Austria's schools: Record number of new teachers for the future!

Austria's schools: Record number of new teachers for the future!

In the face of an impending collapse of the education system in Austria, the Ministry of Education has launched a large teaching initiative called "great job". This measure, which is supposed to counteract the acute lack of teachers, already shows initial successes: over 120,000 educators teach around one million students in 5,700 educational institutions every day. In the study year 2023/24, the 6597 new hires, including 684 career changers, were recorded. This mega initiative aims to not only increase the number of teachers, but also to gain academics of other professional groups for the teaching profession in order to pass on valuable knowledge and experiences to students, as reported

A look at the transverse entry into Germany

While Austria is fighting for the shortage of teachers, the situation in Germany does not look much better. According to forecasts, up to 35,000 teachers are already missing and it could even be 76,000 by 2036. These alarming numbers are a result of the falling number of students with the same rising demands on the teaching staff. However, it is currently expected that many career changers can close the gap, since the training as a teacher has been as simple than ever before, as life-in-germany.de . Specialists from other industries and academics are already looking for entry opportunities in the apprenticeship.

In the German education system, the requirements for career changers have developed in recent years. In many federal states, there are special programs that enable career changers to complete the preparatory service in just 24 months. This accelerated procedure has opened the doors to the teaching profession for many, despite the continuous increase in the need for qualified teachers. Access to the teaching position is made easier by different financial support offers, which counteracts the current lack of educators and creates new perspectives for the teaching profession.