The increase in the demand for elderly care assistants in Austria and Germany is frequently met by the so called personal assistants. These are home caregivers who are available to clients 24 hours a day and come mostly from Eastern and Central Europe – Bulgaria, Romania, Poland, Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Hungary. Most of the personal assistants already employed in Germany or Austria have basic knowledge of German. However, their language competence is insufficient for the job and its terminology and for the purpose of intercultural communication with elderly people and their families.

The aim of the "BID – Qualification in German for people working in elder care" project was to create useful self-study materials for learning German and to provide detailed and exhaustive information related to living and working in Austria and Germany. The self-study materials for learning German will provide personal assistants with the opportunity to improve their knowledge of German and they will include the legal and administrative information required for practicing the job in Austria and Germany. The study materials will not include standard grammar and language exercises but they will focus on daily life situations. They will include conversations and dialogues about typically performed activities – hygiene, cooking, administrative duties, etc.

All products created within the project framework – a test for determining the level of knowledge of German, educational modules, information files – will be available as portfolio via „BID-Products“ and via IDIAL4P-Online-Center site for downloading.

Ten partner institutions from eight countries were taking part in the project: Austria, Germany, Bulgaria, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Hungary.

Project duration: 01.11.2012 – 31.10.2014


This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. This publication [communication] reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.