The University of Cologne Takes Great Care of New Students
The University of Cologne takes great care of new students plunged into an unfamiliar environment. The first week was called “Introduction”, and this is when members of a student organization in WiSo faculty show new arrivals around the city, the university, and talk about the system of learning here, as well as organizing a variety of activities, for example, trips to other cities, and social barbecues. You need have no fear of being alone, the people here are very open and friendly and happy to spend time with each other at different events.
Exchange students who arrived a month early could take an intensive German language course corresponding to their knowledge and abilities. To this end, in early March, there was a special test whose organization and content can be compared with international exams. Those who arrived later had the opportunity to take a German course during the semester. When learning German here, the approach is strict and thorough – during the semester, you can take courses that focus on the development of certain aspects of the language, for example, only grammar or phonetics, or writing texts, but it is necessary to visit these classes; if a student attends less than 75% of the lessons, they are not allowed to take the final exam.
Learning a language is certainly important, but there are many other opportunities for development. At the faculty, each student must obtain at least 30 credits per semester, which is approximately 5-6 subjects. The choice of courses at the WiSo faculty is massive, one can take courses in English and German languages, ranging from economics, management and business to sociology, political science and psychology.
There is also the opportunity to attend summer schools, and there are also visiting professors from other universities and countries. For example, in mid-June, Bruno Latour gave several lectures on ‘An inquiry into the modes of existence and concept of imagination’, and in a few days there will be a module dedicated to ‘Fantasy and imagination in Husserl’s phenomenology’.
The University of Cologne has a huge number of opportunities for the development of sports, theatre and even vocal skills. Many German people are fond of sport, with a large number of them jogging every day, while at the university, there are marathons and for German students the main mode transportation is by bike. There are seminars, which are held on weekends and aim to develop specific skills - such as public speaking or acting. They are held in a cozy atmosphere, often outdoors, and in most cases, in German.
Right now the university is in the middle of its peak exam time, with hundreds of students sitting in the library which is usually open for students from 8 am to midnight, but some days the students can "burn the midnight oil" until 4 am. To pass an exam, you need to know a subject really well, for example, in many subjects, you need to answer at least 75% of questions correctly. If not, students have to retake the exam until they pass.
During the exchange, I was able to visit many cities of North-Rhine Westphalia, including the former capital of Germany - Bonn, modern and fashionable Dusseldorf, the"capital" of bikes - Muenster and the fairytale city of Aachen, which borders three countries, one of which I visited - the Netherlands. During my stay here, I made a lot of new friends, developed my English and German and greatly improved my knowledge.
To other students I can say – have no fear about applying for an exchange program because it is undoubtedly worth it and it’s a great opportunity to develop your language skills with other international students.
Tatiana Kozlova
Social Sciences spring 2015