International and Study Abroad Programs

UC German Studies offers a study abroad program in Berlin, a program through VDAC (Federation of German-American Clubs), and a graduate seminar with Duisburg-Essen; other study abroad programs are also available via UC-International.

This program combines language learning and cultural experiences—you will spend a month learning German in Berlin, the ever-changing capital known for its vibrant cultural scene, laid-back atmosphere, and historical complexity. UC faculty will share personal insights into the city and show you important sites of German and international politics, culture, and history. You will experience Berlin from a different perspective each week, focusing on topics such as memorial culture, the environment, architecture, and infrastructure. Additional trips take you to the nearby cities of Dessau, Leipzig, and Wolfsburg to learn about the art school Bauhaus, the production of the Volkswagen, and Germany’s peaceful revolution.

No prior knowledge of German is required for this trip. The language component of this program is equivalent to the class GRMN 1001 (first semester of first-year German), and fulfils relevant foreign language requirements for many colleges, including the first half of the language requirement for A&S. “Classroom” language instruction, conducted in an abandoned former printing house in Berlin, is supplemented by language-based excursions in Berlin. This immersive active-learning format emphasizes communicative competencies such as ordering in a restaurant, navigating public transportation, shopping in a grocery store, and making a phone call or sending an SMS in German.

For more information, email the program director, Dr. Tanja Nusser ( tanja.nusser@uc.edu)

This student exchange program with select universities in the United States and Germany enables around 20 American and 20 German students to spend a year studying in the respective host country. The German students receive undergraduate and graduate scholarships (partly in connection with teaching assistantships) at selected universities in the United States. The American exchange students receive a scholarship of €6,000 for one academic year (in 10 monthly installments) and a BahnCard 50, and are "adopted" by a local club. They also take part in five seminars annually on cultural and political topics, held in various locations in Germany. These seminars serve to maintain contacts, to convey cultural and political content, to get to know the country and its people, and to cultivate association awareness.

For more information, see http://www.vdac.de/studentenaustausch/programm.html

Since 2013, the Department of German Studies at UC and the Universität Duisburg-Essen have organized an annual joint graduate seminar in German and Media Studies, held in alternating years at the University of Cincinnati and the Universität Duisburg-Essen.

Spring 2020. “Concepts of Race, Rasse, and Nation” online

Spring 2019. “Future of the City” at the Universität Duisburg-Essen

April 4-11, 2017. “Stadtwahrnehmung II” at the University of Cincinnati

April 26-May 3, 2017. “Stadtwahrnehmung I” at the Universität Duisburg-Essen

April 11-15, 2016. "Depictions of Sport" at the University of Cincinnati

May 4-12, 2015. “Arbeit in Literatur und Medien” at the Universität Duisburg-Essen

October 3-12, 2014. "Surveillance, Observation, Voyeurism” at the University of Cincinnati

April 27 – May 3, 2013. "Tatort: Vehikel, Symbol, Charaktermerkmal: Autos und Autofahren im Fernsehkrimi" at the Universität Duisburg-Essen

Universität Duisburg-Essen's seminar site

For other study abroad options, see the search page of UC-International as well as USAC programs such as USAC-Lüneburg or other programs such as the Bowling Green Salzburg Program