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Job market in Berlin

 
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Hi ranchers!
Can someone tell me how good (or bad) is the job market in Berlin DE?
I am an electronics engineer with 5-year experience in Web + business JSP, Swing, ASP.NET, C# projects, and I am SCJA, SCJP, SCWCD, and part 1 of the SCEA. My German is still poor (that's one of the reasons why I want to move to Germany), but my English is acceptable, and I also speak some French and native Spanish.
What do you think? Can I find a job in Berlin? Which are the chances?
Berlin is one of Germany's cheapest cities but it's not my only German option.

Thanks a lot
XM
 
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Germany is actually thinking about a new Blue Card for qualified people. So chances are very good.
 
Marx Villegas
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Yes, I've heard... Thanks
I hope that not all of the jobs are in Munich.
Marx
 
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Berlin is not an ideal place to be looking for a job. It's a very cool city, but unemployment is high and jobs are rare. Of course, if you're really good, you're going to find something, that's for sure. The costs of living are much lower than elsewhere in Germany, but you usually earn much less too.

The company I worked for went bankrupt last June and most of my ex-colleagues found jobs in west Germany, I think only one or two stayed in Berlin. I went back to school to finish my Master diploma and I'm seriously considering mving, when I'm finished.

If you're not in love with Munich (I'm not either), think about south-west Germany - Stuttgart, Karlsruhe.
 
Marx Villegas
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Thanks a lot! Those are good tips...
Anyway, I've never been to Munich nor Karlsruhe, I've heard Munich not a bad place to live at all, only that it's a bit more expensive than the rest of Germany. I've also heard that there's like a million software firmas in there. My problem is that my German is still in diepers (Actually, I'm preparing to spend at least three months running on savings while my German gets a little better, so that's why I wanted to be in a inexpensive city).
What's your view on Koeln? (I love it too!)
Best regards, and thanks again!
XM
 
Darya Akbari
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Cologne, Bonn or Duesseldorf are fine. Personally I prefer them instead of Berlin.
 
Gosia Wittemann
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If you plan to learn German first, Berlin is a very good choice. It's easy to find a place in a WG (appartment shared between a couple of students) which is cheaper than living alone and has some additional opportunities, like having some social background and an opportunity to practice German. Plus there are many good German language schools, fairly priced. You should be also able to find a low paid student job too.

Cologne or Dusseldorf are more expensive than Berlin, habe better job market, but are not as attractive as south or south-west Germany. You could consider learning German in any of them and searching for a job both there and in the south. OR even start looking for a job immediately, I have worked with some colleagues who didn't speak one word in German and it worked too. But if you wnat to stay here and have a life than you have to learn to speak German of course.

Shall you ever decide to come to Bewrlin and serach for good place to live or a good and decently priced language school, let me know

Gosia
 
Marx Villegas
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Thanks a lot Gosia, you're very kind.
My plan is to be there by February, I'm trying to find some freelance work before so I can seriously take time to learn german while earning some money.
I'll let you know when I'm there.
Thanks again.
Marx
 
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