Dear all,
 
As some of you may have questions about future German classes, the German minor/major or study-abroad opportunities, please feel free to come to a special information session on Friday, March 25, 10 a.m.  You can also always contact Mary or Kalli during their office hours.
 
On Wednesday, March 23, 11-3 p.m., you can attend the LSA Major/Minor Expo in the Michigan Union where you learn about the 50+ majors and 100+ minors in LSA.
 
Those who travel abroad this summer can still apply for the Mark and Myra International Travel Scholarship (application deadline: Friday, April 1).
 
If you plan to work at a summer camp, earn money, and speak German, you can do so at Concordia Language Villages in Minnesota. A remotely held information session will take place tonight at 8 p.m.
 
Reminders from prior emails:
The course guide for Spring, Summer, Fall term courses has been released. Here is the list of German dept. classes offered in Spring, Summer and Fall 2022. Please note that even if you already know your plans for German language classes, the list also includes a wide variety of interesting courses in English. If you have questions please contact our advisors, Mary and Kalli. We also strongly encourage you to contact one of the German Peer Mentors, who are undergraduates and who have taken/are taking our German courses. See the “German Courses & Majoring/Minoring in German” section below for contact info.
 
Please consider enrolling in a German course in Spring and/or Summer – and please tell your friends! The Spring/Summer classes typically have smaller numbers of students, and the intensive format makes for more efficient learning. If you are currently in German 102, you could complete the language requirement sequence by taking German 231 in the Spring and German 232 in the Summer – or you could take the super-intensive 8-credit German 230 course in the Summer half-term, which covers German 231 and 232 in one course. If you have a friend who’s interested in German, they could complete the language requirement and be ready for 300-level courses in the Fall by taking German 100 in the Spring (equivalent to 101 + 102), and then German 230 in the Summer. This clickable pdf shows all available German courses for this Spring/Summer.
 
All students at all levels are invited to participate in the following weekly events:
  • Our two weekly departmental conversation hours:
    • Schokoladenstunde (Wednesdays 3-4 in the Language Resource Center). Schokoladenstunde takes place in person in the Language Resource Center; the group will play games, chat, and enjoy some German chocolate.
    • German Convo on the Go (Tuesdays 6-7, weather permitting). German Convo on the Go takes place in person, outside; weather permitting, the group will go for a walk.
  • Max Kade Kaffeestunde & Deutschtisch Winter 2022:
    • Kaffeestunde Tuesdays 7-8pm, Bowman Room, 10th floor, North Quad. To get to the Bowman room, enter NorthQuad from the building’s courtyard through the doors leading to the Residential Community. Normally, you would need to be a resident to enter the residential part of North Quad. However, you can wait till someone goes in or out and opens the door, then proceed to the front desk to inform the staff you are visiting a German-speaking event in the Bowman room. Take the elevator to the 10th floor and follow the hallway all the way to the very end to find Bowman room.  ***ResponsiBLUE will be checked at the entrance*** 
    • Deutschtisch Sundays 6-7pm, online. Here is the Zoom link; Passcode:819189. This semester, Max Kade Deutschtisch will be offered online. Bring your dinner, log onto Zoom and enjoy a casual conversation in German over your meal.
  • German Club events. German Club events will be listed in the “Upcoming Deadlines and Events” section below, and sometimes in the introductory paragraphs of this weekly email.
  • You can earn 2 “A&P Tally” make-up points by attending any of these events! (German Club, Kaffeestunde, Deutschtisch)

The “German Lab” is a virtual office hour taking place Monday-Thursday 1-4 pm. You can ask shorter and longer questions, come for conversation practice, help with homework etc. Here is more info about the German Lab – please take advantage of this great resource! Please sign up in advance on the German Lab Signup: instructors will check the signup at the beginning of their German Lab hour, and will leave the lab for that hour if no one has signed up.

Advisor office hours and contact info: You can reach the German advisors through a general email: germanadvising@umich.edu. We have two advisors. They are available for advising hours throughout the semester:

A link to their current office hours will always be included in the full text of these weekly emails, which you can find online:  scroll down to the section “German Courses & Majoring/Minoring in German.” You can schedule appointments with Mary and Kalli here.

Other highlights from this week’s email, and what section to check for more details:

  • Conversation Opportunities – Conversation Hours, German Lab
  • Study Abroad, Internships, Scholarship Deadlines – Study Abroad/Internships/Scholarship Info
  • Advising Info – German Courses & Majoring/Minoring in German
  • Conversation Partner Options – Miscellaneous
  • International Center Global Engagement and Education Abroad email list – Miscellaneous
  • Reserving Study Spaces on Campus – Miscellaneous
  • Finding German Films and Series Online – Miscellaneous
  • Chrome Extension for Dual-Language Subtitles – Miscellaneous
  • Arts & Culture “Attend at Home” event listings – Local Events and Opportunities
German Conversation Opportunities – “German Convo on the Go” (Tuesday, March 22, 6 p.m., Burton Tower) and Schokoladenstunde (Wednesday, March 23, 3 p.m., Language Resource Center, North Quad)
 
 
German Club – “Stammtisch (Tuesday, March 22, 8 p.m., Michigan League Underground)
 
LSA Major/Minor Expo (Wednesday, March 23; 11-3 p.m., Michigan Union)
 
Fulbright Networking Event for University of Michigan Students and Alumni (Wednesday, March 23; 5:30-7 p.m., 1010 Weiser Hall)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Mark and Myra Sorensen International Travel Scholarship (Friday, April 1; Application Deadline)
 
German Department Funding for Summer Internships (Friday, April 1; Application Deadline)

We offer two weekly conversation opportunities for you to practice your German in an informal context. You can earn 2 “A&P Tally” make-up points by attending.

  • German Convo on the Go” will meet on Tuesdays at 6 p.m. sharp at Burton Tower for a 1-hour walk and talk with Mary Gell (magell “at” umich.edu). This event happens rain or shine—in case of rain, the group would meet under the tent next to Burton Tower.
  • Schokoladenstunde” will convene on Wednesdays 3-4 p.m. in the Language Resource Center in North Quad (in the comfortable seating area between the two computer classrooms). There will be some German chocolate to snack on. Silvia Grzeskowiak (sgrzesko “at” umich.edu) will bring games, and the hour will be spent chatting and playing games in German (e.g. Tabu).
Max Kade Kaffeestunde & Deutschtisch Winter 2022: All students are also welcome to participate  in “Kaffeestunde” and “Deutschtisch.” Kaffeestunde and Deutschtisch are weekly events organized by the Max Kade German Residence.
  • Kaffeestunde Tuesdays 7-8pm, Bowman Room, 10th floor, North Quad. To get to the Bowman room, enter NorthQuad from the building’s courtyard through the doors leading to the Residential Community. Normally, you would need to be a resident to enter the residential part of North Quad. However, you can wait till someone goes in or out and opens the door, then proceed to the front desk to inform the staff you are visiting a German-speaking event in the Bowman room. Take the elevator to the 10th floor and follow the hallway all the way to the very end to find Bowman room.  ***ResponsiBLUE will be checked at the entrance*** 
  • Deutschtisch Sundays 6-7pm, online. Here is the Zoom link; Passcode:819189. This semester, Max Kade Deutschtisch will be offered online. Bring your dinner, log onto Zoom and enjoy a casual conversation in German over your meal.
  • You can earn 2 “A&P Tally” make-up points by attending Max Kade events!

LRC Conversation Partner Site Check out this site to find a conversation partner, and/or register so others can find you on the site. Please notify the LRC if you notice problems (e.g. outdated records etc.). Don’t be shy: the more people sign up, the better the site will work!

The “German Lab” is a virtual office hour taking place Monday-Thursday 1-4 pm. You can ask shorter and longer questions, come for conversation practice, help with homework etc. Here is more info about the German Lab – please take advantage of this great resource! Please sign up in advance on the German Lab Signup: instructors will check the signup at the beginning of their German Lab hour, and will leave the lab for that hour if no one has signed up.

Ann Arbor Stammtisch

  • A German Stammtisch meets once a week, usually on Thursdays at 8:00 pm at Grizzly Peak or another bar near Main Street. Join the email list to stay up-to-date on where and when the group will meet.
  • There’s also a facebook page: look for “German Table / Stammtisch”
  • Alternatively, contact Mechthild Heerde-Olind at heerdeolind@yahoo.com for the current location and for more information.
  • This is NOT something you can do to make up an absence, but you can still go for fun and/or write about it for an AMD.
Check the “Upcoming Deadlines and Events” section to see upcoming German Club events. You can earn 2 “A&P Tally” make-up points by attending any of these events!
 
The German Club works to connect students of all levels with a passion for German language and culture to opportunities for language practice, cultural events, and networking. You are encouraged to come to as many or few events as you would like!

Email germaneboard@umich.edu to get put on the email list, or “like” the club on Facebook at facebook.com/germanclubumich for updates!

Faculty Advisors Mary Rodena-Krasan & Kalli Federhofer

Contact our two faculty advisors, Mary or Kalli, for advice on study abroad, internships abroad, a German major/minor, upper-level German courses, career opportunities in German, study-abroad and work-abroad opportunities, etc.

German Peer Advisors/Mentors

If you would like to get in touch with a peer mentor in our Department, please write to: germanmentors@umich.edu. Their expertise includes:

  • Current classes and potential courses
  • Study abroad, internship, and traveling in Germany
  • Academic requirements (major/minor, LSA language requirement) and combination (engineering, pre-health, etc.)
  • Max Kade House
  • Departmental scholarships/fellowships
  • On- and off-campus German opportunities (German Club, German Day, etc.)
  • Career/job search
  • Getting involved – enhancing your undergraduate experience with the German Department

[This page will only include entries in this category when there is a job/internship etc. aimed at German students at all levels. To see more internship and job opportunities, scroll through Kalli’s blog, addressed to all upper-level German students]

There are two German Department facebook groups:

  • “German Advising at University of Michigan” [Read news here!]
    • Join this group to see much of the information you see in this email, as well as other relevant info, in the form of individual announcement posts.
  • “German Program at University of Michigan – Vorwärts Blau!” [Post things here!]
    • You are encouraged to join this group to in order to read and post interesting/fun items related to German language and culture. If you have trouble joining the group or posting something, please email Hartmut!

AND there is a German Department facebook page. Check it out: https://www.facebook.com/umichGerman/

You can find weekly updates similar to this email but with lots more content on this blog.

We also encourage you to join us on our LinkedIn site: ‘University of Michigan German Department’

You can also follow us on Twitter: @umichGerman

Conversation Partner Options: Various options for finding conversation partners are listed on this page.

Sign up here for the International Center’s Global Engagement and Education Abroad email list. Weekly emails include info on workshops regarding travel and work abroad, conversation groups, cultural info sessions etc. SEHR interessant!

The Study Spaces at U-M website helps you find and reserve study spaces.

Finding German Films and Series

Chrome Extension for Dual-Language Subtitles

A German 101 student has found a Google Chrome extension that allows for subtitles in two languages, and has found this very helpful for watching e.g. “Dark” in German for his AMDs. I have not had time to try this, but if you find the dual language subtitles in the “Easy German” videos helpful, then this may be worth checking out. The extension is called Language Reactor.