Healthcare and agriculture students train with neighbors. A new Czech-German internship round begun

Around 200 high school students from the Czech Republic and Germany will intern abroad this year. The first group of healthcare students from PflegeCampus Regensburg arrived in Pilsen for training at the University Hospital Pilsen. Exchanges for economics and agriculture students will come as well.

Seven German healthcare students are getting to know the operations of the University Hospital in Pilsen and other medical facilities in the city this week. From Monday to Friday, they are training as nurses or orderlies. “Sometimes we communicate in German, sometimes in English. The level of the different departments at the University Hospital in Pilsen has pleasantly surprised us,” said one of the students from PflegeCampus Regensburg. Over the course of two weeks, they will visit not only the University Hospital Pilsen but also St. George’s Senior Home and the Children’s Center in Vinice.

Their internship in the Czech Republic is made possible by a program supporting professional training abroad, organized by the Czech-German Youth Exchange Coordination Center Tandem at the University of West Bohemia in Pilsen. “The main goal of the internship in Plzeň hospitals is to show German students how the Czech healthcare system works and how it differs from the German one. Throughout their stay, the interns are under professional supervision,” explained program coordinator Jarmila Půbalová.

The exchange of future Czech and German healthcare professionals is part of a partnership spanning more than ten years between PflegeCampus and the Secondary Medical School and Higher Vocational Medical School in Pilsen. “This collaboration fosters personal connections between teachers and students from both partner schools. In addition to Germany, we also cooperate with medical schools in Greece, Turkey, and Slovakia, and we are planning to expand our partnerships to Portugal,” said Jan Malata, manager of international projects at the Secondary Medical School and Higher Vocational Medical School in Plzeň.

Tandem also coordinates internships across the Czech-German border in other fields. In addition to healthcare, students aged 16 and over from vocational and secondary schools participate in internships in hospitality, administration, construction, forestry, and agriculture. For example, a group of six future economists from Berufliches Schulzentrum Matthäus Runtinger Regensburg will arrive in Pilsen on Saturday, March 15. In return, Pilsen’s Business Academy will send six students for an internship in Regensburg in May 2025. A month later, German agriculture students will head to Gymnasium and Vocational School in Plasy to gain hands-on experience.

“The goal of the Professional Internship Support Program is to provide participants with valuable professional experience, exposure to a new work environment, and insight into the culture and lifestyle of a neighboring country. It’s not just about job shadowing or assisting with minor tasks – interns actively engage in real work in their field,” added Jarmila Půbalová. The program is funded by the Czech-German Future Fund and Erasmus+.

About the Organization:
The Czech-German Youth Exchange Coordination Center Tandem, based in Plzeň and Regensburg, fosters connections and friendships between young people from the Czech Republic and Germany. It provides advisory services and supports both public and private institutions in organizing and expanding Czech-German youth exchanges. In the Czech Republic, Tandem operates as part of the University of West Bohemia in Plzeň.

The Czech-German Youth Exchange Coordination Center Tandem was established in 1997 based on a joint declaration by the Minister of Education, Youth, and Sports of the Czech Republic and the Federal Minister for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women, and Youth of Germany.