The course guide for Winter 2023 has been released. Here is the list of German dept. classes offered in Winter 2023. 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. Additionally, our Peer Mentors will be available on Friday, November 11, 1-5 p.m., to answer questions about their experience about how easy it is to pair German with other fields of study.
A special meeting on Identities Abroad – A DEI Study Abroad Information Session will take place today at 5 p.m. in MLB 2112.
Please do not forget that the Max Kade German Residence has an Open House for anyone living there in 2023-2024. The Open House will take place on Wednesday, October 26, 5 p.m., North Quad 1185.
The German Department has organized an information session about the Middlebury German Language School (Summer 2023) and a study-abroad opportunity at the Goethe Institut (Spring/Summer 2023). This session will take place on Friday, October 28, 3 p.m., Conference Room.
One of our former students, who is now working for the Detroit Pistons, has organized a German Heritage Night on Thursday, December 1. You can attend this networking event, which takes place prior to a Pistons game, but you have to register by Tuesday, November 15. The entire package (networking event, basketball ticket, t-shirt) costs $22. Here is a pdf with more information about the German Heritage Night.
Several of you mentioned that you are looking for a summer research opportunity in Science and Engineering at a German university. The DAAD RISE information session for summer internships in Germany will explain the program and application process on Wednesday, October 26, 10:30 a.m. The DAAD RISE portal, which lists the different research opportunities, will open on Tuesday, November 1.
Registration is open for the LRC’s 2022 Translate-A-Thon. Click the link to register, and to see much more info about the event. Students at all levels are welcome to participate. The Keynote address is an “Introduction to Interpreting.”
Just as a reminder: two of our students made it to the finals of the DAAD Photo Contest. You can help Katie and Jesse in their endeavors to win a flight to Germany by casting your vote every day by Friday, October 28.
Reminders from prior emails:
Two regular conversation hours, “Schokoladenstunde” (Mondays 4-5 in the Language Resource Center) and “German Convo on the Go” (Tuesdays 6-7) will take place in person weekly. “Schokoladenstunde” will take place Mondays 4-5 p.m. in the Language Resource Center; the group will play games, chat, and enjoy some German chocolate. “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. This event happens ‘rain (or snow) or shine.’ All students at all levels are welcome to come to both events. You can earn 2 “A&P Tally” make-up points by attending.
All students are welcome at the weekly Max Kade Events: “Deutschtisch“ (Wednesdays at 6 p.m., North Quad Dining Hall) and “Kaffeestunde“ (Mondays at 4 p.m., North Quad West Lounge – 3rd Floor)
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.
In addition, the German Peer Mentors would like to offer additional help, either as a conversation partner or help with grammar, to our beginning language learners. Catharina, who is a native speaker, has reserved Alcove B in the Language Resource Center (in North Quad), Thursdays 4-5pm, every week. Please take advantage of this great opportunity!
The Berliner Philharmoniker will be performing at Hill Auditorium on Friday and Saturday, November 18 & 19, 2022. This link takes you to tickets for their Saturday program, when they will play Mahler’s 7th Symphony [vielen Dank, Iris, for sending this!!]. At the top of the page, there is a link to purchase student tickets. This takes you to a page where you can buy student tickets to all UMS events. There’s an incredible variety of great performances to choose from!
- Mary Rodena-Krasan (MLB 3128; mkrasan@umich.edu)
- Karl-Georg Federhofer (MLB 3422; kallimz@umich.edu)
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
- Finding German Films and Series Online – Miscellaneous
- Chrome Extension for Dual-Language Subtitles – Miscellaneous
Two regular conversation hours, “Schokoladenstunde” (Mondays 4-5 in the Language Resource Center) and “German Convo on the Go” (Tuesdays 6-7) will take place in person weekly. “Schokoladenstunde” will take place Mondays 4-5 p.m. in the Language Resource Center; the group will play games, chat, and enjoy some German chocolate. “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. This event happens ‘rain (or snow) or shine.’ All students at all levels are welcome to come to both events. You can earn 2 “A&P Tally” make-up points by attending.
- 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.
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.
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- Click here to see Mary’s and Kalli’s contact info and (frequent!) office hours
- To reach either advisor: germanadvising@umich.edu
- You can also schedule appointments with Mary & Kalli by clicking here
- …and you can contact Kalli via text message (734-277-7341) or via Facebook (Kalli Federhofer)
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
- Congress-Bundestag Youth Exchange for Young Professionals (CBYX) 2023/2024 (Tuesday, November 1; Application Deadline)
- DAAD Scholarship – Master Studies in Germany for all Academic Disciplines (Friday, November 4; Application Deadline)
- UROP International at Rheinisch-Westfälische Technische Hochschule (RWTH) Aachen – Summer 2023 (Sunday, January 15; Application Deadline)
- LSA Internship Funding Page
[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!
Finding German Films and Series
- Check the Telescope website for info on German films and series worth watching, including trailers and details on where they are available online.
- Here is a survey of German film series that you can watch in the US, compiled by the Goethe Insitute.
- Here is another list of German television and shows available on Netflix and Amazon Prime. The rankings seem arbitrary, but the descriptions and availability info are very helpful.
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.