning but later on I managed to do everything on time… I shared a flat with other Burger King employees.  Each of us had a separate room with a shared kitchen and a bathroom. The accommodation was provided by the employer and I was very satisfied with it. I have a positive experience because everyone, including my employer and work colleagues, was great, and after a short time you have the feeling of being part of one big family whose members support each other.  It was an honour to work with such people.”

S.M. says: “My job was to clean schools, faculties and kindergartens in Munich. It was the so-called Grundreinigung job – thorough cleaning which includes machine floor cleaning, taking the entire furniture out of the premises for thorough cleaning, dusting. It was not an easy job but it was no hard labour either. We worked 8 hours a day, rarely longer. There was a predetermined deadline to clean each of the premises assigned to us and we had to meet certain quality standards in doing our jobs too… The employer did not provide us with the accommodation but that was something we already knew from the job offer we had received.  However, we were given some suggestions where to look for appropriate accommodation.  We opted for a camp which consisted of a couple of large tents. We slept on mattresses laid out on the floor using blankets as a cover. Rented flats in the city are high in demand and they are usually rented for the minimum of a three-month period. As we only spent one and a half months there it did not pay off to rent such a flat. All in all, we had some difficulties with the accommodation but the bottom line is that it was a great experience … What is more important is that we were more than satisfied with the earnings … which makes our experience more than a positive one. It is something that I would heartily recommend to everyone. I think it is possible to benefit from this kind of job in any way.  My personal priority was to improve German knowledge, to get to know a new country, learn more about its habits and culture. One simply perceives everything in a new way and starts looking at life differently, some new horizons open up, some new ambitions and aspirations emerge. I already said that the accommodation was the worst part of the entire story, but the tent I mentioned housed people from all over the world.  Living for a month and a half in such an environment is something that we cannot experience in our country. I had been abroad earlier in my life but this time it was a completely different feeling. One simply has a different taste of the country when one gets there for work. It is simply different when one has the opportunity to feel how it is to live in a foreign country from one’s own work and then compare it with conditions back at home. All in all, it was a great experience which I would recommend to everyone.” 

M.A. worked at the Schluchsee lake in the Black Forrest: “I worked for two and a half months in the place called Schluchsee. The family which I worked for has its own bathing place at the lake and my job was to charge admission to the beach, rent the boats and sell beverages. I had the accommodation in the house of the family I worked for. The family was great and I still keep in touch with them. The students who decide to take this step must be ready for hard work. It is, after all, Germany.