Retraining as a social assistant, part-time

The retraining as a social assistant enables people who have previously worked in another area to have an interesting career in social work. Those who feel called to help other people and become socially active should therefore think about a corresponding reorientation. All those who can no longer pursue their profession due to unemployment or health problems can take on a meaningful task in social work.

The job of social assistant

If you are seriously considering retraining as a social assistant, you should not neglect to get comprehensive information about the job beforehand. So it should be of great interest which specific activities one usually takes on as a social assistant. These include:

Care for those in need of care
Domestic supply
Child and Youth Services
social counseling

Furthermore, you naturally want to know in which areas you typically work as a social assistant. Employment opportunities arise primarily in the following areas:

Nursing homes
social services
Residential and nursing homes for people with disabilities
kindergartens
social facilities
Households

Usually, prospective social assistants are prepared for everyday working life in the course of a two-year school education and acquire the necessary knowledge, which includes social care, pedagogy, psychology, health education, housekeeping, hygiene and includes nutritional science. At the end of the training, social assistants must then pass the state final exam in accordance with the ordinance of the respective federal state.

Social assistant salary

Even if the job of social assistant is to a large extent a vocation and therefore a matter close to the heart, financial aspects must not be neglected entirely. After all, social assistants have to make a living. School education is not remunerated, so you only start earning money when you start your career.

The level of income depends, among other things, on professional experience and the area of application. In general, the average salary of a social assistant is between EUR 16,000 and EUR 24,000 gross annually.

What options are there for social assistants for a lateral entry?

Retraining as a social assistant is not the only option to learn this profession indirectly. In many places there are also opportunities for a lateral entry, for example in the form of a part-time qualification. Prospective social assistants usually complete full-time school education, which means that the training is regulated by state law.

This also has an impact on the possibilities for a career change as a social assistant, so that there are differences between the federal states. Potential career changers who want to work as social assistants would do well to limit their research to the respective federal state, otherwise the confusion is sometimes great.

In this context, the ESF federal model program "Lateral entry – men and women in daycare centers" should also be mentioned, which, however, serves as a qualification as a state-recognized educator. The practice-integrated training, or PIA for short, should also be of particular interest to social assistants, because in this way they can qualify as part-time educators.

In-service training as a social assistant is also possible. In this way, especially unskilled childcare workers in daycare centers have the chance to gain a professional qualification parallel to their job, on which they can build their further professional career. Retraining is therefore not the only way to subsequently qualify as a social assistant.

Training opportunities as a social assistant

Training or retraining as a social assistant can be the beginning of a promising career. If you do not only want to work as a pedagogical supplement, but also want to take on more responsibility in the course of your professional life, you should take advantage of the numerous further training opportunities for social pedagogues and social workers and collect further qualifications in order to gain a foothold as a pedagogical specialist.

Renowned advanced training courses for social assistants can lead to one of the following advanced training degrees:

Business economist for social affairs
state-certified specialist in organization and leadership with a focus on social education
Quality representative in health and social work
state-recognized social worker
state-certified home and family carer
state-recognized curative educator

Another promising option can be a part-time course in addition to working as a social assistant. At one or the other university, for example, you can study pedagogy or social work by distance learning with the goal of a Bachelor or Master.

Retraining as a social assistant

Social assistants work in pedagogical care, family care and child care as pedagogical supplementary staff and take care of people in need of all ages. Usually one serves school and regulated according to state law education as Qualification for this profession. Retraining is no exception and can also be completed at appropriate schools or alternatively through private training providers.

The aim of such a measure is to ensure solid preparation for the final exam so that you can successfully master the written part as well as the oral exam and the practical part.

Duration, costs and requirements for retraining as a social assistant

Special previous knowledge of social affairs is not a prerequisite for retraining as a social assistant, because such measures are aimed at people from non-specialist professions, who now want or need to switch for a variety of reasons. Formally, at least the lower secondary school leaving certificate is the usual requirement, although some schools also require a medium-level education.

Sociability, openness, empathy and a certain resilience should also be given. In order for the retraining to be financed by the employment office, the relevant funding conditions must be met. In view of the fact that a retraining measure can be associated with high costs, comprehensive advice in advance to clarify the assumption of costs is essential.

Since it is a profession regulated by state law, the retraining period can vary from state to state. So you can be retrained as a social assistant in one to three years.

Retraining as a social worker as an alternative

When it comes to retraining in the social field, the social worker qualification is also an interesting opportunity to create the basis for a professional career in social work. The search for a corresponding course is in vain, however, because working as a social worker requires a corresponding degree. In addition to the job, one can also complete distance learning courses in social work or social pedagogy.

The retraining as a social assistant is generally recognized?

In principle, retraining as a social assistant is in no way inferior to classic schooling in this area. Nevertheless, quite a few prospective customers question the recognition first. It should be noted, among other things, that on the one hand it is a profession in the social system regulated by state law, but on the other hand the degree is recognized nationwide.

What other names are there for retraining as a social assistant?

Prospective retraining students who want to qualify as social assistants should know that the state law training varies from state to state. This can be seen from the job title, because there is no nationwide social assistant. Members of this profession are sometimes referred to as social pedagogical assistants, childcare workers or social workers. When looking for the right retraining measure, one should take this into account and also look for appropriate qualifications.

Where can you be retrained to become a social assistant?

Anyone flirting with retraining as a social assistant should first know where such a qualification is possible. Basically, the appropriate technical schools are available here, where young people are welcome directly after school as well as adults with completed initial training. In addition, there are private training providers especially for retraining measures in the field of social assistance, which offer the social assistant retraining as a second training in the form of a full-time course. It is therefore worthwhile to do some research and find out where retraining as a social assistant is possible.

Retraining as a social pedagogical assistant instead of retraining as a social assistant

Retraining as a social assistant opens up professional opportunities in social work for many people, but it is not without alternatives. First of all, interested parties should of course be in the picture about the different names and not get confused. In the course of this, the impression can sometimes arise that the retraining to become a social pedagogical assistant is the retraining for social assistants, which is simply called differently due to the special features of the state law. Sometimes this may be true, but in other cases the Länder see the social pedagogical assistant as an independent job description that must be distinguished from the social assistant.

Depending on the federal state, it varies whether there are differences between the social assistant and the social pedagogical assistant. In general, however, it can be said that social assistance is broader. This means that graduates who are retraining as social assistants are prepared for a wide range of occupational fields within the social system. In this way, they can deal with people of different ages and support them in educational, nursing or even housekeeping matters. This can be done in dormitories, in private households, nursing homes, clinics and hospitals or even in day care centers.

In contrast, social pedagogical assistance focuses on children, which is why there is often talk of child care. After retraining as a social pedagogical assistant, you can work primarily in kindergartens and other primary schools. Wherever children between 0 and 10 years are dependent on special support offers, social pedagogical assistants can use their professional competence.

Despite all the differences, retraining as a social assistant and social pedagogical assistant has a lot in common. It should also be noted that the degrees are recognized as equivalent. It makes a difference whether you are retrained as a social pedagogical assistant, but the subsequent perspectives are very similar.