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Why study German? What does German Studies have to offer when most of the world seems to speak English?

There are plenty of reasons. Let's consider just a few. German is the native language spoken by more than 90 million Europeans, more than any other language in the European Union. Yes, many Germans, Swiss and Austrians speak English but you will always remain an outsider with little genuine comprehension of their culture and mentality if you don't make the effort to learn the language. Did you know that after English, German is the foreign language of choice in Central and Eastern Europe and many parts of Asia ? In South Korea there are more German learners than in North America !

The German cultures have contributed substantially to our own cultural traditions and thoughts, music, the arts, and science. When U.S. News & World Report in 2003 published a special issue on Minds that shaped our world, the three portraits on the cover were Karl Marx, Sigmund Freud and Albert Einstein. Coincidence? Have you heard of Kant, Hegel, and Nietzsche? What about Goethe, Schiller, Thomas Mann? Or Bach, Beethoven, Mozart? Dürer, Kaspar David Friedrich and Paul Klee? Marlene Dietrich, Leni Rieffenstahl and Run, Lola Run ? Or did you know two of this summer's biggest films, "Troy" and "The Day After Tomorrow" were directed by Germans (Wolfgang Petersen and Roland Emmerich respectively). Do you know who discovered the x-ray, developed aspirin, and the cure for syphilis? To be continued in the classroom….

Twice in the past century, the United States defined itself around the idea of liberty when engaged in two disastrous wars with Germany and Austria . Out of this came what is truly one of the most positive political achievements in modern history: the establishment of democracy and the rule of law in the former enemy territories. Today, not only BMWs, VWs and Mercedes attest to technical expertise and the strength of the German economy and polity, but the Grundgesetz , Germany's constitution of 1949, is also a prominent export article that informed the new or revised constitutions of Spain, Portugal, Greece, South Africa, Turkey, South Korea, to name just a few, and most Central and East European countries,

In essence: German Studies offers unique intellectual and aesthetic challenges and rewards that lead to personal fulfillment and professional skills. The faculty is committed to facilitate every student's interests in all aspects of German Studies topics and language acquisition, and most enthusiastically supports overseas study plans. Currently, our students study in Oldenburg, Heidelberg , Tübingen ( Germany ), Salzburg ( Austria ) and Freiburg ( Switzerland ).

What help can you expect from us?

We teach according to communicative principles of language learning. Outside of the classroom, regular Stammtisch gatherings offer anxiety free practice sessions, and interns from Berlin , and tutors from Oldenburg help individually or in groups to make language learning enjoyable and effective. We promise you Sprachvergnügen. For further assistance contact Graduate Advisor Dr. Jeffrey High jhigh@csulb.edu and Undergraduate Advisor Dr. Nele Hempel-Lamer nhempell@csulb.edu.

For course descriptions go to the German Course Information .