Dewi Rizky Octarina, construction engineer from Indonesia
Make it good in Germany – that's what Dewi Rizky Octarina, a civil engineer from Indonesia wants to do. She is one of 30 young professionals from South-East Asia that GIZ has selected for an internship and assigned to a placement with a German company. She has already convinced her employer, the transport systems engineering company Asphalta Ingenieurgesellschaft für Verkehrsbau mbH, that she has the right skills and capability, which means Germany will continue to benefit from her expertise. GIZ supported Octarina and other experts on behalf of the 'Make it in Germany’ initiative run by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi).
Why Germany?
In the field of engineering, Germany is up there in the top spot internationally. And I’d like to use that to my advantage.
How difficult was it to settle in here?
My father, who is also an engineer, worked all over Indonesia and so we moved houses a lot – which means I’m used to starting afresh. In Germany I really didn’t encounter any major problems. I made friends in no time, both in the office and outside work. My colleagues have been very supportive. And I really like living in Falkensee – it's not far from the capital Berlin but still small and compact.
Is there a difference between civil engineering in Germany and in Indonesia?
To be honest, the work is pretty much the same. But the standards and regulations are very different. Getting to grips with this topic and learning the specialist terms is the biggest challenge.
What do you like about your workplace?
We all work very closely together here. I like the building our engineering office is in and the fact that we eat lunch together. I quickly came to feel part of the team. What I like about my tasks in the project management sector is that I can get involved in various projects. I have to keep coming up with innovative solutions and be very thorough.
Where do you see yourself in ten years?
I miss home and, if possible, I’d like to visit my friends and family in Indonesia twice a year. But in ten years’ time I still see myself here in Germany. At the moment I’m focusing on my work. But maybe I’ll do a dual study programme and specialise even more in the project management sector. I hope that in ten years I will have started a family in Germany.
On the ‘Make it in Germany’ traineeship programme, the young professionals from India, Indonesia and Viet Nam underwent a four-month intensive German-language course.
With GIZ’s help, the 22-year-old civil engineer Dewi Octarina from Indonesia was offered an internship with the transport systems engineering company Asphalta.
She quickly became part of the team in the engineering office in Falkensee. ‘My colleagues were very helpful and I was able to work on various projects.'
Dewi Octarina is working in the project management sector. Here she has to maintain a good overview of construction planning. A colleague goes through the plans with her.
‘My work demands thoroughness and a solution-focused way of thinking,’ says the young engineer. That’s what I like about my job.’
Dewi Octarina discusses the next phases of project work with her colleagues. ‘I could hardly wait to start working in Germany,’ she said.
Octarina’s boss, Gerald Müller, offered her a job following her internship: ‘We have a skills shortage in the civil engineering sector in Germany,’ says Müller.