Examination and Certification in Germany

The dual apprenticeship is characterised by the significance of its final examination. This leads to the awarding of a certificate by the competent body in charge. Content and methods of the examination are described in the training regulation of the occupation.

Certification

After the successful completion of the apprenticeship the apprentices receive three different certificates.

• The examination certificate of the competent body (usually the chamber),
• the leaving certificate of the vocational school and
• the reference of the training company.
• Examination procedure

The examination certificate represents the skilled worker/skilled craft certificate (Facharbeiterbrief/Gesellenbrief) and is therefore the most important certificate. The examination procedure is regulated in the Vocational Training Act and in the Trade and Crafts Code for craft occupations respectively. The competent body is legally required to set up an independent examination committee for each training occupation – consisting of  the same number of competent employer and employee representatives and at least one teacher from a vocational school. There are specific requirements for the membership in an examination committee, and this activity is an unpaid position.

Content and methods

The framework for the examination is set in the training regulation of the occupation. It defines the content areas, the timeframe and the methods of the examination. The actual assignments of the examinations are either drawn up by the examination committee in charge or by a regional or national committee fulfilling the same criteria of composition. There are two examination models in training regulations: either a combination of midterm examination and final examination where the grades of the midterm examination are not relevant for the examination certificate or a final examination in two parts that takes place in the middle and at the end of the apprenticeship.