# Is it a good idea to work as a pastry cook and a baker in Germany?



## Mathias

Greetings

I´m German but I´ve lived my entire life in Ecuador, I´m planning to move to Germany, learn the language (I´ve heard the government would offer me enough financial aid per month until I learn it) and become a pastry cook and a baker

I´ve heard that Germany offers classes in different areas called Ausbildungs, I wonder if I could apply to pastry-making and bakery classes and if getting that degree is enough to get easily a job in Germany at any pastry shop?

I don´t have any degree nor much experience in pastry-making and bakery here in Ecuador, so I wonder if applying to an Ausbildung is enough, and if there is a great demand of pastry cooks in Germany? 

Also how much does a pastry cook earn?

Thanks in advance for the info.


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## ines2013

Mathias said:


> Also how much does a pastry cook earn?


Hi Mathias, 
from what I gathered online you can expect to earn about 1200-1600 Euros/month before taxes right after finishing your education. After 5 years you'll earn around 2000 Euros. Check the following homepage:
Gehalts-Check - karriere.de

it also offers salary ranges for other occupations (upper part of the web page A-Z - use an online translator for the job names) if you wish to compare with other "Ausbildungen". 
On a personal side - what I see happening around here is that 'old fashioned' bakeries are going down and 'self-service' bakeries are growing - they offer their products for very little money, so it may happen that you're ending up in Sales of these products instead of making them - which is paid even worse.

Plus - when you apply to do an 'Ausbildung' take into consideration where in Germany you apply for it - there are huge differences in pay depending on the area of Germany you'll live in.

That said - if you're creative, bit of an enterpreneur and willing to get your 'Meister' diploma you could open your own pastry shop - with that you could earn much more. In the area in Munich I'm living in we have 9 bakeries and probably the same amount of hairdressers within a 1000 meter walking distance -- I always wondered how they could survive with this kind of competition - but they do


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## ALKB

Mathias said:


> Greetings
> 
> I´m German but I´ve lived my entire life in Ecuador, I´m planning to move to Germany, learn the language (I´ve heard the government would offer me enough financial aid per month until I learn it) and become a pastry cook and a baker
> 
> I´ve heard that Germany offers classes in different areas called Ausbildungs, I wonder if I could apply to pastry-making and bakery classes and if getting that degree is enough to get easily a job in Germany at any pastry shop?
> 
> I don´t have any degree nor much experience in pastry-making and bakery here in Ecuador, so I wonder if applying to an Ausbildung is enough, and if there is a great demand of pastry cooks in Germany?
> 
> Also how much does a pastry cook earn?
> 
> Thanks in advance for the info.


You have to understand what an Ausbildung is:

you basically apply for an apprenticeship job at a bakery, where you will work four days a week. One day per week will be spent studying the theory of baking/pastry making at a local college. In some cases you might work 11 months full time and go to college full time for the remaining month. 

Apprenticeship places for bakers seem to be plentiful at the moment, as the trades are not a favourite among the youngsters right now. What you will need is excellent German - do not expect your Master Baker to be fluent in anything but German and college will be taught in German exclusively, too.

If you express your wish to become a baker at the JobCenter where you are registered, they might well help you with language courses and finding an apprenticeship.


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## Sirtravelot

You may have to pay for German lessons. I'm German myself, having spent most of my life out of Germany. I can speak the language, but wanted to improve my grammar. I got no financial help for it because I was German. However, those who came from foreign countries with non-German passports got everything paid.


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