Why German Studies?

Recent accomplishments of German Majors

German Studies at Rice provides an ideal interdisciplinary setting for the study of German literature, history, philosophy, and culture in a wider international context. Our undergraduate curriculum is based on a close relationship between teaching and research, preparing students for high-level careers in the academic and non-academic professions, including law, business, government and the diplomatic service. Detailed cultural knowledge, critical thinking and clear writing are at the core of our curriculum.

Spoken by more than 120 million people, German is one of the main European languages. One of the world’s most powerful economies, Germany is a member of the G8, plays a leading role in shaping the future of the European Union, and has peacekeeping forces around the world. Germany, Austria and Switzerland are leading members of the international community, not only in terms of economy and politics, but also with regard to cultural and scientific achievements that continue to shape who we are now, even at the beginning of the twenty-first century.

From the Middle Ages to the present, writers such as Walter von der Vogelweide, Lessing, Herder, Goethe, Schiller, Heine, Thomas Mann, Paul Celan, Max Frisch, Ingeborg Bachmann, Günter Grass, Elfriede Jellinek and Christa Wolf have made central contributions to the formation of world literature. Composers such as Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Mahler and Schönberg have revolutionized the way we hear, play and understand music. Cultural historians like Leopold von Ranke, Johann Gustav Droysen, Jacob Burckhardt and Aby Warburg continue to shape much of modern historical thought. Likewise, philosophers like Kant, Schelling, Hegel, Marx, Nietzsche, Husserl, Heidegger, Adorno and Jürgen Habermas have an enormous impact on contemporary intellectual debate on a global level, as do social thinkers and intellectuals like Sigmund Freud, Georg Simmel, Max Weber, Walter Benjamin, Hannah Arendt, and Niklas Luhmann.

This intellectual breadth is reflected in the expertise of the faculty members, which ranges from medieval studies, literary history and critical theory to social and political thought, women and gender studies, history of science, and intellectual history, often crossing traditional disciplinary boundaries.

Teaching and Research

The close connection between teaching and an active research program lies at the heart of our curriculum and enables students to develop independent and original contributions at an early stage. Beyond detailed knowledge in German and European culture and history, students will gain intellectual and social qualities that are much sought after in an increasingly global culture of knowledge, such as logical thinking and reasoning, coherent argument, and expressing ideas in a clear style.

The development of intellectual excellence and curiosity is supported by factors only possible at an institution with a high international profile such as Rice:

• An ideal student-professor ratio results in small classes and the close supervision of independent work, engaging students at every step and making them aware of the wider contexts and implications of their studies.
• From freshman seminars to advanced courses, students are always in contact with senior faculty of the Department.
• Students are made familiar with both long-term historical developments and recent cultural debates in order to prepare them for both academic and non-academic professions.
• Unlike departments at many other institutions, the German Studies at Rice covers the entire period from the Middle Ages to the present.
  

Interdisciplinary and International

Students can choose from a range of study abroad options in a German-speaking country. The Rice-IES Freiburg Program also offers an ideal study-abroad experience for Rice undergraduates in German Studies. Students can spend either a semester or a full academic year in Freiburg, which is one of Germany’s most scenic cities with easy access to Switzerland, France and the Black Forest.

Faculty members entertain close links with other departments at Rice, in particular History and Philosophy, but also with the Humanities Research Center, the Shepherd School of Music, and the Language Resource Center.

Faculty members have attracted major grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, the German Academic Exchange Service, the British Academy, the Fulbright Commission, and the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft. Faculty members are always involved in collaborations with other leading international institutions, such as the Center for the Study of the Enlightenment in Potsdam, Germany, the University of Cambridge, England, and Duke University.

The international scope of German Studies at Rice is also reflected in regular guest speakers, conferences, film programs and art exhibitions, often in cooperation with the School of Humanities.

B.A. in German Studies

The department offers instruction in the German language, in German literature — studied in the original and in translation — and in the achievements of German culture and thought surveyed as a whole and in particular themes, genres, and periods. The department stresses linguistic competence and interdisciplinary study. The B.A. in German prepares students for graduate study in German and in the Humanities, as well as for careers in law, business, international affairs, economics, government, and other academic fields. Our language acquisition courses maximize linguistic proficiency and prepare students for study abroad. Our freshman seminars are conducted in small groups and stress written and oral communication. Culture courses under the rubric Mapping German Culture are taught in English and consider major cultural, intellectual, and literary topics. Upper-level literary courses and special topics seminars both polish linguistic skills and offer intensive study at a high level. The department encourages and, by means of the Mitchell Fellowships, facilitates study abroad in Germany and Austria. There are weekly German tables in the colleges. Outstanding students are presented annually with the Max Freund Prize and the Goethe Institute Book Prize.

The European Connection

German Studies at Rice is closely involved with Focus Europe, an interdisciplinary program of undergraduate courses in European Studies. The program also provides research opportunities for sophomores and juniors in Europe (currently 6 annual Summer Fellowships up to $5,000 each), which often lead to an honors thesis.

Degree Requirements for the B.A. in German Studies

Requirements for students who declared their major in Fall 2006 or later:

Single Major:
30 hours above 200 level

• GERM 303 and 304 (bridge course in German literary/ cultural language)
• GERM 411, 412 (basic German literature survey courses)
• GERM 410 (Advanced Composition and Conversation: Language and Style in Cultural Texts)
• 2 Special Topics Seminars (GERM 351 to any other 400-level Special Topics)
• 3 Mapping German Culture courses

Double Major:
24 hours above 200 level

• GERM 303 and 304 (bridge course in German literary/ cultural language)
• GERM 411, 412 (basic German literature survey courses)
• GERM 410 (Advanced Composition and Conversation: Language and Style in Cultural Texts)
• 1 Special Topics Seminar (GERM 351 to any other 400-level Special Topics)
• 2 Mapping German Culture courses

Please note: For single majors, a maximum of four transfer courses can count toward the major. For double majors, a maximum of three transfer courses can count toward the major. Requests for exception to these rules will be considered by department committee.

Requirements for students who declared their major in Fall 2005:

Single Major:
30 hours above 200 level = 9 three-hour courses + 3 one-hour FLAC sections or 10 three-hour courses

• GERM 303 and 304 (bridge course in German literary/ cultural language)
• GERM 411, 412 (basic German literature survey courses)
• 2 Special Topics Seminars (GERM 351 to any other 400-level Special Topics)
• 3 Mapping German Culture courses with attached one-hour FLAC sections (GERM 321-350)

Double Major:
23 hours above 200 level = 7 three-hour courses + 2 one-hour FLAC sections or 8 three-hour courses

• GERM 303 and 304 (bridge course in German literary/ cultural language)
• GERM 411, 412 (basic German literature survey courses)
• 1 Special Topics Seminar (GERM 351 to any other 400-level Special Topics)
• 2 Mapping German Culture courses with attached one- hour FLAC sections (GERM 321-350)

Requirements for students who declared their major before Fall 2005:

Single Major:
27 hours above 200 level = 8 three-hour courses + 3 one-hour FLAC sections

• GERM 303 or 304 (bridge course in German literary/ cultural language)
• GERM 411, 412 (basic German literature survey courses)
• 2 Special Topics Seminars (GERM 351 to any other 400-level Special Topics)
• 3 Mapping German Culture courses with attached one-hour FLAC sections (GERM 321-350)

Option: GERM 303: Composition and Conversation I may be substituted for any one of the above courses except 304, 411, and 412.

Double Major:
20 hours above 200 level = 6 three-hour courses + 2 one-hour FLAC sections

• GERM 303 or 304 (bridge course in German literary/ cultural language)
• GERM 411, 412 (basic German literature survey courses)
• 1 Special Topics Seminar (GERM 351 to any other 400-level Special Topics)
• 2 Mapping German Culture courses with attached one- hour FLAC sections (GERM 321-350)

Option GERM 303 Composition and Conversation I may be substituted for any of the above courses except 304, 411 and 412.

Please note: For single majors, a maximum of four transfer courses can count toward the major. For double majors, a maximum of three transfer credits can count toward the major. Request for exceptions to these rules will be considered by department committee.

Honors Thesis

The department strongly encourages students to undertake an honors thesis in their final year, which consists of a substantial essay based on independent research under faculty supervision (GERM 403 and 404). Students should consider this option especially if they wish to apply to graduate school in the humanities, social sciences, and law.