GERMANY – UoC, UNIVERSITY OF COLOGNE

School support:

If students are interested in applying for internships, the University of Cologne will advise them on their applications. However, as standard German job applications require a number of supporting documents in addition to a cover letter and CV, you can find more external details here and here.

The University of Cologne also supports students with links to internship and job offers from corporate partners and non-corporate partners (here).

Furthermore, a lot of internship and job offers are placed on the blackboards in the hall of the Faculty’s Centre for International Relations (ZIB WiSo) and the “WiSo-Schlauch” at the university.

Additionally, the WiSo Career Service offers many services related to your career which can help you to find an internship in Germany or even abroad. Amongst others, it offers company presentations, workshops, and seminars here.

The CEMS Office also advises students on how to apply to the Bundesagentur für Arbeit, Zentrale Auslands- und Fachvermittlung (ZAV) (German Federal Employment Agency- Central Foreign and Specialist Placements) for an internship and it provides assistance in all related matters.

Contact:

CEMS Corporate Relations Manager: Christa Leenen-Poser, christa.leenen-poser@uni-koeln.de

CEMS Programme Manager of Incoming students: Christoph Karl, christoph.karl@uni-koeln.de

Legislation:

Applicants have to be at least 18 and not more than 35 years old. They have to be registered at a university or third-level institute of applied sciences. Students must study full time. If part-time, then studies must represent more than 50% of the student’s time. They should be registered for at least their fourth semester/second year of study. Internships may last up to 12 months. Several internships e.g. three months each time are also permitted up to a total of 12 months throughout the student’s studies.

Citizens of all EU Member States, except for Croatia, or persons with dual German citizenship do not require any further work or residence permits or a visa to enter Germany. Citizens of Croatia do not need a visa to enter Germany nor a residence permit but must apply for a work permit.

All other applicants, including citizens of Croatia, need the written consent of the Federal Employment Agency to take up employment or an internship (even if unpaid) before they can apply for a visa and/or residence permit. If students have found an internship or job themselves, then their future employer must apply for this written consent at the latest six weeks before the planned start of employment (even if the internship is unpaid). Students can also apply directly to the Federal Employment Agency for internships.

The citizens of the following countries do not need a visa to enter Germany and may apply for a residence permit for the duration of the internship upon arrival: Australia, Israel, Japan, Canada, the Republic of Korea, New Zealand, and the United States of America.

All others must apply for a visa for Germany once they have written consent from the Federal Employment Agency. Please allow enough time for both processes!

All interns must register with their local authorities as residents after arrival in Germany. Interns need health insurance and accident insurance.

Fully enrolled (non-exchange) students from non-EU countries may work for a period of 120 full days (or 240 half days) a year on their student visa. Internships and work experience are also counted as working days, even if these are unpaid. Each day of the internship will therefore be deducted from the 120 days in which you are permitted to work. If you have already worked for 120 days in the respective year, permission to undertake the internship will be required from the Ausländerbehörde and the Agentur für Arbeit. This is not required if the internship is an obligatory part of your studies.

Requested documents:

An application form and a passport photo; an original and current certificate/proof of enrolment at a university (with the first name, family name, date of birth of the students, type of degree-full-time, part-time, distance learning, degree course/subject, date of start of studies, the exact date of the expected graduation, full name and address of the university, with an original signature and original stamp of the third-level institute); a copy of the passport or national ID card; a current certificate of achievement from their university (current transcript or intermediate certificate).

These must all be submitted as original documents to the Federal Employment Agency when applying for the written consent to take up employment. German and English originals are accepted. Documents in another language must be accompanied by certified translations.

Company support:

When a company decides to offer a foreign student an internship, they must apply for the written consent of the Federal Employment Agency. In addition to the documents listed above, the company must submit a completed application form, an internship plan showing the relevance of the internship for the student’s studies, a copy of the student’s passport, proof that the students can support themselves financially (if the internship is not paid or paid less than 670 Euros per month) and information on the company itself. This must be done at least 6 weeks before the intended start of the internship.