A minimum enrollment of 10 students is required for each course offered.
Courses Taught in English
Students may take one course or a combination of two courses from two different streams for a maximum of 6 credits. Classes meet for 45-minute sessions and are taught Monday through Friday. Exams are taken during class time. German language is not required. Students should note that extensive preparation is required for the optional courses in English.
Each year the content of the courses taught in English is adjusted slightly, but the following course descriptions give students a good idea of what to expect. Students should note that extensive preparation is required for the optional courses in English.
| Stream A | |
| Course Code and Credits: | History/Politics/Social Science 312 (3) |
| Course Title: | The Berlin Wall: Tales of Division and Unity |
| Course Description: | |
| The course covers topics such as: implications of the Berlin Wall on architecture, contemporary history and museums; history of post-war Germany; European integration on both sides of the Berlin Wall (before and after the reunification); structures of the European Central Bank and the Bundestag. | |
| Course Code and Credits: | Music/Culture 304 (3) |
| Course Title: | The Globalization of Musical Analysis |
| Course Description: | |
| The course covers topics such as: globalization and popular music; Berlin’s music scene (rock, pop, punk and jazz); introduction to the music industry and the history of popular music in Germany. By examining texts and cultural theory and by listening to sound examples, the course gives an overview of popular music in Germany. | |
| Course Code and Credits: | Conservation/Ecology 306 (3) |
| Course Title: | Land in the City–Green in the City |
| Course Description: | |
| Urban agriculture provides multiple benefits to urban dwellers and cities. It arises not only out of crisis situations, but also through proximity to urban markets and the availability of productive resources, especially where the producers often live in marginal or illegal settlements. Students examine several functions of agriculture and horticulture in big cities, especially in Berlin, including: ecological and institutional conditions; social functions of urban agriculture and gardening, and conservation of resources through recycling of waste (water) and use of non-organic wastes in farming constructions. Students meet participants of projects and visit examples of urban agriculture in Berlin, such as allotment, community and school gardens and market-oriented urban farms. | |
| Stream B | |
| Course Code and Credits: | Geography/Commercial Geography 307 (3) |
| Course Title: | European City and Regional Development |
| Course Description: | |
| The course discusses topics on general issues of European planning such as the changing economic map of Europe and the European Union and its regional policy. Regional development and planning methods are introduced including examples of current planning projects. | |
| Course Code and Credits: | Religion/Culture 308 (3) |
| Course Title: | Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue in Germany |
| Course Description: | |
| The course explores the challenges of Berlin’s cultural and religious mosaic as well as debates that have unfolded about the concept of dialogue. Focus is on describing diversity and the ways to “manage” it. The history of dealing with cultural and religious diversity and the causes and developments that have led to the current political picture are examined. Classes involve participation of researchers and activists in political, religious, and cultural fields. | |
| Course Code and Credits: | Politics/Social Science (3) |
| Course Title: | The European Union |
| Course Description: | |
| Coming Soon | |
German Language Courses
A placement exam after arrival determines appropriate levels. German language classes are taught for 45 contact hours for 3 credits and appear on a Humboldt University transcript. Courses meet Monday through Friday. Each course is divided into grammar, conversation, vocabulary and culture. There is a maximum of 15 students in each class.
| German Language Courses | |
| Course Code and Credits: | German 101 (3) |
| Course Title: | Elementary German |
| Course Description: | |
| Students with no previous German or with only one semester in college usually place into this level. Functional uses of the language as well as grammar, cultural themes, introductions, exchanging information, writing letters, the present tense, the noun and the cases, personal pronouns and possessive pronouns, sentence structure, questions, prepositions, list of irregular verbs, basic communication and listening comprehension. | |
| Course Code and Credits: | German 102 (3) |
| Course Title: | Advanced Elementary German |
| Course Description: | |
| For students with more than one semester of German at elementary level. Further development of functional uses of German language as outlined in German 101. | |
| Course Code and Credits: | German 201 (3) |
| Course Title: | Lower Intermediate German |
| Course Description: | |
| Students who have studied German throughout high school and continued with one semester in college, or students who have 2 to 4 semesters in college, usually place into this level. Practice of speaking, listening and reading comprehension, synonyms and paraphrases in context, verb, noun, adjective, flexion, prepositions, personal and possessive pronouns, main and subordinate clauses, auxiliary verbs, special focus on sentence construction and use of past tenses. | |
| Course Code and Credits: | German 203 (3) |
| Course Title: | Upper Intermediate German |
| Course Description: | |
| Students with at least 6 semesters of college German, experience living in a German-speaking country or German study on a regular basis since elementary school usually place into this level. Practice of speaking techniques in everyday situations: listening and reading comprehension; short reports; arguing in discussions; analysis and production of texts; enlarging vocabulary; synonyms and paraphrasing. | |
| Course Code and Credits: | German 301 (3) |
| Course Title: | Advanced German |
| Course Description: | |
| Students who are nearly fluent usually place into this level. Concentration on refining and further developing communicative skills, review of indicative and subjunctive, expressions of doubt, probability, feelings, opinions. Reading of newspapers and modern literature texts. | |
