Where to Find Ausbildung Openings

October 18, 2026 T. Ausbildung Corner

Short answer: The main places to find Ausbildung openings are free official boards (the Federal Employment Agency, the IHK and craft chambers, Make it in Germany) and employers’ own career pages. Search by occupation, region and start date, check each posting on the employer’s website, and keep looking: many places stay unfilled each year.

This guide lists the official places to look for a training place and explains how to search them. The application itself has its own guides. Visa and entry rules are outside the scope of this site.

Table of Contents

Official job boards for Ausbildung

Make it in Germany, the government’s official portal, says there are numerous free job boards in Germany. The BA, the IHK and the craft chambers run the main ones. Each board has different listings, so use several.

Where	What it covers	Notes
Training search of the Federal Employment Agency (BA)	Company-based training places across Germany	Make it in Germany calls it one of the first places to look. You can filter by industry, region and start date
AzubiWelt app of the BA	Training places in an app	The BA says you can contact the employer directly from the free app
IHK training place exchange	Training places and dual study programmes in industry and commerce	You can search one region or all of Germany. Make it in Germany says you can also search by occupation or company
Lehrstellen-Radar of the craft chambers	Training places in the crafts	Similar search options, for craft occupations
Make it in Germany job board	Employers’ postings across Germany. Choose the job type “Ausbildungsplatz” (training place)	Filter by region and industry, show postings from the last 1, 7 or 14 days, and subscribe to email alerts. Most postings are currently in German
service.bund.de and wir-sind-bund.de	Training places in the public service	Requirements vary, so read each posting carefully

These boards list company-based (dual) training. School-based vocational training, which has no company contract, is searched separately on the BA’s vocational training page.

Other ways to find openings

Employers’ career pages and social media. The BA suggests watching the social media channels of companies for training advertisements. Make it in Germany adds that many companies publish openings directly on their LinkedIn or XING profiles, and that your own profile there is often the first impression a company gets of you.
A general web search. Make it in Germany suggests searching for “Ausbildung” plus the occupation you want, which also leads to regional and private job portals with current openings.
Fairs and speed dating. The BA lists training fairs and “Azubi-Speed-Dating” events, some of them online. Make it in Germany notes that at fairs you can ask questions and often hand in your documents in person.
Your personal network. The BA suggests asking family and acquaintances for contacts.
Initiative applications. If a company interests you but has no posting, the BA says you can still apply. This is called an Initiativbewerbung.
Personal advice. Make it in Germany says the BA, the IHK and the craft chambers offer personal advice and placement. The BA’s career advisers can also suggest occupations you had not considered.

How to search

Use German search words. Search for “Ausbildung” and the German occupation title, for example “Fachinformatiker”. The BA’s BERUFENET database shows the official names of occupations.
Use the filters. Set the region, the industry and the start date. Many boards also show how recently a posting went online.
Set up alerts. The Make it in Germany board can email you new postings daily, weekly, every two weeks or monthly.
Be flexible. The BA advises also looking at places further from where you live, and being open to related occupations. It suggests having a plan B.
Prepare your documents first. The BA says having your application documents ready lets you react quickly when you see a good offer.

What to check in a posting

Before you apply, note these points from the posting:

The exact occupation title, which you will need for your cover letter’s subject line.
The start date and the location.
The requirements, including the school certificate and German level the employer expects.
The contact person, any reference number and how to apply: by email, by post or through an online form.
The language of the posting. Most postings on the Make it in Germany board are currently in German, so a German-language application is often expected.

Check that an offer is genuine

Find the employer’s own website yourself and compare the posting with its careers page, rather than using links from a message. The boards in this guide are free to use. If someone asks you to pay for a training place, stop and read our guide to Ausbildung scams.

If you have not found a place by the usual start date

Make it in Germany says training usually starts in August or September. The BA says many training places stay unfilled every year, so you can still start later. Its career advisers can arrange free places after the start date, the chambers (IHK, craft chamber, agricultural chamber) also advise on this, and school material you missed can be caught up. These tips are written for people already in Germany, so if you apply from abroad, ask the employer whether a later start is possible.

How to find openings, step by step

Choose two or three occupations that interest you and note their German titles.
Search the BA training search, the IHK exchange or the craft chambers’ Lehrstellen-Radar, depending on the occupation, and the Make it in Germany board.
Set the region, industry and start date, and set up email alerts.
Save the postings that fit and check each one on the employer’s own website.
Prepare your CV and cover letter before you need them, then adapt them to each posting.
Keep a simple list of where you applied, with the date, the contact person and the status.
Widen the search if nothing fits: other regions, related occupations, fairs, and initiative applications.

Common mistakes

Using only one board. Listings differ between the BA, the IHK and the craft chambers.
Searching only in English. Most postings are in German, so use German occupation titles.
Waiting to prepare your documents until you find a posting.
Trusting a message or link without checking the employer’s own website.
Paying anyone for a place. If someone asks, stop and walk away.
Giving up after the usual start date. Places can still be open.

Frequently asked questions

Which website is best for finding an Ausbildung?

There is no single best one. Make it in Germany calls the BA’s training search one of the first places to look. Use the IHK exchange for industry and commerce and the Lehrstellen-Radar for the crafts too, because each lists different places.

Are these boards free?

Make it in Germany describes the official job boards as free. If anyone asks you to pay for a training place, stop and read our scam guide.

Can I search in English?

The Make it in Germany job board has an English page, but most postings on it are currently in German. Search for “Ausbildung” plus the German occupation title.

When should I start searching?

Training usually starts in August or September. Check our application guide for timing, and keep searching afterwards, because the BA says many places remain unfilled each year.

Can I apply without an advertised opening?

Yes. The BA says you can apply to a company that interests you even without a posting. This is called an Initiativbewerbung.

Sources

Last updated: 18 October 2026. Rules and figures can change, so confirm details with the official source before you decide.

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