Weekly Email for German 101-231 – 28. Oktober 2025

Hartmut Rastalsky Weekly Email Archive

Liebe Studis – Dear students,
 
As mentioned last week, there are several opportunities for summer internships in Germany: the Practical Research Experience Program at the Technische Universität München (application deadline: Sunday, November 23), DAAD-RISE (application deadline: Sunday, November 30), UROP International (application deadline: Saturday, January 10), IES Abroad (application deadline: Sunday, February 1) and Sage Corps (application deadline: Sunday, March 1).
 
The early application deadline for the 2026-2027 Academic Year in Freiburg program is Monday, December 1. The AYF program is the flagship program for study-abroad programs: it is superbly organized; the credits will count towards an LSA major, and you have the opportunity to pursue an internship in the second semester. You can learn more about the program here.
 
A German 101 student sent the following information:

Hello all,

We are excited to announce our call for submissions at the U of M Judaic Studies journal A Word in its Place! We know that students have the ability to produce high-quality work that both reflects their developing understandings and presents unique and necessary contributions in the broad field of Judaic Studies, and we hope that this journal will be a place for students to showcase that work.

We will consider academic essays, translations, and literary review as well as non-essay works (e.g. poetry, musical compositions, and artwork) for publication in the print and digital versions of our journal.

All submissions (submission form linked here) are due by Monday, December 15th at 11:59 pm. If you have any questions please feel free to contact us or check out our website.

Thank you!
-Gabrielle Taichman, Co-director
-Hannah Goldwin, Co-director 

 
Info from earlier emails:
 
During the Fall term, several weekly conversation opportunities exist outside regular classes: “German Convo on the Go” (Mondays, 2-3 p.m.), “Kreativwerkstatt” (Tuesdays, 1-2 p.m.), “Schokoladenstunde” (Tuesdays, 2-3 p.m.), “Deutschtisch” in North Quad Dining Hall (Wednesdays, 6-7 p.m.), and “Kaffeestunde” with Max Kade Students (Fridays, 5-6 p.m.). In addition, the German Club offers a weekly Stammtisch Wednesdays 7-8 in 3353 Mason Hall – click the link to confirm time and location for each week.
 
The “German Lab” is a virtual office hour taking place Monday-Thursday 1-4 pm. It opens today (Tuesday 9/2). 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.
 
If you are looking for additional resources for working on German:

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
  • Finding German Films and Series Online – Miscellaneous
  • Chrome Extension for Dual-Language Subtitles – Miscellaneous

Upcoming Deadlines and Events

  1. German Conversation Opportunities – Kreativwerkstatt (Tuesday, October 28, 1-2 p.m., MLB 3117) and Schokoladenstunde (Tuesday, October 28, 2-3 p.m., MLB 3110)  and German Convo on the Go (Monday, November 3, 2-3 p.m., Burton Tower)
 
  2. German Peer Mentors – Tutoring Hours (Tuesday, October 28, 3-4 p.m., and Thursday, October 30, 3-4 p.m., and Friday, October 31, 2-3 p.m.; North Quad, Language Resource Center, Alcove B)
 
  3. Max Kade Events – Deutschtisch (Wednesday, October 29, 6-7 p.m., North Quad Dining Hall) and Kaffeestunde (Friday, October 31, 5-6 p.m., North Quad 2450)
 
  4. German Club – Pumpkin Painting (Wednesday, October 29, 7-8 p.m., Mason Hall 2448)
 
  5. International Studies – Horror Filmfest (Friday, October 31; 10-4 p.m., Hatcher Graduate Library – Gallery, 1st Floor)
 
 
  7. Congress-Bundestag Youth Exchange for Young Professionals (CBYX) 2026-2027 (Saturday, November 1; Application Deadline)
 
  8. Wallenberg Fellowship (Sunday, November 2; Application Deadline)
 
  9. German Film Series – Die bleierne Zeit – Director: Margarethe von Trotta, 1981 (Monday, November 3, 6:30 p.m., North Quad 2435)
 
  10. Translate-A-Thon (Friday, November 7, 5-10 p.m., and  Saturday, November 8, 9 a.m.-10 p.m.; Language Resource Center, 1500 North Quad)

Conversation Hours, German Lab

Three regular conversation hours, Convo on the Go (Mondays 2-3 pm, meeting point Burton Tower), “Schokoladenstunde” (Tuesdays, 2-3 pm in 3110 MLB), and “Kreativwerkstatt” (Tuesdays 1-2 pm, in 3030 MLB) will take place in person weekly – look for more details in these weekly emails. All students at all levels are welcome to come to these events. You can earn 2 “A&P” make-up/bonus points by attending.
 
In addition, all students are welcome to participate in weekly German Club events and in “Kaffeestunde” (Fridays 5-6, North Quad 2450) and “Deutschtisch (Wednesdays 6-7 in the NQ dining hall).” Kaffeestunde and Deutschtisch are coordinated through the Max Kade German Residence. Look for more details in these weekly emails! 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. It opens on Tuesday 9/2. 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.
 
The Residential College offers lunch tables in multiple languages, including German. For purely logistical reasons, we do not offer A&P Tall points for attending, but this is a great opportunity to interact with the enthusiastic students in this great program, who are all enrolled in intensive courses and getting regular additional speaking practice through these lunch tables! [Don’t worry if the schedule page we have linked says Winter 2023: the times and locations are consistent and should still be accurate!]
 
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!
 
A2 Stammtisch
  • Meets every other Thursday at 8:00 pm at Grizzly Peak, 120 West Washington St. Pre-registration is requested: Contact Mechthild Heerde-Olind at heerdeolind “at” yahoo.com to be added to the email list. You can also check the event listings in the Ann Arbor Observer for info on meeting times and locations. [last verified: 1/23/2023]
  • You will NOT earn “A&P Tally” make-up/bonus points by attending, but you can still go for fun and/or write about it for an AMD.

German Club

German Club events will resume in the Fall!
 
Check the “Upcoming Deadlines and Events” section to see upcoming German Club events. You can earn 2 “A&P” make-up/bonus 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 email me if this does not work!

German Courses & Majoring/Minoring in German

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

Study Abroad/Internships/Scholarship Info

German-Related Jobs and Opportunities

[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]

UofM German bei Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn und Blogger

There is a German Department facebook group, and a German Department facebook page:

  • “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 Department facebook page: Check it out!

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 Instagram.

Miscellaneous

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

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.