Germany and the German language remain central to an understanding of historical, cultural, political and economic developments in Europe. Germany’s role as the engine of integration within the EU is well known. The future importance of Germany is likely to grow as EU enlargement encompasses Eastern Europe.

Germany is also at the heart of European culture. Berlin, at the centre of a current renaissance in European film-making, is a city of the future in every sense. The influence of German-speaking figures in the history of European culture and thought can hardly be over-stated (think of names like Bach, Nietzsche, Freud, Marx, Mozart, Goethe, Mann — the list could be considerably extended).

Whatever your political views, Europhile or Eurosceptic, a position of understanding is a position of strength, and essential for anyone who plans a modern career — in finance, business or administration, politics or the law, education, advertising or the arts. A knowledge of Germany, the German language and the Germans will be one of your greatest assets.

The German Department at Royal Holloway offers courses in the language, film, society, history, literature, philosophy and culture of Germany and Austria.

We seek above all to equip our graduates with the ability to speak, read and write German to a very high level, to give you the reliable language skills that are sought after by a wide variety of potential employers. At the same time, you will develop an understanding of Germany and the unique characteristics of the politics, culture, history and ideas that have established its strong and special place in modern Europe and the world, and which will shape its — and your — future.

Most graduates will have spent all or part of their third year of study in Germany or Austria, which is a vital distinguishing component of a degree in a European language. Not only are your language skills rapidly enhanced, but being fully immersed in a neighbouring culture is an experience whose value cannot be overestimated. It challenges Anglo-Saxon assumptions, stimulates fresh ideas and creativity, offers new perspectives on everyday life, education, business and the arts in a manner that will pay dividends professionally and personally for the rest of your life.

We have links with universities throughout Germany and in Austria. Whether you fancy spending a year in the Black Forest, or within easy reach of the Harz Mountains or the Swiss border, in Berlin, Munich or Vienna, you are bound to find something to appeal to you.

The Department was rated 5*, the highest category, in the 2001 national Research Assessment Exercise (RAE), and according to the recent 2008 RAE we are ranked equal second in the UK. All the staff in the Department are specialists in an important field of German Studies. Their work appears with international publishers and in many of the leading European and American journals. Members of the Department regularly lecture in cities throughout Europe and North America, in Israel — as well as nearer to home in the United Kingdom. They have been asked to contribute articles for the German press, literary and historical encyclopedias, opera programmes and exhibition catalogues, and to act in an advisory capacity for German television and radio.

In short, the staff of the Department are committed to participating at the highest levels in the development of their disciplines, and this is an essential basis for high standards of teaching. Courses are almost all taught in seminars or tutorials in groups small enough to allow the active exchange of ideas. If you have images of taking notes in a large hall amongst hundreds of others whilst a lecturer pontificates uninterruptedly for an hour — abandon them. Both German and English are used as the media for teaching; most language work is taught in German.

 

• German at RHUL
• Staff in German
• Research in German
• Degree Programmes with German
• German in Combinations
• Beginners German
• Course Units in German
• Undergraduate Applications
• Postgraduate Study
• Research Centre for the Holocaust and 20th-Century History