Bates Fall Semester Abroad, Germany

Associate Professor Greer (Mathematics); Assistant Professors Cernahoschi (German and Russian Studies) and Kazecki (German and Russian Studies)mast>During the fall semester of 2015, Bates students, including entering first-year students, can experience the excitement of living and learning in Berlin, Germany. A meeting point of past and present, Berlin has played a major role in world history and is a vibrant setting for contemporary culture. One of the most important intellectual powers in Europe in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, Berlin is home to two world-class universities and many research institutes, which profoundly affected the development of mathematics and science and changed culture and politics far beyond Germany's borders. Berlin also illustrates the tragic course of the twentieth century: the rise of totalitarian regimes, two world wars, and the post-World War II division of the city, the country, and the continent.

Since the fall of the Berlin Wall and German reunification, Berlin has risen rapidly as a symbol of change in the New Europe. Today it is the capital of Germany's largest economy and is a young and energetic cosmopolitan center. Berlin's proximity to the Polish border invites exploration of the region's multicultural landscape, its changing borders, and the social transition of former communist countries such as the German Democratic Republic and Poland after 1989.

The Fall Semester Abroad program in Berlin offers students the opportunity to deepen their understanding of European history, immerse themselves in German culture, and enhance their proficiency in German language. The program begins in late August with a four-week intensive German course; students are placed based on their ability. After the intensive German course, students continue their study of German throughout the semester, and take two courses with Bates faculty. Program trips bring students to Bavaria, the coast of the Baltic Sea, and Poland. No prior knowledge of German is required.