“Mein Weg nach Deutschland” - the web portal for helping people find their bearings in Germany

The website “Mein Weg nach Deutschland” (www.goethe.de/mwnd) is primarily aimed at new arrivals from non-member states who want to emigrate to Germany for professional or private reasons, or have already arrived and have to, or had to, evidence basic language skills for their visa application while still in their country of origin. Following a successful evaluation in 2014 a second project phase was added, running from 2015-2018 and co-financed by the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund (AMIF), providing more comprehensive information about Germany’s schools and its vocational training system, and also covering the subject area “Working in Germany”. The third phase of the project, entitled “Arriving in Germany”, started on 01.07.2019 and will run until 30.06.2022. It is also partly funded by the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund (AMIF).

The basis of this project is still the “Mein Weg nach Deutschland” website (www.goethe.de/mwnd). During the course of the project new features and material will be added, and there will be barrier-free services in English and German, as well as a full mobile version. New immigrants can be directed straight to the government advice and integration systems.
To make the portal even more easily accessible, the project includes plans to set up around 50 information points in public facilities throughout rural areas of Germany, which new immigrants can use to find information, find their way in the migration landscape and access the website.

Practise German

The section “Practise German” offers a variety of resources geared towards achieving the A1 language level. Here are some examples:

• Mini series: “Erste Wege in Deutschland” (“First steps in Germany”). This series shows everyday challenges faced by immigrants during their first few months in Germany. Visual and listening comprehension is supported through exercises. You can also download an accompanying app from the usual app stores, entitled “Mein Weg nach Deutschland”.
• Game: “Virtuelle Entdeckungsreise” (“Virtual discovery”). This game takes you on a virtual voyage of discovery into the German workplace. It focuses on themes like vocational training, recognition of qualifications and work.
• Game: “Liebe auf Deutsch” („Love in German“). In this virtual roleplaying game, you can play one of three characters and act out a variety of scenarios.

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Living in Germany

The section “Living in Germany” offers practical information on themes such as “First steps in Germany”, “Vocational training and work”, “Family”, “Everyday life” and “Life in Germany and Europe”. All the information is written at a level no more difficult than A1; any difficult vocabulary is explained separately in the glossary.

The information resources have been translated into the 27 most common native languages in the target group. The aim is to improve the information on German life and culture even further, as well as develop our advisory service to help increase participation rates for immigrants from non-member countries.


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getting Help

The section “Getting Help” provides general information and specific pointers on where new immigrants can go to get help in Germany. In this context we work together with the Jugendmigrationsdienste, or Youth Migration Service, and we also direct site users towards their online advisory service from here.

Two interactive maps show an overview of advice centres and organisations that offer integration courses, as well as local refugee initiatives and help groups.

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For Teachers

To familiarise teachers, advisors and interested visitors with the website, this section includes an information video on “Mein Weg nach Deutschland”, learning materials and useful links, as well as ideas for using the website in the classroom. The brochure “Mein Deutschlandheft”, which is designed for use in the country of origin to prepare migrants for starting life in Germany, is an ideal resource in this context as well.

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Language selection

The resources on the “Mein Weg nach Deutschland” website are currently translated into 27 languages, and there is even a German audio option.

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The website address is:
www.goethe.de/mwnd
 
You can also find “Mein Weg nach Deutschland” on Facebook: www.facebook.com/meinwegnachdeutschland
 
Download the “Mein Weg nach Deutschland” app here:
www.goethe.de/prj/mwd/de/deu/mse/app.html
 

 

© Goethe-Institut Funded by: