As a foreign student in Germany, I used to think of my disadvantage as a non-local in the competition to get a job, even a part-time job, and was not really confident in successfully landing one. However, my thought has changed since I started my working student job at Metamorphant GmbH. It has also completely changed my existing perception of how a workplace should be. Metamorphant is a young start-up founded by four expert professionals in the fields of software development and operations. The company is heading towards its solidification stage, where it needs support on the back-end to discover and reinforce new ideas of improvements and product developments to seek diversification options, besides its consulting and training operation.

The recruitment process did not involve a lot of stress, but was more like a friendly conversation to get to know each other with the founders and team members. I had a good impression of how things would turn out already at this stage, because the questions asked were not only about what I could contribute to the team, but also what opportunities the company could hand me with respect to my skills and interests. The number of questions about what I think and care about are just as equally frequent as those about my qualifications, mindset, and characters which are very generic in every job interview. After all, I feel like it is not a rigid procedure to find the most qualified persons, but the most suitable for the team. And that relieved me, and even better, made me feel already included.

After several months of work, I can say this is a decision I would never regret. As a working student, I am taken care of and given consideration as any other members, despite me not being able yet to blend completely into the German culture or join discussions in German. My colleagues always facilitate me on the process by communicating with me in English, as much as they can. What is also great is that I am given all the tools and expertise support to carry out my tasks. Though I have to work independently most of the time, I am never alone to cope with issues. Furthermore, my opinions matter here and I am more than welcomed each time to raise a proposal of which tasks I would like to take over, and which I may not be suitable for. Working for a big corporation in the past, and even one start-up back in the time I was in South Korea, make me understand that this is not casual or easy-to-have. It should be thankful for as Metamorphant is making it as flexible as possible for me, and emphasizing not only what is getting accomplished but also how employees feel accomplishing it.

I cannot stress enough also how comfortable the work style is at Metamorphant. I can work at any time and anywhere that suits my tight schedule as a full-time student. I just need to inform the colleagues in advance. We have a synchronizing meeting every week to inform each other of progress of ongoing tasks, but remaining time I can be completely flexible with how I manage the task at hand and communication with others. In this era of advanced collaborative tools and platforms, remote work is becoming the trend that facilitates people to have a life outside of work. Metamorphant takes best advantage of that and does not stress so much about formalities at workplace. The company also makes it convenient for me to work less time during my exam period. In general, all flexibilities we can think of for an enterprise, we can find at Metamorphant.

All in all, if you don’t mind working mostly independently, managing your time and tasks as you go, if you want to try out different things and have a clear perspective of how an enterprise makes it ongoing, if you prefer a more flexible, yet effective, style of work and collaboration, with your proposals and opinions taken seriously and appreciated, then take a chance at joining Metamorphant.

You may not get the brand name, the lucrative benefits or the specific skills in a big, sophisticated and highly segmented machine like multinationals, but you will get the fair payment for what you contribute and gain a more universal, high-level perspective, and experience for an entrepreneur. Last but not least, you definitely stand the chance to propose and implement your own idea, given its potential and feasibility, without any hierarchical or procedural limitations.

It depends as well on what you seek in a job, but I can say, you will get sufficient of what you need to ensure your study or private life on one hand and professional improvement on the other hand. If this sounds right for you, why not take the chance now?

Do Minh Chau Le
Working student