vocational training
A working life is long, and very few people want to do the same thing throughout their lives. Fortunately, there are a wide range of further and vocational training opportunities for chemists, chemical technicians, laboratory technicians and CTAs alike. Without claiming to be exhaustive, here you will find an overview of the opportunities and funding options.
As the time and financial commitment involved in vocational training is often considerable, anyone wishing to undertake vocational training should first consider exactly what they want to achieve through it and whether they can and want to devote the necessary time alongside their job.
Master of Business Administration
An MBA is a postgraduate university course designed to impart business management knowledge and prepare students for management responsibilities. Admission to an MBA university course generally requires a completed university degree. An MBA can be completed either part-time or full-time. Prospective students should research the many different programmes thoroughly in advance and consider whether an MBA will genuinely benefit their planned Career.
Patent law
Patent law requires both scientific and legal knowledge. The several-year training programme to become a patent attorney is regulated by law and includes, among other things, working in a patent law firm, studying at the FernUniversität in Hagen, and training at the German Patent and Trade Mark Office and the Federal Patent Court. It concludes with an examination.
www.vpp-patent.de
www.vpp-patent.de/ausbildung/downloads-service/
Quality assurance / quality management
Ensuring the quality of products and processes is a core task of a chemical company. The German Society for Quality (DGQ), the Saarland University of Applied Sciences and Technology and other providers offer a wide range of modular training courses, programmes, and certificate and part-time university courses in quality management and quality assurance. The GDCh also offers additional training in quality assurance through its "Certified Quality Expert GxP" specialist programme.
www.gdch.de/fachprogramme
www.dgq.de/weiterbildung-Themen
www.htwsaar.de
Clinical chemistry
Clinical chemistry deals with the analysis of physiological processes in the body. Chemists can undertake vocational training to become a clinical chemist through the German United Society for Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine (DGKI). The training lasts five years. At least four of these years must be completed in a clinical chemistry laboratory serving patient care.
Toxicology
Scientists with completed training can acquire qualifications in toxicology in various ways. The Society of Toxicology (GT), Leipzig University and SafeSciMET also offer various certificates or university courses for vocational training as a toxicologist. For graduates with a bachelor's degree, a master's degree in toxicology may also be an option; this is offered at various German higher education institutions.
toxikologie.de/weiterbildung/
www.safescimet.eu
Ecotoxicology
Ecotoxicology deals with the effects of substances on the environment. The GDCh Division of Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology and SETAC-GLB jointly offer the postgraduate course in specialist ecotoxicology, leading to the qualification "Specialist Ecotoxicologist (GDCh/SETAC-GLB)".
Business chemistry
An understanding of business management relationships is particularly advantageous for chemists in industry. In addition to various further training courses, some higher education institutions offer university courses in business chemistry. The GDCh also offers vocational training to become a business chemist.
Chemical engineering technician (state-certified technician; specialisation in chemical engineering)
This vocational training is offered at technical colleges and lasts two years, or four years if completed alongside employment. In addition to chemical engineering, there are other specialisations, such as production engineering. As a rule, a completed vocational qualification as a laboratory technician, chemical operator or CTA is required for this vocational training. The training concludes with a state examination.
www.vdc-cta.de/chemietechniker.html
www.techniker-forum.de/technikerschulen
Laboratory technician (Chamber of Industry and Commerce)
Vocational training to become a laboratory technician is offered in some regions of Germany and is generally conducted by the local Chamber of Industry and Commerce in cooperation with a company based in the area. This vocational training is primarily of interest to employees of the cooperating companies, as it qualifies them for tasks specifically within those companies.
Industrial master craftsperson in chemistry
Industrial master craftspersons in chemistry work not only in the chemical industry but in all manufacturing sectors. There, they work in production and are involved in training young colleagues. The vocational training is provided by both the Chamber of Industry and Commerce and training providers, and in some cases by the companies themselves. The examination is always taken before the Chamber of Industry and Commerce. The vocational training can be completed full-time or alongside employment.
www.berufenet.arbeitsagentur.de (job title "Industrial master craftsperson in chemistry")
Search engine for training providers: www.meisterschulen-info.de
Information about the occupation: http://www.industriemeister.info/chemie
Entrance qualification for universities of applied sciences or general higher education entrance qualification
At some chemistry schools, pupils acquire either an entrance qualification for universities of applied sciences or a general higher education entrance qualification alongside their CTA training. Sometimes this is also offered as a one-year additional course following the training.
Those who did not take advantage of this option can also acquire the entrance qualification for universities of applied sciences after their training, alongside further vocational training.
With an entrance qualification for universities of applied sciences or a general higher education entrance qualification, it is possible to study at a university of applied sciences or university. Information about studying at universities of applied sciences (HAW) can be found on the "Study chemistry" website.
Technical business administrator
Anyone who has already successfully completed vocational training to become an industrial master craftsperson and acquired professional experience can undertake further vocational training to become a technical business administrator and thus take on management responsibilities. The focus of the vocational training is on business administration. The training and examination are not uniformly regulated nationwide and are offered by technical colleges, Chambers of Industry and Commerce and educational institutions. The technical business administrator is often also referred to as "Master Professional (CCI)" (not to be confused with a master's degree from a higher education institution).
www.berufenet.arbeitsagentur.de (job title "technical business administrator")
www.betriebswirt.info/Weiterbildung
Further information about vocational training in chemistry: chemie-rp.de/die-branchen/arbeiten-in-der-chemie
Dual study programme
Training-integrated dual study programme: Alongside the Chamber of Industry and Commerce vocational qualification, a higher education qualification is acquired at the same time.
Practice-integrated dual study programme: The course includes longer practical phases in a company, without a vocational qualification being acquired. In both cases, an entrance qualification for a university of applied sciences or a general higher education entrance qualification is required.
A dual study programme can also be started after company-based or school-based training. A distinction is made here between a work-integrated and a work-study dual study programme.
www.gdch.de/Studium
www.studieren-ohne-abitur.de
elementare-vielfalt.de/duales-studium.html
www.hochschulkompass.de/studium/suche/dual-studieren.html
www.hochschulkompass.de/studium/suche/berufsbegleitend-studieren.html
www.ausbildungplus.de
www.duales-studium.de
www.wegweiser-duales-studium.de
Although vocational training is worthwhile, it is expensive. However, grants are available for many vocational training courses. It is therefore sensible to find out about funding opportunities in advance:
Advanced training scholarship for experienced professionals
The advanced training scholarship is a study grant provided by the federal government and is aimed at skilled workers with vocational training and at least two years’ professional experience. Applications can be submitted before starting a degree course and up to the end of the second semester.
Chemical laboratory technicians, CTAs and chemical process operators who would like to undertake further training may also receive assistance from Aufstiegs-Bafög towards financing it. Aufstiegs-Bafög is available for advanced vocational training courses, for example to become a chemical engineering technician.
With the training voucher, the Federal Employment Agency supports the vocational training of unemployed people, employees and people returning to work. The voucher is issued if the responsible employment agency considers vocational training to be necessary.
Vocational training scholarship
The scholarship programme is aimed at young employees, self-employed people and new students with completed vocational training who have worked in their profession for at least 19 hours a week for at least two years since completing their vocational training. The scholarship is available for subject-specific vocational training courses. However, interdisciplinary qualifications such as language or software courses are also funded. Part-time study alongside employment is also eligible for funding.
Many federal states have special funding programmes for vocational training. Anyone wishing to receive financial support from their federal state must live or work there.
| Brandenburg: | Vocational training |
| Hamburg: | Vocational training bonus |
| North Rhine-Westphalia: | Training voucher |
| Rhineland-Palatinate: | QualiScheck |
| Saxony: | Vocational training voucher |
| Saxony-Anhalt | Vocational training |
| Schleswig-Holstein: | Vocational training bonus |
| Thuringia: | Vocational training voucher |
| Bremen: | Vocational training voucher |
As vocational training often benefits not only employees but also their employers, many employers support such plans on an individual basis or by approving educational leave. It is therefore worth asking your employer, for example, to cover some or all of the costs or to provide funding. Employees wishing to undertake vocational training can also be supported in other ways, for example through flexible working hours or release from work during examination periods.
But beware: Your employer is not always enthusiastic about the planned vocational training, as it takes time and energy away from the employee that are then lacking in everyday work. Explain to your boss what motivates you to undertake this training and how their company can also benefit from it.
In the majority of federal states (www.iwwb.de/links/bildungsurlaub), employees are entitled to up to five days of educational leave, during which the employer must release them from work while continuing to pay them. Employees must cover the costs of the course itself. A prerequisite for educational leave is that it involves vocational or political training.
Anyone worried about the high costs because they are paying for vocational training themselves should be sure to submit a tax return. If professional interests are the main focus, tax can be saved on many courses, including training programmes as well as educational and language trips. Travel expenses are also recognised here. Employees can secure this tax benefit by entering their education costs in Appendix N of their tax return. For self-employed people, vocational training constitutes business expenses; different rules apply here.
Further information on the financing options presented here can be found in a special feature by Stiftung Warentest.
The GDCh offers you an extensive range of courses with challenging and up-to-date content in various formats.