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Learning German increases the chances of Filipino graduates to secure jobs in Germany or find employment in any of the German companies in the Philippines, an executive of Goethe-Institut Philippines told members of the Foundation for Upgrading the Standard of Education .
Addressing a recent FUSE general assembly in Manila, Falk Schleicher, head of Goethe Institut Philippines’ language program, said nurses and caregivers are in high demand in Germany due to its aging population, but it would help if job applicants know how to speak German.
“There’s a shortage of nurses and caregivers in our country as young Germans leave their parents in rural areas,” Schleicher said. “To fill the shortage, Germany is looking for health-care providers who can speak our language.”
Schleicher told FUSE members—composed of the country’s top educators from public and private schools and university officials—that there are currently 150,000 nurses and caregivers in Germany. Meanwhile, there are about 150 German companies operating in the Philippines, many of them in the call-center industry, which require German-speaking staff.
According to Schleicher, nine public high schools in the Philippines are offering German classes through a memorandum of understanding (MOU) entered into by the Department of Education (DepEd) and Goethe-Institut Philippines last year.
About 680 students attend the German classes, while 36 English teachers have been attending a training program to become German teachers, with eight of them currently on a six-month immersion program in Germany.
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