About the German Studies Department
Curriculum
The undergraduate curriculum is broadly based and extremely flexible. Most of our students begin their study of German at Brown in Beginning German. Beginning and Intermediate German are taught by Jane Sokolosky and graduate Teaching Assistants using a highly interactive and lively approach. Professor Sokolosky is a specialist in language acquisition who has also done research on Viennese culture around 1900. She carefully trains and mentors the Teaching Assistants. Those who concentrate in German Studies typically also concentrate in another field, most often history and international relations. Students are encouraged to engage in this kind of cross-disciplinary work and to accelerate their understanding of German culture by studying abroad on one of our Brown-approved programs in Berlin or Tübingen. Professor Sokolosky advises students on these programs and on-site coordinators assist them with their immersion into life and study in Germany .
Whether students want to learn the German language for utilitarian purposes or for more advanced work in intellectual and cultural studies, whether they enroll in a course on aesthetics or on disability studies, they are given plenty of individualized attention in small classes, usually between eight and twenty students. Courses taught in English may have larger enrollments. Outside the classroom professors are easily found and very accessible. Specific venues for casual conversation include our weekly Kaffeestunde and occasional Filmabende . Lectures, exhibitions and performances also provide opportunities to discuss cultural topics.
FOR A LIST OF CURRENT OFFERINGS, SEE COURSES.
