Oksana Katantseva an ihrem Arbeitsplatz
I earned a degree in social work in my home country of Ukraine and subsequently studied economics. During my studies, I worked as a paramedic for 8 years. After that, I worked for 2 years as a bank teller, advising clients on all financial matters. For the next 12 years, I worked as an employment counselor at the job center in my hometown. In this role, I served a total of between 300 and 400 clients. I handled everything. Every day, I registered new clients, calculated unemployment benefits, informed the unemployed about job opportunities in the labor market, helped clients create resumes and cover letters, and, of course, sought out suitable candidates for employers. I assisted about 50 clients per day and scheduled appointments every 10 minutes. My main goal was to match a job seeker with the right employer. Although the workload was enormous, I really enjoyed this job.
Due to the outbreak of war in Ukraine, I had to leave my home country. In March 2022, I fled to Magdeburg with my daughter and was housed in a shelter. There, we received wonderful support from volunteers and a German family. In May 2022, I completed a German language course and subsequently finished an integration course at the B2 level. After that, I began looking for work. Nataliya Detka from the WelcomeCenter Saxony-Anhalt was a huge help. She explained how to write a job application and a resume here in Germany. She also helped me prepare for job interviews and explained the work culture and professional communication here. These differ significantly from those in Ukraine. Thanks to this great support, I even had a choice between two jobs and ultimately decided on the position as a job placement counselor at the Jobcenter’s employment agency. I’m really happy with my decision. Our department is relatively small, and I have very nice colleagues who are always there to offer me advice and support. There’s a comprehensive training plan, and I hope to be able to handle my first job placements on my own soon.
I really like Magdeburg and hope to find a new home here. My daughter is now studying at Otto von Guericke University and has also settled in quite well.
