KOCHI: Neenu Jose has been trying without success to get a B2-level certificate from Goethe-Zentrum-Trivandrum, the only recognised German language learning centre in Kerala. After spending over a couple of lakhs and nearly two years, Neenu, a BSc nursing graduate with a family visa since her husband is working in Germany took the next best option. She flew down to Germany and wrote the ‘telc Deutsch B2’ — the German government requires foreign healthcare professionals to get the level B2 certificate either from Goethe or telc. “I cleared the telc B2 exam in the first attempt itself,” Neenu (not her real name) told TNIE over phone from Munich, Germany.
But many are not so lucky. Kochi resident Alna Mathews (name changed), who is to clear the B2 level after getting through the first three modules (A1, A2 and B1), said, “For every module one needs to pay Rs 15,000-20,000. After the first three modules, it is almost impossible to get the B2 certificate from the Thiruvananthapuram centre. Many are now opting for centres in Hyderabad, Chennai, Mumbai, Delhi and even Kolkata.”
However, this is a costly affair since many students are from a poor background, she said. B2 certificate is a ticket to a better future for nursing students from Kerala, who are mostly from poor or lower-middle-class families. Reports said Germany requires a huge number of healthcare workers, where the starting salary is in the range of Euro 1,200-2000 per month (around Rs 1,07,000-200,000/month).
A major allegation against the Trivandrum centre is that it is not allowing a large number of students to clear the B2 level. Of the 122 students who appeared for the exam in May 2019, only 13 have passed. Strangely, the remaining 109 students who should have been issued a ‘not passed’ certificate have not been issued one, alleged the students. One student said she suspects Goethe-Zentrum Trivandrum does not have the permission and capabilities to conduct the B2 exams for a large number of students at one sitting. “The institute charges Rs 15,000-20,000 per exams, fails them in the exams, conducts refresher course by charging a fee and the cycle goes on,” she said.
In an email response, Syed Ibrahim, director, Goethe-Zentrum Trivandrum, said the Kerala centre conducts the German language examinations as per the rules and regulations set by the head office of the Goethe-Institut and “no student needs to have any unwarranted doubt on this”. Last October, 35 students had submitted a signed memo to two German MPs bringing their attention to alleged irregularities in the conduct of exams here. In their complaint, they said until two years ago over 90 per cent students at the institute used to acquire the B2 level certificate. Now, less than 10 per cent qualify. The complaint blamed director Ibrahim by name for the ‘malpractice’.
Regarding the allegation, Ibrahim said, Germany has made recruitment of nurses from countries, where there is an acute shortage of nursing professionals as mentioned in a WHO list, illegal. India also comes under this category, he said, adding, “many nurses circumvent this clause by apparently directly applying with a potential employer in Germany which is, however, permitted.”
To this, a student said, “All nursing students are aware of the rule. They are proceeding only through a potential employer, which was permitted since November 2013.” Ibrahim said he is not aware of any signed memorandum submitted in Germany by those whom he termed “disgruntled, failed B2 candidates from Kerala”. When asked, a student said most of the signatories to the petition had either secured the B2 from other centres in India or the telc certificate and are now in Germany.In its response, the German Consulate General-Bengaluru said it does not have anything to add to the responses provided by the Goethe Zentrum-Trivandrum.