Registering and Taking Classes in Germany
When choosing courses, students should be aware that the university awards two different types of Scheine – the Leistungsschein and the Teilnahmeschein. Brown’s policies for graduation credit stipulate that only two of the student’s four courses may award a Teilnahmeschein – in other words, students must receive a Leistungsschein for at least two courses per semester. The Leistungsschein requirements vary depending on the professor, but in general this type of Schein requires the writing of a final paper integrating your class experiences and readings. Some professors may also require oral presentations or a series of smaller papers commenting on class topics.
Please note that, while these are Brown’s policies for graduation credit, some departments may have different policies regarding the acceptance of the Teilnahme or Leistungsschein when awarding concentration credit. Therefore, always check with your concentration advisor at Brown to ensure that the type of Schein you receive will grant you the necessary concentration credit. You should always assume that Brown concentration advisors will expect to review written work or a professor’s evaluation. This can take many forms: a paper, an evaluation of an oral report, or written exercises in the case of German as a Foreign Language courses.
You may enroll in more classes than the required four courses, but no matter which type of Schein you receive, these extra courses will not mean that you receive extra Brown credit. The maximum credit you can receive from Brown for a semester abroad is four credits. Nonetheless, additional classes that are successfully completed will be listed on your transcript with a grade of “S.”
Studies at the university are divided into two stages – the basic study stage (Grundstudium) and the main study stage (Hauptstudium). Basic study courses give an overview of the available branches of the field. The humanities have three levels (A, B, and C) of courses in this stage. A typical A-course (Grundkurs A) would be an introductory course (Einfuehrungsseminar or Ueberblicksseminar). In literature, a B-course would deal with a genre or a certain time period, whereas a C-course would begin to look deeper into an author’s works or a literary movement or school. Proseminare and Seminare may provide a crossover of genres, authors, and time periods. Vorlesungen are lecture courses.
Sample Course Registration Possibilities:
Option 1:
2 Vorlesungen
1 Seminar (or Proseminar)
1 German as a Foreign Language course
Option 2:
2 German as a Foreign Language courses
2 Seminare
Option 3:
2 Seminare
2 Vorlesungen
Option 4:
1 Vorlesung
3 Seminare