A year working for a company in Germany?

Depends what job you want really but having a second language is really really valued in the UK. Especially German.

I also recommend the idea of going abroad to work - it's an amazing experience.

I worked during my year abroad in Paris, and I'm really glad I did. For one thing, it gives you a full year of work experience while at Uni which many people don't have apart from part time jobs, and just having a year of office-based work exp in a company is really valuable in itself. I'd say it certainly helped me secure my first job after graduating, so if you're thinking of doing it then you should definitely do so!

Also, I now work for a Germany company in their UK office, and have just got back from a week in the German HQ - Germany companies are great and really well-run, so I'd definitely encourage you to look into opportunities to get in with one for a year!

Probably a silly question but did you get paid by the company? And if so how much of the cost which went beyond maintenance grants were you able to afford to pay with it? I ask because I heard that a year abroad is very expensive, much more than doing all three years in England, and I can't afford much, despite not being eligible for extra grants and bursaries.

Thanks.

I did yeah, I can't remember exactly but it worked out the equivalent of about £1200 a month after paying French taxes, and luckily I was able to stay with my cousin who had moved to Paris a few years before so I didn't have to pay (much) for accommodation costs. I'm not sure if it's any different now (this was about 5 years ago), but my maintenance loan was higher for the year abroad, but can't remember the specifics. It may be worth posting on the nottingham uni pages of TSR to see if any current/past modern language students say about the year abroad set-up there, as there may be some university grants available.