How to apply for a Hospitation in Germany is important for you to know on your road to starting a medical residency in Germany. In this article, we explain the conventional method of finding a Hospitation in Germany and that is by sending emails. We nonetheless suggest that you try to find one through “connections” and we explain that at the end of this article.
If you have the slightest doubt about a certain point or do not understand any information, ask at any time in the main group of our community “Facharzt JETZT” on Facebook and Telegram. We remind you that this article is a guidance article to help you understand things and you should not rely solely on it. You should always return to the official websites. 😊
• Introduction about how to apply for a Hospitation in Germany
To get general information about what a Hospitation is, the general conditions for getting one, in addition to other questions, you can first read this article:
• The steps of how to apply for a Hospitation in Germany:
(1) Find websites of German hospitals – how to apply for a Hospitation in Germany
We explained in detail how and where in a separate article:
– Hospitals known to give Hospitation in Germany
Not all hospitals offer Hospitation. Some hospitals are known to offer that and we collected a small list in the following article:
• German hospitals known to offer Hospitation for foreign doctors
For medical students, university hospitals are welcoming. Here is a list of them:
(2) Find the email of the head of the department (der Chefarzt) – How to apply for a Hospitation
Each department has its own page on the hospital’s website. On it, you will find the email of the head of the department (🇩🇪 der Chefarzt/die Chefärztin) and the secretary’s email. Sometimes only the email of the secretary is mentioned, In this case, you can of course send the application email to her. In rare cases, there is a contact form. You can then use it, but in this case, you cannot send attachments. You can write then in the email that you wanted to send attachments but could not (they know that of course that it is not possible).
(3) Write a motivational letter (das Motivationsschreiben) to apply for a Hospitation
This is not a must, but it is highly recommended and would certainly help your application, write only one page in Microsoft Word.
– What should you mention in the motivational letter for Hospitation in Germany?
- Who are you? In which university did you study? Where? Graduation year?
- Why do you want to come to Germany?
- Why do you want to do a residency (🇩🇪 eine Facharztausbildung) in this specialty?
- Why are you applying to this hospital in particular and want to work with this head of department?
You need to write your reasons! This is very important to show that you are interested in Hospitation in Germany. I understand that some might be sending tens/hundreds of emails. So maybe try to write general sentences like:
– Why this hospital:
“🇩🇪 Ich habe mich über Ihr Krankenhaus informiert und dieses hat einen sehr guten Ruf.”
– Why you want to work with this head of department:
“🇩🇪 Ich habe mir Ihren Lebenslauf angeschaut und der hat mich beeindruckt.”
If you are interested in knowing how to apply for a Hospitation in Germany, then try to make the motivational letter much more personal. For example, you can mention a paper that the head of the department published and how you find its results very significant for patient care… be creative. - Why should they choose you? You know, you are not the only one applying.😅
– Free templates of motivational letters
They are Microsoft Word files. You can download them and simply add your details:
(4) Send an application email in “German”
If you want to write an email in English, then your chances are very low. An exception is that you are a medical student, cannot speak a German word, and applying to a university hospital; they take that into consideration.
When you write emails, try to make them “concise and precise”.
– Things you should attach in the email to apply for a hospitation in Germany:
(1) CV
Please in German. Do not worry. It is an easy task because we can help you with that, You can download a free template here: “🇩🇪 For doctors: Free tabular CV sample in German (🇩🇪 der Lebenslauf)“. Just add your information. This CV template format is compatible with the requirements of the medical license authorities in Germany and Switzerland.
(2) Your German language certificate is very important to apply for a Hospitation in Germany.
Again, students might be accepted without language knowledge. For medical graduates, you can say that speaking German is almost always a must!
An alternative for a language certificate could be a certificate that you are currently enrolled in a language school.
Few told me that they lied and wrote that they have the B2 certificate, although they did not have it! This might work. But if there is a potential place for you, it is not rare to be later asked to send the hospital a scanned copy of your language certificate. Also, if you are in Germany, you are asked to bring the language certificate, along with other certificates, into the interview. If they discover that you lied in the email, consider your application to be immediately canceled!
⚡💀 Lying in applications, emails, and letters in Germany is very dangerous! Do not do that!
– Template for the text of an email reply
Sehr geehrter Herr Prof./Dr. med. FAMILIENNAME,
ich heiße VORNAME NACHNAME und komme aus Land_Name. Hiermit bewerbe ich mich um eine Hospitation bei Ihnen. Ich habe an der NAME Universität in LAND Medizin studiert. Ich lerne Deutsch und habe das B2-Zertifikat vom NAME (z.B. Goethe-Institut in Amman) erworben.
Ich möchte gerne eine Hospitation vom XX/XX/XXX bis XX/XX/XXXX unter Ihrer Leitung absolvieren. Es würde mich sehr freuen, wenn ich einen Platz bei Ihnen erhalten könnte.
Im Anhang können Sie ein Motivationsschreiben, meinen Lebenslauf und mein B2-Zertifikat finden.
Auf Ihre Antwort würde ich mich sehr freuen.
Mit freundlichen Grüßen,
VORNAME NACHNAME
(5) Wait for a positive reply
Congratulations on acceptance! 💐😊 Wait for the invitation letter and then print it and take it with you to apply for a Visa to Germany. But before that, you need to clarify a few points with the department which accepted you.
(6) Clarification of the details of the training
In your first application email, almost all people discourage asking for accommodation, not to mention pocket money. If the hospital replied positively, you can ask for accommodation. From what I read in the large Facebook groups for Germany, it is now “imaginary” to ask for pocket money. On the other hand, if you got a positive response, they might tell you if you will be paid or not or if they will offer you accommodation.
– Example for an email reply
The following is an answer template for a doctor who received a positive reply for a clinical attachment that is not paid. He is thanking the head of the department for the positive reply asking for accommodation, or at least, help in finding accommodation:
Sehr geehrter Herr Prof. Familienname,
danke schön für Ihre positive Antwort und ich bin Ihnen sehr dankbar. Ich verstehe, dass ich keine Vergütung bekommen werde und bin damit auch vollkommen einverstanden. Aber es wäre sehr nett von Ihnen, wenn Sie mir eine Unterkunft im Krankenhaus anbieten könnten. Wenn diese nicht möglich wäre, kann vielleicht jemand in Ihrem Krankenhaus mir helfen, eine Unterkunft zu finden?
Mit den besten Grüßen,
VORNAME FAMILIENNAME
• General questions and notes on how to apply for a Hospitation:
(1) How many emails should I send?
Some doctors send more than one thousand emails and do not get a single reply. Others send 100 and get a reply. In general, you need to send hundreds of emails. The competition is now high in Germany. A lot of doctors are applying for clinical attachments, especially from Arab countries.
The motto of some doctors is:
“Send as many emails you can, to the highest possible number of departments, and when you get positive replies, you can then choose the best offer and send apology emails to the other hospitals that accepted you”
There are two problems with this motto:
- First problem: Your applications would start slowly to contain mistakes. When sending multiple emails, some doctors forget to change the name of the head of the department after “Sehr geehrte/r (Dear)”. Therefore, be sure to check that, This is a catastrophic mistake! In addition, do not send an email to the head of the Department of Surgery and say that you want to do a clinical attachment in his department because you love internal medicine (i.e., do not send your email to the wrong departments).
- Second problem: This needs time. If you are outside Germany and have a lot of time before coming here, then do it.
(2) How quickly should the hospital reply?
Usually two weeks, and Sometimes a month. The replies that arrive quickly are mostly negative replies (🇩🇪 Leider… We are sorry).
(3) Should I send the application by mail?
If you are in Germany and want to get a Hospitation in a certain hospital, then sending it by post might cause your application to have more attention. But this costs a lot if you are going to send many applications.
(4) Should I call before/after sending an application?
If you have time, do that, especially if you can speak good German. Ask the secretary if they have a place for you and if you may apply and how, Moreover, if you sent an application and did not receive an answer, you might send an email asking or, better, call the hospital.
This is how you can cheaply call phone numbers in Germany: “🇩🇪 Call German numbers with a low cost“.
(5) Should I go by myself to the hospital and make the application?
To be sure that your application does not get forgotten and to make a good impression, you might consider going to the secretary and handing her the application documents and just like the tips for an interview, write down the answers to the sentences that you are expected to speak and answers to the questions that you might be asked, Let someone who can speak excellent German correct them, Rehearse them at the end.
(6) Health certificate
Few hospitals do not ask for that. Some hospitals tell you that you need to make an appointment with a doctor in the hospital so that he can examine you (Betriebsarzt). Many hospitals will ask you for a health certificate (🇩🇪 eine Gesundheitsbescheinigung).
Usually, in such a certificate should be mentioned that you are free from contagious diseases and that you are vaccinated (most importantly against measles and hepatitis B). An example of a form in German is here:
More Information about the vaccination against measles
This is a must to be able to work with patients in Germany. No exceptions! More details here in this article.
– How to get the health certificate:
If you are outside Germany: you can ask a family physician to fill out a form for you.
If you are in Germany: Simply go to a family doctor (Hausarzt). Ask him to fill out the form for you.
(7) Finding a Hospitation in Germany through connections to help you on your road to how to apply for a Hospitation
If you could find a doctor that helps you to know how to apply for a Hospitation, this could save you hundreds of emails, More importantly, even if you got an acceptance email for a Hospitation, you would still have the constant uncertainty if they accepted you and would not change their minds, and if you are going to get the documents for visa on time, if you might without anxiety ask for accommodation, etc. We explain this further here:
How to find a job in Germany from abroad?
There are many websites that collect job ads. Exampls are Kimeta, Indeed, PraktischArzt, Website of the Journal of the German Medical Association (Deutsches Ärzteblatt). Kimeta and Indeed allow you to create email alerts so that you get notified when a new job position meeting your search criteria is published.
We explained finding a job in detail in the following article: “🇩🇪 Doctors in Germany: Find job offers & apply intelligently“
Can a foreigner practice medicine in Germany?
Absolutely yes! Read this article for more information: “Steps for medical residency in Germany“
Want to learn more? Questions?
Join JETZT (🇺🇸 now) all of our groups & ask what you like
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Further readings:
• “How should you prepare the application for a Hospitation or an Assistenzarzt Stelle?”, Your2ndHeart blog by Tejas Ghetia, link.
• “Hospitation for foreign doctors in Germany“, Helena Mamić – Soprano website (Foreign doctor in Germany from Croatia), link.