German at William & Mary

Junior Year or Semester in Münster

Each year the German faculty of the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures selects up to five William and Mary students to study during their junior year at the Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität in Münster, Germany. By agreement with the university's Akademisches Auslandsamt (Foreign Student Office), these students are automatically admitted there for the academic year. The German faculty also designates one of the students to receive a full maintenance scholarship (EURO 500 per month for 10 months) provided through the Akademisches Auslandsamt.

Qualifications: 

The William and Mary students attend regular classes at the university, and thus must possess good fluency in German in order to profit from this opportunity. The minimum level of qualification for the program is five semesters of college-level German or the equivalent, i.e., German 205, 206 or 208. Even for those with this background, the German faculty sometimes recommends a 4- to 8-week intensive course at a Goethe-Institut in Germany before the beginning of the university's academic year.

Living and academic arrangements: 

The students live in university dormitories, generally in single rooms with individual or shared kitchen and lavatory facilities. There is no on-site director from William and Mary, but assistance is available from three sources:
  • the Akademisches Auslandsamt; 
  • the William and Mary German House tutor, who is selected each year by the English department at the University of Münster and returns to the university in the following year; 
  • the Deutsch-Amerikanische Gesellschaft, a group of families and individuals in Münster who have a strong interest in fostering German-American relations and thus "adopt" the William and Mary students.

Courses and credit: 

Courses taken in Münster are evaluated for transfer credit when the students return to William and Mary for their senior year. The College is committed to providing at least 30 hours credit for classes which students can show (through seminar certificates, tests, papers, documented interviews by professors, etc.) they have attended. Naturally it is easiest for concentrators in German to find courses which fit their concentration; however, students in other fields, e.g., international studies, government, history, and even natural sciences or mathematics can also find courses which contribute to their concentration or other degree requirements. Close consultation with their William and Mary concentration adviser before and during the year abroad is highly recommended.

Costs: 

Neither William and Mary nor the University of Münster charges tuition for this academic program, but the latter does require nominal fees for such things as student health insurance, the student association, etc. The main cost of this program is for transportation to and from Germany, for room and board, for books, and for other travel and personal expenses during the year. The scholarship amount mentioned above is meant to cover the costs of room and board, and can be used as an estimate of how much students without this scholarship should budget each month.


Application procedure: Students interested in applying for this program should contact the head of the German section. Other information can be found on the webpages of the Akademisches Auslandsamt and of the Studentenwerk.