Project goals

• Refugee women improve their digital and AI-related skills with a direct focus on the labour market.

• Participants act with self-efficacy and independence in the digital application process and everyday professional life.

• Structural disadvantages in accessing the labour market are reduced through targeted skill development.

• The project establishes a transferable model for AI education for vulnerable groups in Germany.

Measures

• Community outreach in language courses and advisory services to specifically address the target group.

• Hybrid online course format featuring asynchronous materials, live sessions, and practical AI modules.

• Intensive personal support through onboarding, coaching, and technical assistance.

• Referrals to individually tailored opportunities, such as job coaching and qualification programmes.

• Knowledge transfer regarding the responsible use of AI for vulnerable groups within professional circles and practice.

Project description

Work is a central key to integration and social participation. However, for many refugee and migrant women, these opportunities remain difficult to access: language barriers, a lack of digital skills, and uncertainty regarding the German application system stand in the way of entering qualified employment. Furthermore, Artificial Intelligence is fundamentally changing application processes and professional requirements. It is increasingly clear: those unable to help shape this development risk being left behind.

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With "Digitally Fit with AI," we are building on our successful course format "Digitally Fit for the Labour Market," which has already seen participation from more than 40 women. This new offering expands the proven content by adding a central component: the competent, self-determined use of AI tools. Participants learn how to use AI in a data-secure and needs-oriented manner—for example, to create application documents, decipher "officialese" (bureaucratic German), practice job interviews, or make employment contracts easier to understand.

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As part of the project, we conduct free online courses running over several weeks:

• Live lessons 2–3 times per week (90 minutes each) in simple language.

• Weekly Q&A sessions and a digital learning platform for independent study.

• Asynchronous modules that take caregiving responsibilities and precarious living situations into account.

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In addition, we provide individual support to each participant via WhatsApp, telephone, and email to ensure we also reach women with limited digital experience. The content is continuously refined based on participant feedback.

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In terms of content, the women acquire basic digital skills, knowledge of the German labour market and application processes, as well as practical AI expertise. This includes digital job searching, online applications, communication tools, job portals, and the confident use of generative AI, alongside understanding official government communication.

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A particular focus lies on the ethical use of AI. We do not just teach how AI tools work, but also what they cannot do and where caution is required. Especially for people in vulnerable life situations, it is crucial to understand how AI systems can influence decisions, which data they process, and where risks such as discrimination or data misuse arise. For us, digital self-determination means being able to assess AI critically and use it consciously.

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The programme is aimed at women with a history of flight or migration, starting from a German language level of A2. We reach them through personal contact in language courses and via our established network, such as Hamburger mit Herz*. Before the course begins, intensive onboarding ensures that technical hurdles or a lack of digital literacy do not act as barriers to participation.