₦airaland Forum

benycent Tipps

PLEASE specially for team winter.. go register for language class be it Goethe or private lessons, online lesson or self teaching is not enough to learn Deutsch.

Let me share a joke: A friend of mine(Nigerian) bought a soap at Penny, he's been using the soap for a long time not until we were in the same room at a conference I saw the soap in th bathroom...I first thought it was the hotel that provides the soap but I was wondering why should hotel provide two hand soaps, I then asked him who has the second soap it was for him, he was even praising the manufacturer that I could see his skin had changed, immediately I told him he had been using "handseife" not "Dusche" in a nut shell it is important to learn the language.

I would like to advise those who just entered Deutschland and for those coming in for summer semester.....I know most of your expectations were or yet to be met (the sucking of block account,the jobs......) but I have a good news for you it would still come I can assure that let your feet stand very well and understand the system ( be careful with the heater in your room for now and signing of contracts) do not listen to those bros who will be boosting of 20 years in Deutschland, you are not the same, they came in through Asylum they do not have idea of German education system....lastly you might face racism or stereotyping in school, class or shops, please do not jump into conclusion that "germans are racist" racism and stereotyping is everywhere even in Nigeria, for example people tell you he's an igbo, he's yoruba, hausas are illiterate.....and so on, treat racism and stereotyping as individual case...

Academic challenges nevilbot faced while studying in Germany and how he tackled them

I initially had issues understanding their manner of asking questions cus they do this funny one sentence/one word answers that im not used to especially coming from a la cram la pour background. I'm not ashamed to say i failed my first exam here and had to rewrite it. but studying harder and taking time to understand their system helped. Also i spent more time reading textbooks instead of the lecture slides thinking that was the best way to go(actually fininshed a 1000page textbook cover to cover) but i still failed even though the lectures were from the textbook. So, the moral lesson here is listen to ur profs during lectures, most times they already tell u wat they will ask in exams without u knowing it

nevilbot academic advise to prospective Nigerian student coming over to study in Germany

You have to be passionate about the course you came here for to succeed in it. If you just see this msc or bsc trip as an avenue to escape from the mess in nigeria, you won't succeed academically in Germany and please when you are coming over, even if u are the best graduate in ur school with a gp of 5.0, just drop your ego and format your brain at the airport in lagos. Come here like you do not know anything because actually we know nothing in Nigeria (no insult intended)

Important tips to surviving in Germany by nevilbot

1) Do not keep your problems to yoursef. Talk to people. whatever the enormity of your problem, talk to people and you will be surprised at how helpful germans or nigerians in germany can be

2. Learn the language (im still feeling the negative impact of not speaking german till today)

3. Be friendly

4. Do not skip on paying any of your bills. Once you default, you pay extra, germans do not joke with money and bills.

5. Do not have sex with a lady that has taken alcohol even if its one cup and even if the sex is consensual. Wait for her to be sober especially if its the one night stand kinda lady that you met in a bar. When she wakes up, calm and sober, she might scream rape and its ur word against hers. prison straight

nevilbot opinion on these claims below

1) Germans are cold ?

Yes they can be especially if you stay in a village

2) They hate late coming

They hate it with a passion. I once lost my job for a day cus i was 5 mins late (the rule was arrive 30mins before u are scheduled to resume, i arrived 25mins before i was supposed to resume)

3) Germans are racist

I disagree, except my mad neighbour who is always high on cannabis, all germans i have related with have been wonderful. I even had a trip to a village in the east of germany near chemnitz some months back. The people in this village had never seen a black man in real life before and they were totally shocked that not one but 3 black people was in their village. They had to come ask my host questions the next day if things were ok but they also left a comment, that unlike wat they have been exposed to on tv, we were all smiling, so they must be really nice.

4) They are introverts

In winter yes but in summer no

5) They don't have time for chitchat

Depends on the situation

6) They love beer

If you give them urine in a beer bottle, they would have drank it first before realising its not beer

nevilbot opinion on student health insurance specifically for any student that will be above 30 years on ur arrival in germany......Even if u are one seconds above 30 years on ur arrival, u fall into this category

It is a known fact that students over 30 yrs cant take the public health insurance any longer so the option left is the private for which we all run to mawista bcus it has one of the cheapest premium monthly. If you are the type of student that rarely goes to a hospital and u do not av medical issues that warrants u to see doctors frequently, yes mawista is good for u. just pay ur premiums and enjoy ur life. but if you are the type that av reasons to visit hospitals frequently, or u will need a surgery or u want to feel safe about ursef, plz and plz, do not (and i repeat) do not use mawista.

My reason being that mawista will never pay 100% of ur hospital bills wen it really matters. They might pay for the small small hospital checkups but when it comes to real bills like surgery and long term hospitalization, they will pay some % based on ur contract yle u bear the rest. i know students presently who are in debts running into 3000euros cus mawista did not pay their total fees wen they had real medical issues.

The best health insurance company to sign up with if u are above 30 is the one that came out of an agreement btw the deutsche studentenwerk (German national student union) and hanse merkur. it is meant purely for international students above 30 yrs. just sign up for their optimum tariff plan wia u pay a monthly premium of 78 euros and u are 100% covered should you need any form of hospitalization or treatment.


This is the link to their page.

https://portal.versicherungsdienste.de/dsw-studenten-kv/index.en.html

They even pay your burial/repatriation of remains cost should u die in germany up to 10,000 euros (this will not be anyone's portion though). information they say is power, plz assist ursef and do not fall into unnecessary debt, u are still thinking on how to manage block act. Mawista is not the best public health insurance u can get as a student

damsamty16 contribution

Guten morgen people! am sorry i have been away for awhile..the education here has been really stressful and hectic for me it's not beeen easy atall..just trying to integrate with the german system because i have missed 7weeks lectures and lectures on 2 of my courses will end nextweek so i have to drop them.now am concentrating on 4courses and damn they have really gone far and i have alots to cover plus research works and presentation..not easy atall. Another thing am regreting right now is not learning the language before leaving naija..chai it's frustrating because 90% of this people speak german and if not because of BISSIEJOE AND KAYUSEBOSS maybe i would have packed my things and go back to naija out of frustration(just maybe)..big thanks to BISSIEJOE AND KAYUSEBOSS damn God is really using them for me. (PLEASE LEARN THIS LANGUAGE BEFORE COMING HERE). Also the hunt for accommodation is not been easy atall and very expensive(from 300-500euros monthly) so try your best to secure a place before coming here if you dont wanna spend close to 100euros daily on hotel except you have someone to accommodate you for awhile.[/b]

dolpaz useful update



If you are from an IT field, visit this site: http://t3n.de/jobs/

you'll find a whole lot of IT jobs there..Viel Glück

Eke40seven tips for job hunting

Look for a church/mosque with sufficient Nigerian population and find people in your ethnicity?

Check or google this word "arbeitsagentur.de"? you should be able to find jobs requiring only English Language in your own city and many of them will even stipulate the pay.

Also, look for other Africans and communicated with them.

Check the nearest job agency in your local government? I think the employment bureau.

Also endeavour to prepare your CV using the EU format, I repeat, EU format!


Viel Glück

P.S. Look for jobs that does not require a direct service to people face to face...e.g cleaning, car wash, etc rather than looking for jobs like bar attendance etc - for those who have no idea about German language... Shalom

REASON WHY YOU SHOULD LEARN GERMAN TO ATLEAST A1/A2 by crowns2

From the airport you need to get to where you will be staying. You go to information desk to ask how to get to your destination. The people you may meet there hardly understand your question. You get on the train, tram or bus the announcements at the station, digital screen for bus stops are in German. There was a time i was alone on the track because everyone left the place and i didn't know the trip had being cancelled and the announcement over the air was in German. Some Naija people I know have been left alone in train because everyone disembarked and they didn't understand the announcement. The train hasn't come at the time it should, you need to ask people around is it still gonna come? Sorry no one understands what you are saying.

You need to unblock your account. The bankers don't understand you. They will help you scout for an English speaker. The poor English speaker tries his best to understand you. He is limited in explaining to you. He pauses many times to try to think how he will convey his message to you. He will say i erm erm..sorry I don't know the English word for it. Then comes your letters. 100% all written in German. This are important letters. With some times urgent information. Someone got a letter from the doctor to take some drugs and to go for a life saving procedure. Everything in the letter was in German. Google translator very limited. Ended up in Emmergency room. Doctors says in his poor and limited English why didn't you do what we wrote? Patient says NO I couldn't understand it. The nurse and hospital were supposed to explain but couldn't because they don't know how to pass the message to you. They can't speak English.

You want to ask a passerby, please how do I get to so and so place? Do I turn left or am I to go right. People keep passing no understands you. Germans are unbelievably nice they always ALWAYS want to help or assist you. But you limit them because they don't understand what you are saying. Believe me the last place you should get lost is in Germany before you will find your way eh! God help you.

The emphasis has always being on learning the language to get Jobs. I am not talking about that. I am talking daily everyday life. At my Auslander office NO ONE speaks English to you. You must go with a translator or speak the Language. You know they are the key to your stay here.

You need to call some offices to get vital info or to make an appointment, the reciever cannot understand you. You then decide to visit the office, the receptionist doesnt understand you. They help you look for a colleague of theirs who could understand. Then you ask please can you speak English, the person says a little bit. Explanation begins, you get limited in explaining, the person gets limited in understanding because they cannot understand you fully.

When I first came here I used to shop, get to the cashier, they tell me the amount and I drop all the money in the wallet on the table They select their own and give me the rest. Thank God they are honest. Sometimes I think ah! this must be food, you buy it and its NOT

The person next to you wants to discuss with you, and they are smiling at you to gist with you but you cant understand and sadly you tell them: Ich spreche kein Deutch Bitte

This is the little I can explain but please please and please again do not come here without learning the Language please.

You may ask me why I didn't. 3 reasons: I was occupied with work but I should have taken a Leave to learn for atleast a month. secondly I never envisaged it was gonna be spoken by everyone everywhere here and all the time, every blessed day. Thirdly I have a compulsory course in my school for Deutsch Language from A1 to the end for a full year. Then I thought no need . I am learning but it takes time. You cant start speaking immediately. Many schools do ont have this offer. And then you have to pay for it. I tell you it is expensive. The 36k charged in Goethe is worth it.

And please don't come here to tell me its because of where you live because I have been in 3 of the 16 states of Germany and its the same experience.

Lastly avoid with all your might Nigerian non students especially assylum seekers. They are like the devil to steal and to destroy

fieryy:
Hadampson,

Wenn. man. was. im. Leben. will.,

Aber. nicht. dafuer. kaempft.,

Hat. man. noch. weniger. Chancen.

Just a tip because every time I read it, it sounds off. I've been wanting to correct it, but I've been scared of being banned plus I can't really tell you why it's wrong. It just is. I'm not the best teacher, lol

Basalt:
You are very funny I must confess.
Have you actually taken your time to study the previous comments here?
Who started the so called attitude?

If you were careful enough to read previous messages, you would have realised that I asked a harmless question and surprisedly, some ridiculous posts started surfacing.
If you did science in school, you will understand that action and reaction are always equal... , Newton said that. So if you slap me, expect a thunderous slap in return.

Whatever you sow is what you reap.
Whoever wanna leave should leave abi without anyone you can't enter Germany?
You made mention of maturity and understanding but unnecessary nervousness and fear to me is not sign of maturity.

Whoever wanna contribute to the thread will surely contribute, whoever wanna hoard information will always hoard irrespectiv cce of what happens.

badmus306:
How old are you

Hadampson:
Thanks for the correction sis

You rarely get everything you want and when you don't fight for it, you have even less of a chance

Actually, this is what i meant by my signature. Could what you posted be the true meaning of the emboldened?

I think your correction has changed the meaning to another great quote

Awaiting your response Schwester

fieryy:
Man. bekommt. selten. was. man. will (oder. das. was. man. sich. erwuenscht.)
und. wenn. man. nicht. dafür. kaempft.,
hat. man. noch. weniger. Chancen

Hadampson:
Wow .. Vielen. Dank. Schwester., für. die. Korrektur

Kannst. du. mir. einen. Gefallen. tun


Changing my signature to the correct one with immediate effect

fieryy:
It's actually "kämpft" lol. I used "ae" so I wouldn't get banned

Und. es. kommt. auf. den. Gefallen. an.
Ich. kann. nichts. versprechen

Hadampson:
Es. ist. nicht. viel. Ich. möchte. nur., dass. du. mein. Lehrerin. bist., bitte

fieryy:
Meine*

Da. ich. ein. netter. Mensch. bin und. du. sehr. daran. interessiert. bist., die. Sprache. zu. lernen, mache. ich. natürlich. gern. eine. Ausnahme.

Wie. wär's. mit. 9€. pro. Stunde.? 19 ct. weniger. als. der. Mindestlohn?

Spaß

I'm not sure if I can be the teacher you need. I find it very difficult explaining the rules behind certain things, since the language came naturally to me. Being a kid when we came, I just picked it up like kids pick up the language spoken around them.

I can try to explain.....I'm just saying don't expect much

Smoothing Tipps

MY PERSPECTIVE about life in Berlin Germany

1) Try to learn German in Nigeria its way cheaper... At least do your A1 and A2 in Nigeria if you can. For A1 alone, i paid 490 Euro here in Berlin. So you can imagine compared to the price of Goethe institute in Nigeria.

2) When budgeting for accommodation please budget for deposit ( kinda like security deposit). It's usually 2 to 3 months rent at most. You get it back when you leave the accommodation in a good condition after your contract expires.

3) Start your accommodation search as soon as you possible once you have done your interview
. Don't hope on studentwerk the waiting list is 3 semesters. Use your contacts join groups on Facebook e.g Berlin housing, flats in Berlin etc but remember there are loads of scammers and time wasters on the prowl.

4) Accommodation in Berlin is expensive but you can get cheaper accommodation in the outskirt of Berlin. If you don't mind travelling for over an hour to get to school you should consider it. Also keep in mind during winter and strike times you might have transportation challenges.

5) Anmeldung is important but getting an accommodation that offers Anmeldung is more important. This helps you avoid necessary stress of repeating the process when changing accommodation.

6) Read the fine lines before signing any contract e.g internet , phone, gym, insurance and so on. Contracts are binding here and hard to get out of once they are signed. Try starting with flexible short term contracts.

7) Eating out is great but cooking saves you money so bring you properly packaged Nigerian foodstuff when you are coming to Germany. Make sure you pay your ARD fees ( broadcasting licence) you can run but you can't hide from them forever especially since they know where you are, thanks to Anmeldung.

8.)It is compulsory and just one payment per apartment so always discuss this with your potential housemates

9) Recycling is compulsory and not hard though Berlin is dirty sha but cleaner than Naija by far.

10) A lot of generous people in Berlin giving stuff for free please join Free your stuff Berlin on Facebook. Please take only what you need try minimalist living, no space for clutter here.

11) Free food is great and cheap food is also great download 2good2go app tells you where you can find restaurants and bakeries leftover food for very low prices around you. Here there is no make we freeze and warm am for customer tomorrow. Food is served fresh and daily in most places.

12) Berlin is very diverse you would meet all kinds and types of people. Be friendly, be polite and most of all MIND YOUR BUSINESS.[/b]Try not to stare, Berlin is very LGBTQ friendly so don't be shocked. They are humans like you and might be one of the kindest people you will ever meet.

13) To survive in Berlin you need money, so hustling is very welcomed . Please drop your cloak of proudness in Nigeria because here there is dignity in Labour. [b]Without German, your job options are a bit limited to mostly unskilled labour e.g cleaning, delivery, serving etc. Though people have gotten very good jobs without German so keep applying and don't limit yourself.

14) There is a drug culture in Berlin which
unfortunately alot of our black brodas are the people selling em on the streets and it's quite open. If it's your thing well suit ya self. If it ain't when they approach you smile nicely and say No and find your way.

15) There are stupid people everywhere even in Nigeria so try not to get defensive when someone hurls racial insults at you. No need in putting yourself in harms way because you are trying to defend your blackness. A smile and a God bless you or thank you or good old ignoring
them does the trick. Try not to grovel in the mud with the pig.

16) Police is your best friend anything happens pls report to the police. Documentation always wins in the end. You get robbed or you lost something important report to the police.

17) In Germany you do effective work , meaning 8 hrs work is 8 hrs of work. No pressing phone or chatting with colleagues during working hours save it for your break time.

18) PUNCTUALITY please always be punctual 15 mins early always works. Pls pls no African time.

19) Socialising is a bit tricky here but it's easier if you join social groups there are a lot on Facebook. Also Berlin has a lot of activities you
can join groups for Salsa, bouldering, painting, cooking, fitness etc So much to do here. Best way to make friends is to socialise via activity groups.

20) Germans are very straightforward and conservative so you know our tendency of having no boundaries doesn't fly with em. So be subtle in your socialisation before they call
police on you or report you to HR.

21) Make use of your student discounts find out
places that offer student discounts and use them to save money.

22) Keep your music low and conversations down. Sunday's are noise free days someplace you ain't allowed to vaccum or mow your lawns on Sunday.

23) African restaurant and shops are available just google you would find some there is a big Afro shop run by Indians called Punjabi store in Osloer str you would get some Nigerian stuff there, even catfish.

24) School work and exams are usually packed so study hard to make good grades. Most times they don't like story story just go straight to the point where you answer questions.

25) Be nice to each other especially your fellow
Nigerians and share information when you have it. Quit your hoarding info habit, don't bring it here. Asian people dominate in most places because they have a good information network and share with each other.

badmus306:
How old are you

Goztino:
Attimes I wonder you guys Mission in this group seriously.
Are you people here to cause fight and make the thread noisy?
Why not allow the sleeping lion continue sleeping? Abi you want another war to start?

Goztino:
Hadampson, kudos.

Please keep bringing up past relevant posts, it's really helpful.

Please let's desist from posting provocative posts capable of bringing unnecessary derail.

If you people continue this way, here will completely turn to a war zone which is unnecessary.
Any more bad comments here again, I call the Moderator on the person after clicking on the report button.
Let's be civil and mature please

X36DD:
Unregistered member I had to open a new account because of you hadampson. You’re doing a good job keep it up! Please keep bringing up old posts

Pauluche words of advice

Let me correct this mindset with which i entered Germany and almost got worse off. PLEASE DO NOT MAKE THE ATTEMPT TO CONVERT YOUR EURO TO NAIRA BEFORE YOU BUY THINGS like snacks which you might need if you stay long in school, basic items in the shopping center and so on else you go put yourself for hunger and almost get high bp as you de spend and convert. You have to understand that the standard of living as well as exchange rates are not the same. I almost developed ulcer trying to yield to some of the advice given here. Just be prudent in your spending I mean 670 euros is enough to see you through in a month and you will still have something to save at least if you spend wisely. I came in here with 200 Euros it's been over two weeks now despite the buying and all that I still have change with me I never even touch blocked account money.

Raheembisi:
Please does anybody know what it's like living and schooling in Jena, Germany. Any contribution would go a long way

Pauluche opinion on Jena

I must say that ALL I read here about Jena like the city is small, the state is poor, there are no blacks, no jobs etc IS FALSE (no insult intended). In all honesty and with due respect to Nigeria the city is well organized and the serene is better than any city in Nigeria; Abj and Lag included. Well that's when comparing to 9ja. Yea the city may not have skyscrapers buh who cares about skyscrapers? For heaven's sake I'm here to study not for tourism lolz. There are tall rising buildings though. The City is small Omo no be size of city we come Germany come chop na? Read your books graduate and go anywhere you wish to. The city isn't small by the way. Because it takes me thirty-fourty minutes on tram to get to campus from where I live. Some cities in Thuringia may be poor but Jena Erfurt and some others aren't in anyway. The index of the state is computed on the performance of all the cities in the state that is why the state may of course have an average performance index.

There are no blacks.... Holy Nehemiah! Who said? Omo I have seen so many blacks as a matter of fact there are so many blacks in my class mostly from Nigeria, Ghana, Cameroon, Gambia just name it. I was shocked when I saw them. Just go to Haus auf de Mauer when you see blacks you go run.

*** There are no jobs.... ehnnn who said? Make I no hear am! My mentor asked me the second day after I arrived how I came (the funds) and if I would love to start work next week I told him I'd like to settle down at least for this term. Na there I stop.

**** Basically I know the opportunity of getting student jobs, the vibe of the city and all that mostly influence our choices at times but from an Economic point of view you also have to realize that the cost of living isn't the same. More so you get paid the same amount for the student jobs. Here, some student rooms costs less than 140 euros compared to 250 or 280 in Munich and other cities that's 140 euro difference! Cost of things are also cheaper in these cities compared to other larger cities. Take it or leave it for individuals with similar or the same spending preference (which definitely isn't possible because of the higher propensity to spend/consume in larger cities) the savings of the individual in a larger city will by far be lesser than that of the individual in an average city ceteris paribus. Bear in mind that I didn't include the issue of uni ranking because of the numerous debates it has been through here.

***** You have to make up your mind to study. School here no be beans people have said that before and the Europeans are not making it any easy. You go come class and lecturer go just de talk, de solve and then you realize se at the end na only 10% of the lecture you understand you no go even fit ask questions as the lecturer de teach because you no know where them de I mean you're practically lost! Na der u go see Europeans wey de shake head de understand and de flow with the lecturer and then you begin to ask yourself what happened to the four years you spent in the university in Nigeria. Imagine you go for just one lecture and then you go through 103 slides. How many slides will you have at the end of 12 lectures assuming the class holds just once in a week or 24 lectures assuming it holds twice a week? And then say you are offering 4 to 5 courses in the term? Guy even if you make first class na wash when you come here. I have a very sound result and I was like Omo nothing de happen no be Economics, Econometrics, Calculus and all that? Omo right now, something de happen to God!

I see some guys talking about German girls and I laugh. You get 670 euros per month and you wan waste am on partying, clubbing, drinking and on German girls abi? Ok na enjoy! Very soon if you truly came here for studies body go tell you except you came here for something else.

**** If you have someone you are betrothed to like a serious relationship or engagement or probably you're even married guy chill out naaaa easy.... Consider the other party. We know se bodi de be as e get buh you have to understand that distance makes the heart grow fonder. If you truly have a conscience and you fear God you wouldn't do that. I mean wetin de the German girls bodi? Holla to all my black sisters nothing do una joor. I mean brodaly there's no comparison naaa how e de happen pass BLACK IS GOLD

ookunlola:
Great job you are doing Hadampso. Keep it up sir