Career change as a ceramicist
With your experience you can switch to 8 jobs in Germany: 3 with on-the-job training and 5 with training or a course.
In the job search you can sort by what matters to you, save jobs and see where they lead.
Career change paths
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Machine operator in the ceramics industry
Also: Employee in technical ceramics production
With on-the-job training
In businesses for technical ceramics, sanitary ceramics, tiles or refractory products you operate presses, casting systems and tunnel kilns, check quality and fix minor faults.
- What you bring:
- You know ceramic bodies, shaping, drying and firing from your own work.
- How to get there:
- You get on-the-job training on the systems (Einarbeitung), usually for a few weeks; shift work is usual in industry. A suitable industrial qualification comes from vocational training (Ausbildung) as an industrial ceramist, process technology (Industriekeramiker/Industriekeramikerin Verfahrenstechnik), which takes 3 years and is often shortened with your qualification.*
* No guarantee of accuracy.
Shift workPhysically demandingLittle customer contact€3,513gross per monthMedian salary
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Group leader in the work area of a workshop for people with disabilities
Also: Group leader in the vocational training area of a workshop for people with disabilities
With on-the-job training
In a workshop for people with disabilities you lead a work group, for example in ceramics, assembly or packaging, plan the jobs and support the employees in work and development.
- What you bring:
- You have mastered a craft, work carefully and can demonstrate work steps and break them down into small steps.
- How to get there:
- Workshops hire journeymen and skilled workers with at least 2 years of work experience and give them on-the-job training in the group (Einarbeitung). You make up the required special-needs education qualification under § 9 of the Workshops Ordinance within a reasonable time alongside work. Usually this is the further training to become a certified specialist for work and vocational support (Geprüfte Fachkraft zur Arbeits- und Berufsförderung). You are admitted with a vocational qualification and 2 years of suitable practice, of which at least half a year in tasks of work and vocational support.*
* No guarantee of accuracy.
Mostly no weekendsFixed daytime hoursLittle customer contact€4,350gross per monthMedian salary
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Quality inspector in the ceramics industry
Also: Employee in a building materials testing lab
With on-the-job training
In testing labs and in the quality assurance of ceramics and building materials manufacturers you test raw materials and products for strength, dimensional accuracy and surface and document the results.
- What you bring:
- You recognize cracks, deformations, glaze defects and dimensional deviations and know in which work step they arise.
- How to get there:
- You get on-the-job training in testing procedures and measuring devices (Einarbeitung), usually for a few weeks to months. A qualification of your own comes from vocational training (Ausbildung) as a testing technologist, ceramics (Prüftechnologe/Prüftechnologin Keramik), which takes 3 years and is often shortened with your qualification.*
* No guarantee of accuracy.
Mostly no weekendsLittle customer contact€3,513gross per monthMedian salary
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Master ceramist
Also: Production manager at a ceramics manufactory
With further trainingPromotion
As a master craftsperson (Meister) you lead a workshop or manufactory, calculate jobs, develop glazes and series further and train new staff.
- What you bring:
- You are skilled in clay bodies, throwing, casting, glazing and firing and know how defects arise in the firing.
- How to get there:
- The master craftsperson exam (Meisterprüfung) in the ceramist trade (Keramiker-Handwerk) at the Chamber of Crafts (Handwerkskammer) has preparation courses only in a few places, and the further training can be funded through Aufstiegs-BAföG (state funding for advanced vocational qualifications). You are admitted with a journeyman or final exam in a recognized training occupation. Because the ceramist trade requires no license, you do not need the master for your own workshop, but it helps for management jobs in manufactories.*
* No guarantee of accuracy.
Physically demandingLittle customer contact€4,972gross per monthMedian salary
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State-certified technician for ceramics
Also: Employee in technical ceramics development
With further trainingPromotion
As a technician you work in development or quality assurance at manufacturers of technical ceramics, sanitary ceramics or refractory products, look after trials and optimize firing processes.
- What you bring:
- You know ceramic bodies, shaping, drying and firing and see early when a defect is developing.
- How to get there:
- The vocational college for technology (Fachschule für Technik) with a specialization in ceramics, which not every school offers, takes 2 years full-time and correspondingly longer alongside work. It can be funded through Aufstiegs-BAföG (state funding for advanced vocational qualifications). Access is usually with a vocational qualification and at least one year of work experience; the federal state sets the exact rules.*
* No guarantee of accuracy.
Mostly no weekendsLittle customer contact€4,527gross per monthMedian salary
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Dental technician
With retraining
In the dental laboratory you make crowns, bridges and dentures, layer and fire veneering ceramics and also work with scanners, CAD and milling machines.
- What you bring:
- You model with a steady hand, know ceramic bodies, glazes and kilns and work very precisely on shape and color.
- How to get there:
- Vocational training (Ausbildung) as a dental technician (Zahntechniker/Zahntechnikerin) takes 3.5 years and is often shortened with your qualification. In individual cases, the Federal Employment Agency (Agentur für Arbeit) or the Jobcenter can fund it as retraining (Umschulung). The work usually takes place during the day in the workshop.*
* No guarantee of accuracy.
Mostly no weekendsFixed daytime hoursLittle customer contact€3,500gross per monthMedian salary
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Tile, slab and mosaic layer
With retraining
As a tile layer you lay tiles, slabs and mosaics in bathrooms, kitchens and on terraces, build up substrates and waterproofing and advise customers on design.
- What you bring:
- You know ceramic materials, work exactly and have an eye for the joint pattern, color and clean edges.
- How to get there:
- Vocational training (Ausbildung) as a tile, slab and mosaic layer (Fliesen-, Platten- und Mosaikleger/Fliesen-, Platten- und Mosaiklegerin) takes 3 years and is often shortened with your qualification. Alternatively, you can retrain (Umschulung), which usually takes 2 years; the Federal Employment Agency (Agentur für Arbeit) or the Jobcenter can fund it if the requirements are met. The work is physically demanding.*
* No guarantee of accuracy.
Mostly no weekendsFixed daytime hoursPhysically demanding€3,541gross per monthMedian salary
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Occupational therapist
With vocational training
As an occupational therapist you help people after accidents, strokes or with mental illness to become independent again in daily life, and you also use craft activities for this.
- What you bring:
- You know craft techniques such as pottery and modeling and know how much concentration, fine motor skills and patience they involve.
- How to get there:
- Training at a state-recognized school for occupational therapy takes 3 years and ends with a state exam. Access is with an intermediate school-leaving certificate (mittlerer Schulabschluss) or with a lower secondary school certificate (Hauptschulabschluss) and a completed vocational training of at least two years. Whether tuition fees apply depends on the federal state and school; in individual cases, funding through the Federal Employment Agency (Agentur für Arbeit) or the Jobcenter is possible.*Regulated by law (Occupational Therapists Act (ErgThG) §§ 1, 4, Training and Examination Ordinance for Occupational Therapists (ErgThAPrV) § 1).
* No guarantee of accuracy.
Mostly no weekendsLots of contact with people€4,001gross per monthMedian salary
Salary: median of all full-time employees in the job, gross per month excluding special payments, as of April 2025. Half earn more, half earn less. Source: Federal Statistical Office of Germany (Destatis), table 62361-0030, license dl-de/by-2-0. Assigned to the jobs by quereinsteiger.de. No guarantee of accuracy.
Frequently asked questions
Which jobs can I do as a ceramicist without vocational training or retraining?
Without a new qualification, often with on-the-job training: Machine operator in the ceramics industry, Group leader in the work area of a workshop for people with disabilities and Quality inspector in the ceramics industry.
Which retraining or further training suits me as a ceramicist?
With vocational training, retraining, further training or a course: Master ceramist, State-certified technician for ceramics, Dental technician, Tile, slab and mosaic layer and Occupational therapist.
What promotion options do I have as a ceramicist?
Promotions include, for example: Master ceramist and State-certified technician for ceramics.
Which of these jobs pay the most?
According to official statistics, the highest median full-time salaries are: Master ceramist (€4,972 gross per month), State-certified technician for ceramics (€4,527 gross per month) and Group leader in the work area of a workshop for people with disabilities (€4,350 gross per month). Half of employees earn more, half earn less; when you start it is often lower. Source: Federal Statistical Office of Germany (Destatis), April 2025. No guarantee of accuracy.
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