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9. Family, Children & Education

Germany: Family, Children & Education

The topics of family, children, and proper childcare and education have always been important and much-debated ones in Germany. With Germany’s declining birth rate and aging population, the government wants to see to it that families are supported in their wish to have children as much as possible.

However, this support is often most tangible in the form of financial benefits and tax breaks, and less in the form of additional infrastructure in the form of childcare options et cetera. Finding a place in a German kindergarten for your kid might take quite a bit of endurance on your part, as spaces are as rare as sought after. Even some of the other possible options might sometimes be hard to come by. We have detailed the issue in our article on childcare in Germany.

Schools in Germany

If your child is already in the typical school age range, you will surely have less of a problem finding a suitable educational institution for them. Attending a German public school is one of the best ways for your child to acclimate to life in the new country. Schools are a dime a dozen in Germany, and chances are that there is one in your neighborhood as well. You should however first find out about the threefold school system in Germany to be able to decide which of the available options (Hauptschule, Realschule, Gymnasium) fits your child and their abilities best. If you do not feel public schools are the best way to go for whichever reason, take a look at our article on International Schools in Germany.

Universities

With several hundred universities and colleges, Germany sure has no lack of institutions of higher education, many of which have risen to be famous nationwide and beyond. Nearly anything you might be able to think of can be studied in Germany, if not in one of the major institutions, then in a niche college. Thorough comparison of the various universities always pays off, as they obviously have different areas of expertise. However, being a student in Germany also comes with the inevitable red tape that seems to pervade most anything remotely official in Germany. With the right amount of preparations and contacts to people in similar situations, international students should be able to brave this obstacle without much hassle.