The interdisciplinary German Studies program at Dickinson College has offered me a comprehensive opportunity to engage with a variety of academic fields. Courses in this discipline have introduced me to philosophical, sociological, historical, artistic, literary, and even environmental modes of thought that have worked to inform my understanding of the cultures of the German-speaking world.
-Carol Rynar ‘17
The German department at Dickinson distinguishes itself through its high level of contact with current German society and faculty interests in a large spectrum of topics and periods. We crafted our curriculum to expose students to the diversity of the German-speaking world while also supporting students’ acquisition of the German language. Our curriculum is based on the principle that students come to German-speaking cultures with a variety of academic interests and goals. Our students demand an education that supports their language skills, and we task ourselves to do so within the mission of the liberal arts. To that end, our courses develop and hone students’ ability to understand, question, analyze, and discuss a wide variety of cultural forms within and beyond the context of German-speaking cultures throughout the world.
Through the William G. and Elke Durden Bremen program, we are proud to offer students the opportunity to study for a year at the University of Bremen, where they immerse themselves fully in all that the university has to offer. Students take courses in literature, the arts, history, political science or international relations, international business and management, physics, chemistry and many other fields and learn how to navigate their own interdisciplinary interests in a different culture and in German. Combined with the curriculum at the Dickinson campus, graduates of our program are equipped to pursue careers in a variety of fields, including but not limited to those that demand intercultural competence, German language skills, and global thinking.
The Max Kade Center for the Study of Contemporary German Culture, named in honor of the distinguished German-American industrialist and philanthropist, provides a focal point for programming related to the study of contemporary German culture at Dickinson College. Through the generous support of Max Kade and the college, German authors and scholars visit campus for short- and long-term visits. Visitors attend department courses, give lectures, hold public readings, and/or attend our weekly German Table.
The Department of German is one of the top departments of German in the U.S. We have between eight and ten majors and minors each year. In recent years, we have had students receive DAAD fellowships to study abroad in Bremen and graduating seniors return to Germany as Fulbright English Teaching Assistants.
