Attracting qualified employees with appealing programs for junior staff

Skip to Content
Current language English
  • Deutsch
  • English Current language

    • Instagram

    Facebook

    TikTok

    Youtube

    Whatsapp Community

    Deutsche Bahn moves Germany. Every day.

    One railway. Reliable. For everyone.

    Infrastructure

    We operate a 33,400 kilometre-long network with 5,400 stations, which are used by 450 railway companies and 50,000 trains every day.

    Passenger transport

    Every day, more than five million people travel with Deutsche Bahn - in ICE and Intercity trains, in regional express trains or in regional and suburban trains.

    Logistics

    DB Cargo replaces around 80,000 lorry journeys across Europe each day, offering a climate-friendly alternative.

    The immediate action programmes for a better railway.

    More efficient, more reliable and determined to permanently and noticeably improve quality for passengers.

    The modernisation of the infrastructure takes time. We are implementing three immediate action programmes so that customers can see that things are improving at DB: for improved cleanliness and security at our stations. For greater comfort on long-distance services. For a better customer information. For these three programmes, we are investing a total of more than 140 million euros in DB in 2026 alone.  

    Even cleaner trains and ever more reliable service in our dining cars make train journeys even more comfortable and attractive. 

    Increased presence of security staff, additional cleaning and quick repairs at railway stations ensure that people enjoy their stay and get to their trains in comfort.  

    In future, DB will provide customers with even better information before and during their journey - both on the train, at the station and in digital information channels. 

    Growing need for staff has forced DB to act. It is taking an integrated approach through 350 school partnerships and collaboration with 100 carefully chosen national & international universities.

    Since 2012, the new Recruitment organizational unit has been responsible for the strategic alignment of the employer brand and recruitment at the DB Group in Germany and has ensured that the new approach is implemented at operational level. Seven regional teams ensure that DB has a uniform market image and that vacancies are filled quickly. DB is focusing on all important target groups: high-school students, university students and experienced professionals from both academic and non-academic fields. The processes of recruitment, application management and onboarding at DB were adjusted to bring them more closely in line with the needs of applicants, new employees and the individual business units.

    The new employer campaign "A job like no other" was launched in Germany in November 2012 and spans a comprehensive range of media, such as TV, print, radio and poster ads. It presents employees in typical working situations to illustrate the diversity and multifaceted nature of DB as an employer with 500 different professions. The new career website is at the heart of the campaign. It is supplemented by social media profiles and innovative event formats. The campaign has prompted a sharp increase in applicant numbers of 40 percent on average. Right from the start, DB employees were involved in the campaign and made ambassadors.

    DB cooperates with schools, colleges and universities to establish a connection with potential employees early on. Over 350 school partnerships and collaboration with some 100 carefully chosen national and international colleges and universities help to provide career guidance. DB particularly likes to stage events with a practical focus. For example, the company presented itself as an employer during a day-long train ride during its “DB Careers Express” event.

    Marks are no longer the crucial hiring criterion they once were at DB. The Group eliminated preselection based on school marks for applicants seeking a training or cooperative education position. Instead, it introduced an online test for all school students who want to begin professional training or the cooperative education program beginning in Autumn 2014. The test emphasizes individual strengths and skills.

    High-school students can choose from a broad range of over 50 vocational training courses and more than 20 cooperative education tracks. College and university students can gain initial work experience at DB and establish important professional contacts while they study: through an internship, by working part-time or as part of their degree thesis paper. At the end of their degree course, they can choose between direct entry into the company and a graduate trainee program.

    DB is implementing its internationalization strategy in staff recruitment by using recruiting events in Spain and Greece, for example, to reach civil engineers, electrical engineers and mechanical engineers in these countries' labor markets and recruit them to work for DB in Germany. The company has also built up partnerships with colleges abroad. DB offers an international internship program for students at these institutions.