School Assistant
School assistants (also called integration aides) support individual children with disabilities or special needs through the school day, enabling genuine participation in lessons. The role is a common career-change entry into the social sector. Here's what it involves, how you get in — and which providers are hiring right now.
Key takeaways
- School assistants support individual children with additional needs in lessons and enable participation at school.
- A career change is often possible; the qualification depends on the provider, state and the child's needs.
- It is a disability-services benefit (SGB IX); pay varies by provider, often under TVöD SuE (S3–S4) and mostly part-time.
What does a school assistant do?
School assistants help an individual child with a disability or special support needs to take part in lessons. They help with focus and structure, accompany during breaks and on the way, support with personal or practical-living matters and mediate contact with classmates. The balance matters: as much help as needed, as much independence as possible.
School assistance is an individual-case benefit and part of disability services. School assistants are usually employed by an independent provider commissioned by the youth or social welfare office, and work closely with teachers, parents and therapy where relevant — without teaching themselves.
Typical tasks
- Accompany and support an individual child in lessons
- Help with focus, structure and organisation
- Accompany in breaks, on the way and on trips
- Assist with practical-living or personal-care matters
- Foster contact with classmates and participation
- Coordinate closely with teachers, parents and the provider
What you'll need
There is no single training for school assistance — requirements depend on the provider, the federal state and the child's support needs. It's often a good career-change entry: pedagogical experience, a social-sector qualification or a voluntary service help but aren't always mandatory. For more intensive support, qualified staff (such as curative care specialists or educators) tend to be sought.
- Empathy and patience in dealing with children
- Reliability and discretion
- Pedagogical experience helpful (career change often possible)
- Resilience and flexibility in the school day
- A willingness to cooperate with school and parents
Outlook
As school inclusion expands, demand for school assistance rises steadily — disability-services providers are continually looking for assistants. The roles are often part-time and tied to the school year, but offer meaningful and predictable work.
For many, school assistance is an entry that can be built on: via training as an educator or curative care specialist, or a degree in (special) education, specialist roles with more responsibility and higher pay open up.
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Frequently asked questions
Q1What does a school assistant do?+
Q2What do you need to become a school assistant — is a career change possible?+
Q3What do school assistants earn?+
Q4Are school assistants paid during the holidays too?+
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