It's Inauguration Week! Let the Fun Begin!
View details for Inauguration Day and access the full schedule of events.
View details for Inauguration Day and access the full schedule of events.
German is the third most popular foreign language taught worldwide and among the ten most commonly spoken languages in the world. Many of the Western world’s most important works in philosophy, literature, music, and science are written in German and continue to be produced in German. German is the second most commonly used scientific language in the world. Learning German can connect you to 120 million native speakers around the globe.
Students majoring in German are urged to study abroad in one of the approved programs in a German-speaking area. Many German majors study in Freiburg, Munich, Heidelberg, or Hamburg. The Europe in Transition Program is a Spring semester, comparative-studies, field-research program in Poland, Hungary, Czech Republic, and Germany. It explores the process of transition to a post-industrial, post-communist, European Union. Financial aid is available for all approved programs.
German majors choose from two different concentrations:
Undergraduate research, performed under the mentorship of expert faculty, is a central component of The OWU Connection.
We emphasize intellectual curiosity, creativity, initiative, and synthesis. OWU provides opportunities, including traveling abroad, for you to explore an existing problem or develop a totally new avenue of exploration. You can work with a faculty mentor and apply for grant funding—and present your research at the Student Symposium in the spring.
Students majoring in German are urged to study abroad for a semester in one of the approved programs in a German-speaking area.
Also, Travel-Learning Courses combine classroom study with travel to areas you've learned about in class. Travel-Learning courses in history, chemistry and astronomy have included travel to Germany.
Build your experience and connections to the professional world with internships and OWU-funded grants that help you put theory into practice.
Many German majors travel to Germany to connect their classroom learning with real-world experience.
Students can apply to live in two different Small Living Units that focus on learning languages and celebrating international cultural diversity. In the House of Linguistic Diversity (HOLD), students can explore and share their interests in language, diversity, and culture. The house hosts language talks and other cultural events on campus. The Citizens of the World House provides international, social, and cultural events and discussions from members who are from both near and abroad.
Phi Sigma Iota is an international honor society whose members are selected from among outstanding students of foreign languages and literatures including classics and comparative literature. Its primary objectives are the recognition of remarkable ability and achievement in foreign languages and literatures, and the stimulation of advanced work and individual research in these fields. OWU’s chapter was founded in 1978.
The Language Learning Center (UN 213) offers language students a space to read, study, work on projects with classmates or attend language tutoring sessions supported by the WLC department. Advanced students and/or native speakers can apply to become language tutors with faculty endorsement.
Members of the World Languages & Cultures student board have several responsibilities which can include serving as liaisons between students and faculty, interviewing candidates for faculty positions, evaluating WLC faculty for retention, merit, promotion and/or tenure, occasionally developing a program or programs involving outside speakers, and planning WLC special events.
Kiersten used a Theory-to-Practice Grant to study Christianity and society in Germany. She is currently pursuing an MA in the History of Christianity at Yale Divinity School.
Cameron Hewitt '98 majored in German and studied Spanish at OWU. Since 2000 he has worked for travel guru Rick Steves and is now Steves' lead editor and coauthor. He has traveled to and written about more than 35 European countries and appears on radio and television.
Josie DiNovo double majored in German Studies and English, and spent a year abroad in Frankfurt. She now works as a Copy Editor for The Freedonia Group in Cleveland, Ohio.
Michele Gilbert '11, a German and Psychology double major, earned a Master’s of Public Health degree at Columbia University and is now a senior consultant at Booz Allen Hamilton in Washington, D.C.
Mark Mandych '16 earned a Fulbright grant to teach English in Germany for ten months. While at OWU, he studied abroad at the University of Salzburg in Austria and helped teach English to high school students.
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