Study, degree, direct entry: the previously classic start of a career is becoming increasingly less important in many companies. According to surveys, almost half of all German employers are now hiring trainees. Global players in particular attract motivated young managers with the foreign bonus. This form of career entry sometimes becomes a career springboard into the world.
Promote your career and travel the world at the same time
Leverkusen today, then Berlin, next year Berkeley and Basel – for Rebecca Horbert, this dream of starting her career is already a reality. The 30-year-old is a trainee in the Future Leadership Program for Pharmacists in Product Supply at Bayer and is using the career springboard, among other things, for a stopover abroad.
The program lasts a total of 24 months, at the end of which Horbert will have worked in six different departments. “So that I don’t have to move too often, I’m only in Leverkusen for the first year,” says the doctor of pharmacy. This is followed by stations in Berlin, Berkeley in the USA and Basel in Switzerland.
The example shows: For anyone who not only wants to have a career but also gain experience abroad after graduating from university , international trainee programs offer a great opportunity to acquire professional know-how and discover the world at the same time.
Trainee programs from Europe to Asia
Just like in the classic trainee program, the young talents are assigned a mentor and go through various stages within the company. The goal: The trainee should find the area in which they can best apply their individual strengths. However, while the stations are usually located within Germany, trainees with an international orientation work for several months in a company branch abroad. This can be in Europe, but also in the USA, Australia, Africa or Asia.
For Rebecca Horbert, some of the stations were already fixed in advance, but she had a say in others. “Before starting the program, I had a conversation with my mentor in which I was allowed to express my wishes,” she says.
She is already very familiar with the USA, where she will be working next year. “After graduating high school, I worked for a nonprofit in Colorado for a year,” Rebecca says. And as an employee of an internationally oriented company, she speaks the language regularly anyway. “In global quality assurance, where I currently work, we speak a lot of English,” she says, but adds with a laugh: “Of course only when communicating with international colleagues – German is spoken in the hallway and at the coffee machine.”
The Horbert example shows: While most international trainee programs are aimed at economists, graduates from other disciplines also have a chance, including natural scientists, computer scientists and mathematicians as well as engineers. And even humanities and social scientists are welcome as career changers.
Working and living interculturally
Dina Falk, on the other hand, first studied general management in Tübingen, spent a year in Australia and Mexico before graduating, and then wanted to gain many different impressions in a company - and at the same time go abroad again. As a trainee in the GROW graduate program at Deutsche Post DHL Group, she is now going through three phases in 18 months, five of which she has already worked at DHL Express in Mumbai, India.
“The biggest challenges for me were, of course, overcoming the cultural differences,” she remembers of her time abroad. “The Indians, for example, are very polite and never told me if they didn't understand my English accent: I then had to ask more often whether they knew what I meant.” Appointments, which in Germany often lasted for weeks, also took place planned are sometimes overturned at short notice in the Asian country. “Overall, I can say that my Indian colleagues work with at least as much passion as I know from my colleagues in Germany.”
Support at home and abroad
During the three projects that Falk managed in India, she also interviewed customers on site and was allowed to travel to Delhi and Bangalore. “It was a great opportunity for me to see the cities and sights at the weekend.” She never felt alone. “The Indians are so hospitable and they immediately took me to their hearts,” enthuses Dina. “They invited me straight away to do something with them. So I immediately found a connection.”
She also received a lot of support from the company when it came to practically organizing her stay abroad, looking for accommodation or taking out international health insurance. “For example, I took part in a security seminar in which we were made aware of country-specific dangers.” The contact with Indian employees and trainees who had already been to India also helped her prepare for her stay helped. “So I had a good feeling when I finally traveled to India.”
Back in Germany, Falk works at the headquarters of the Deutsche Post DHL Group in Bonn. “I am currently working in the area of corporate strategy, which is responsible for developing, monitoring and introducing the long-term direction of the group.” What are relevant trends? What are market developments? Where is it suitable for Deutsche Post DHL Group to invest? “We suggest the areas in which the group can expand or improve its portfolio.”
As a trainee you are the manager’s “sidekick”.
Rebecca Horbert has yet to begin her stay abroad. She is currently working in Germany and has already completed one station of her program here. “First I was in production, in a company where tablets were made from pharmaceutical raw materials,” she says. There, for example, she was involved in the documentation required by the authorities for the production of pharmaceutical products. “I also went with the employees on site and accompanied the operations manager on her appointments with controlling and the works council,” she says. “In a normal entry-level position, it wouldn’t be possible for you to work with a manager.”
Rebecca doesn't feel like a better intern at Bayer, as trainees are sometimes negatively labeled. On the contrary: “Our international trainee programs are of very high quality and appeal to outstanding candidates, as our colleagues know.” Her salary also corresponds to the esteem in which she is held in the company. “I can’t complain,” she says with a laugh.
Tip: Prepare for your desired professional life during your studies
Rebecca Horbert and Dina Falk can benefit not only from their good position in a big-name company, but also from the network that they build up during their traineeship. For example, Dina Falk meets with the other trainees every Thursday at 12 p.m. for lunch in the canteen. “But our meetings aren’t just limited to professional matters – we also see each other in the evenings and on weekends,” she says. “It’s especially nice at the beginning when you’re new in town and don’t have any friends yet.”
Horbert has a few tips for students who one day want to follow a similar path to the two trainees: “If you only think about doing a job like this after you finish your studies, it might already be too late,” she believes . After all, it's best to gain practical experience in a part-time job or internship during your studies - ideally even abroad. “When I started studying, I looked at job advertisements to see what was required. That was one reason why I joined the student council,” she says. Later, like Dina Falk, she did internships: at the pharmaceutical companies Boehringer Ingelheim and Sanofi, and she also completed her internship year at Beiersdorf.
Trainee program – not for everyone
However, Horbert also emphasizes that an international trainee program is not suitable for everyone: “Among my doctoral colleagues, I found that many of them thought the program was great, but were not willing to apply for it because you have to be very flexible ", she tells. “At my age, many people are concerned with family planning and can’t imagine moving or going abroad every month.” And that’s not all: Anyone who wants to pursue a career in an international company typically changes jobs every three to five years at home and abroad, says Horbert.
The companies, for their part, have a great interest in retaining trained young talent within their group. No wonder, after all, the seminars and training that the trainees go through, as well as the support from a mentor, are very time-consuming and cost-intensive. In the end, the next generation also benefits in this respect: according to the Staufenbiel Job Trends 2016 study, 57 percent of trainees receive a permanent employment contract from the start.
Two young professionals talk about how starting a career and discovering the world can be combined.
