24.05.2026Interview: „International“ Participant Chester

After many years of focusing mainly on Japanese participants in the NGES skilled crafts program, we opened the program in 2026 to applicants from other countries as well.
Our first truly “international” participant is Chester from the USA. He has a wide range of talents and interests and worked as a Graphic Designer and lived in Japan for 2 years. Now he wants to start his life in Germany with the support of the NGES Craftsman Programme.

Recently he visited a former NGES participant who is now working as an orthopaedic shoemaker in Stuttgart. Chester is still searching for the right apprenticeship position, but he is already happy to be in Germany and is currently studying German in Heidelberg. In this conversation, NGES speaks with Chester together with Kahiwagi-san, who has successfully completed his apprenticeship and received his Gesellenbrief, which is the official German qualification that comes before the Craftsman qualification as „Meister“.

Please find the interview here:Interview with Chester and Kashiwagi-san