Permission to Work During Studies

Foreign students may work in Germany, even without a work permit. But students who are not citizens of the European Union, or are from the ten new EU member states, can only work for a limited period per year. They are allowed to work for 90 days or 180 half-days every year without a work permit. In many Federal States, you can only work in the summer vacation. The office for foreigners may authorize an additional working period of 10 hours per week with the approval of the local employment office. Students from EU countries (with the exception of Estonia, Lativa, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, the Czech Republic and Hungary) may as a matter of principle work unrestrictedly.
The following basically applies: many employers are glad to hire students. The reason for this is that, if the student does not work more than 19.5 hours a week, the employer is required to pay only a portion of the social welfare contributions. Students are therefore cheaper than “normal” employees.
However: a complete study course is difficult to finance with a conventional student job in a bar, as a pizza delivery boy or a cleaner. The average hourly rate in this case is around 8 euro per hour. The prospects are better of course for those with specific knowledge in demand on the employment market, e.g. programmers in the IT field. Complete lecture schedules leave no time for a full-time job however.
The local student services associations can be of help in looking for a job. It is also worthwhile however to visit the student job location department of the local employment exchanges, which are indeed frequently to be found on the premises of the student services.

Further Information

Federal Employment Agency - Information, advice, and tips about training, job or degree choice, and jobs and traing places
www.arbeitsagentur.de

Non-commercial job market for those embarking on an academic career in Germany
www.job-chance-berlin.de

JOBBER - the job market for companies and students with offers for students assistants, helpers, interns, and diploma students
www.studentenvermittlung.de

Nationwide job and application data bank which offers a free job search
www.opusforum.org

Fit For Europe – Working in Germany (Right of Residence, Laws and Social Security, Taxes and Duties, Job Search and Guidance, Applications
www.fit-for-europe.info/...