Selin Babacan never planned to live abroad, but in March 2007 she left Turkey and moved to the German city of Frankfurt where her husband wanted to study medicine. Their situation was a classic case of one partner following the other.

It is that desire to reunite with family or that brings many immigrants to Germany. By comparison, strictly job-based immigration is less common.

Babacan started learning German right away - a choice that laid the most important groundwork for what was yet to come. According to a study by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), language skills play a key role for immigrants looking for work searches.

The author of the study, OECD migration expert Thomas Liebig, says applicants who want to improve their chances of finding work should focus on learning the terms and expressions used in their field.

A new beginning

When Babacan and her husband divorced in 2010, she had to decide whether to stay in Germany or go home.

"I came here because of my husband, but after three years I wanted to finally stand on my own two feet and make it here in Germany," she said.

Babacan received support from staff at beramí, an organization in Frankfurt that helps immigrants improve their job prospects by providing advice on the German job market and offering specialized German classes.

The organization also provides help to immigrants seeking official recognition of foreign professional qualifications - something which can have a huge impact on a person's chances of finding a job.

Lack of education or training complicates the search for work, and about one in every five people with minimal skills is unemployed. But even skilled professionals can have a hard time landing a position.

Only about 50 percent of well-qualified immigrants end up working in highly-skilled professions, compared to nearly three-quarters of non-immigrants.

Once a person's foreign qualifications are accepted, there are still other barriers, including language skills and degree of expertise, two factors which are less important in the case of low-skills positions.

How much is my diploma worth?

Germany distinguishes between regulated and unregulated professions when it comes to recognizing foreign qualifications. Regulated careers include jobs in the healthcare sector, food production and agriculture.

Anyone who wants to work as a doctor in Germany needs to have his or her medical degree formally recognized. While EU citizens have few problems on this front, non-EU citizens must have their qualifications checked by the proper authorities to determine whether they are equivalent to a German degree.

Starting next year, a new national law to assess and recognize foreign qualifications is due to take effect. The goal is to create common standards and provide more opportunities for assessing foreign qualifications. These changes will also apply to the some 350 unregulated professions, including most jobs in the craft trades and training sectors.

Moreover, all immigrants will have the same right to get their qualifications reviewed, regardless of their nationality.

Irina Lagutova from beramí says most jobs are not regulated. "Each applicant can apply directly for positions," she said. "The employer simply has to decide whether they are sufficiently qualified, based on their foreign diploma."

That was also the case for Selin Babacan, a trained statistician. She received an evaluation of her Turkish university degree from the Central Office for Foreign Education (ZAB). But Lagutova said it's even better to have standardized assessments and formal procedures to evaluate qualifications for all immigrants.

An obstacle course

Discrimination can still pose a major problem for immigrants entering the job market, according to OECD expert Liebig. Moreover, they are more likely to lose their employment during a recession.

Among the reasons for this is the fact that they have spent comparatively little time working in certain companies, and many are employed in sectors that are susceptible to swings in the economy.

But they are also more able to find jobs during an economic boom.

Meanwhile, Liebig said immigrants are at a disadvantage in the network-driven job market because they may have fewer contacts.

That was true for Selin Babacan, who was on her own until she got help from beramí. They provided assistance in dealing with authorities, searching for an apartment and getting in touch with Deutsche Bank, where she now works.

With good job prospects, Babacan plans to stay in Germany. But Liebig said it can still be exceedingly difficult for many immigrants to make major inroads in the job sector.

He said politicians should do more to support language courses, recognize foreign qualifications and help bridge education and employment - if they want immigrants to have an easier time with the job search.

Author: Nicole Scherschun / arp
Editor: Sam Edmonds