German
Study the German language and culture to become a global professional.
Why Study German?
German is the native language of over 120 million people, which is the largest community in the European Union. German is an international language of business, education, science, and technology. Many of the Western world's most important works of philosophy, literature, music, art history, theology, psychology, chemistry, physics, engineering and medicine are written in German.
German Americans are the single largest heritage group in the United States, with significant cultural influences. They are also a major force in Hollywood, with actors who shape American popular culture such as Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt, Sandra Bullock, and Tina Fey.
Our German Program
The Department of Modern Languages offers a German major and minor as well as the master's degree with a German concentration in the Languages emphasis.
Our courses are the cornerstone of a liberal arts education and serve as the gateway to a global career. Studying German means a lot more than learning to understand and speak the German language. The program emphasizes composition, conversation, literature, German life and thought across centuries, history and music. Small class sizes allow the program to be intimate and flexible, giving students the opportunity to ask questions and share ideas with fellow classmates and instructors.
Faculty Expertise
Students of German can work closely with the faculty who have expertise that includes Yiddish theatre in Eastern Europe, National Socialist Germany and secret police files, 15th to 18th century German literature and culture, history of medicine, media studies, German national identity, second language pedagogy, and language acquisition for children with migration background.
The scholarship of Dr. Corina L. Petrescu, Professor of German, developed from her interest in subversion under authoritarian regimes. Her current research focuses on the life story and creative output of Yankev Shternberg (1890-1973), an Ashkenazi poet, playwright, theatrical director, and cultural analyst of the twentieth century. By analyzing his theoretical and applied approach to avant-garde theater in interwar Bucharest, Romania, she presents Shternberg as a cultural mediator at a time of powerful social and political conflicts in Eastern Europe. Her work on Shternberg has been supported by the Fulbright Commission and now a fellowship at the Israel Institute for Advanced Studies in Jerusalem.
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Academic Information
Learn about the German major and minor requirements. Learn the general education requirements for the B.A. degree and download a 4-year degree plan for the B.A. in German.
German Curriculum -
Scholarships
There are designated scholarships for German majors and minors: Boyd-Eickhorst Scholarship; Dr. Hans-Jurgen Gaycken German Student Excellence Award; Dr. Benjamin Franklin Martin III Memorial Study Abroad Scholarship. And, there are scholarships offered by the College of Liberal Arts and UM Office of Financial Aid.
Modern Languages Scholarships -
Delta Phi Alpha - German Honor Society
The Department of Modern Languages maintains an active chapter of Delta Phi Alpha, the national German Honor Society. Membership is based upon academic performance. Students must be in their third year of learning German, earn a 3.5 GPA in German courses, and a 3.0 overall GPA. Each year a new class of German students are inducted as new members.
Delta Phi Alpha
Featured Course
Germ 341. German in the US
This course features the cultural history of German immigrants to North America. Recently, students worked on a translation project with the Aliceville Town Museum in Aliceville, AL, which has an exhibition on a local WWII prisoner-of-war camp with a collection of German-language newspapers written by the prisoners. The class took a field trip to the museum and met with a historian of the campu.
Dr. Chris Hutchinson, Faculty for Germ 341
“The translation project benefited both our students and the museum: it helped our students improve their German-language skills as well as their translation skills. And it gave them a chance to use their language skills in a way that will be of lasting benefit to the community. It helped the museum by making a part of their exhibit more accessible to a wider audience. Since few of their visitors read German, our translations will allow more visitors to gain an insight into the cultural life of German prisoners-of-war in Alabama.”
Meet the Faculty
Corina L. Petrescu
- Professor of Modern Languages
Christopher Hutchinson
- Assistant Professor of German
Kai Wash
- Lecturer in Modern Languages
Meet a German major
Calloway Bills
What German class had the most impact on you?
See Calloway’s AnswerBeyond the Classroom
German Club
The Ole Miss German Club hosts the weekly conversation groups, sponsors guest speakers, offers movie and TV nights, sponsors a Grove tent during football season, hosts high school German classes on campus, and more. Enjoy the screenings and discussions of German films and TV productions held bi-weekly on Thursdays at 5:30pm. For details about films and locations, see Ole Miss German Club's social media accounts.
Kaffeestunde German Conversation Group
Join our weekly informal conversation group to practice German, meet friends, caffeinate the body, and exercise the mind. Every Tuesday from 2:30pm–3:30pm in the Honors College kitchen.
Prepare for Your Future Career
An internship in Germany will improve language skills, deepen cultural knowledge, and develop professional skills valued by employers. We partner with the German-American Exchange to match students with paid summer internships in Germany. To participate, students must have taken two semesters of German by their sophomore year. The application deadline is in October. Please contact Dr. Christopher Hutchinson.
Getting Involved!
"I loved the German Club. I joined as a freshman, and it helped me find a sense of community with weekly Kaffeestude (Coffee hour) and biweekly German Movie Night. After that, I served as event coordinator. vice president, then president. I also loved the variety of classes taught in German. Outside of ‘typical’ languages classes, I was able to take German Cinema and Business German! The department helps find and encourage study abroad opportunities that fit your schedule whether it is for an academic year, semester, or only for a month."
Ally Watrous
BS in Chemistry, BA in German and Physics, minors in French and Math '24
Study Abroad
Berlin: Speak German with Confidence
Live in Germany's largest and most vibrant city while taking intensive language courses at the Free University of Berlin. The six-week programs offers German language courses worth six credits that can count toward the general education, German minor, or major. Afternoon excursions explore Berlin's history and beautiful scenery.
Jena: Political Science and German
Jena is a small university town in the state of Thuringia with 110,000 citizens and, together with the nearby cities of Erfurt and Weimar, constitutes a metropolitan area of 500,000. The Friedrich Schiller University, a public research university with ~21,000 students, was founded in 1558. Study German, history, literature, and more.
Klagenfurt: Study Journalism in Austria
Located in Klagenfurt, a city of 100,000 in southern Austria, Alpen-Adria University has 10,000 students. Situated in a lush environment that includes forest-covered hills and mountains, a lake and the Glan River, the city is home to UM's only exchange partner in Austria. Journalism students can take electives in English on contemporary topics.
Köln: In the Rhine-Ruhr Megalopolis
Located in a 2,000-year-old-city spanning the Rhine River, the University of Cologne was established in 1388 and has nearly 50,000 students. It offers courses in English and German for students who want to enroll in courses ranging from German, business, history, European Studies, international studies, literature, and political science.
Mainz: Study in the Heart of Germany
Located in Mainz on the river Rhine and named after the local invention of the movable-type printing press, Johannes Gutenberg University is perfect for German, history, or political science majors. While the first Univ. of Mainz was founded in 1477, the current university, with 32,000 students, dates to just after WWII.
Potsdam: German Studies a train-ride from Berlin
Potsdam, located 30 minutes from Berlin, is home to UNESCO World Heritage buildings including a baroque Prussian palace. The University of Potsdam, with 22,000 students, offers a metropolitan experience with courses taught in German and English. Enroll in courses on history, humanities, international studies, German language, and literature.
Outstanding Student Awards
| Year | Honors Day German Award |
| 2024 | Kumali Schoen |
| 2023 | John Walker Bethea |
| 2022 | John Walker Bethea |
| 2021 | Susanna Leigh Cassisa |
| 2020 | Maggie Lin Smith |
| 2019 | Graham Kittrell Garner |
| 2018 | |
| 2017 | Maggie Lin Smith |
| 2016 | Emmalee Jasmine King |
| 2015 | Savannah Winn Coleman |
| 2014 | Stephen Colby Woods |
| 2013 | Zack Newton |
| 2012 | Jacqueline Grace Boyce |
| 2011 | William Charles Gates |
| 2010 | Jessica Ann Beck |
| 2009 | Devon Leigh Emig |
| 2008 | Robert Lynch |
| 2007 | Jessica Beck |
| Year | German Awards |
| 2024 | 100 Level: Aidan Moore 200 Level: Kaylyn Beard 300 Level: Megan Gaare 500 Level: Alexandria Watrous |
| 2023 | 100 Level: Diego Abele 200 Level: Calloway Bills 300 Level: Will Pilkington 500 Level: Edith-Marie Green MA Level: Mikayla Jordan |
| 2022 | 100 Level: Elsa Allmendinger 200 Level: Abby Carroll 300 Level: Logan Parker 500 Level: Delaney Smith MA Level: Mikayla Jordan |
| 2021 | 100 Level: Alexa Aschenbeck 200 Level: William Charles Wooten French 300 Level: Michael Robert Martinkovic 500 Level: Neely Caradine Griggs |
| 2020 | 100 Level: Grace Lynn Gowen 200 Level: Joshua K. Davis 300 Level: Matthew Zediker 500 Level: Sophie Barbara Husslein |
| 2019 | 100 Level: Claudia Chambliss 200 Level: Stephanie Poiroux 300 Level: Susanna Cassisa 500 Level: Carlie Vowell MA Level: Joshua Smith |
| 2018 | |
| 2017 | |
| 2016 | Michael Day, Maggie Hall, Carlie Vowell |
| 2015 | Tobi Ku, Sarah Jackson, Illka Malmi |
| 2014 | Austin Boler, Brianna Johnson, Martina Cotelo, Morgan Philley |
| 2013 | Jarett Bell, Laura Jones, George Rochelle |
| 2012 | Jacqueline Boyce, Emmalee King, Kara Johnson, Lance Ezell |
| 2011 | Veenadhari Gadepalli, Maggie Savely, Stephen Woods, Wesley Youngblood |
| 2010 | Patrick Mooney, Martin Ducote, Martina Cotelo, Jacqueline Boyce, Kurt Smith |
| 2009 | Natalie Clayton, David Trewolla, Anna Whitley, Veronika Rozmahelova |
| 2008 | Michael Capito, Kurt Smith, Courtney Metz |
| 2007 | Joseph Atkins, Florida Levidiotis, Andrew McCown, John Paul Teel, Kelsey Williams |
| 2006 | |
| 2005 | |
| 2004 | Lindsey Dawn Etheridge (First Year), Grace Alta Jacobs (Second Year), Christopher Grant Kelly (Second Year), Christopher Blake Shedd (Third Year) |
Careers and Alumni
College of Liberal Arts students have access to a strong alumni network. Our German language alumni find careers in all major economic sectors, with the most common including:
- Business and finance
- Education
- STEM, such as energy, manufacturing, science, IT
- Law
- Government
- Healthcare
Deeneaus “Dee” Polk (B.A. German and International Studies 2011) is the Founder of 3LEVATE, a workforce, economic, and community development intermediary in the US South. With 3LEVATE, he hopes to build vibrant workforces in rural communities of the future.
And, Germany is Polk’s second home. He spent a year in Germany during high school as a Congress-Bundestag Scholar, and studied abroad at Mainz, Germany while at UM. He returned to Germany many times after graduation, including as a Fulbright Scholar and German Chancellor Fellow. After his Robert Bosch Fellowship in Berlin where he researched Germany’s vocational education training system, Polk became Director of the Mississippi Apprenticeship Program. He hopes to build new and innovative apprenticeship models and foster new transatlantic ties.
We are proud of the legacy built by German alumni.
- Senior Brand Manager, Starbucks
- VP of Finance, Walmart Mexico y Centroamerica
- Senior Associate, PwC Middle East
- Owner, Adams Realty
- Owner, Tom Davis State Farm Insurance
- Dean, University of North Texas
- Researcher, Vanderbilt University
- Teacher, Jones County Schools
- Teacher, Madison County Schools
- Tech Support Specialist, Mercedes Benz USA
- Supervisor, Entergy
- Logistics Specialist, Halliburton
- Judge, City of Olive Branch
- Attorney, Nance and Carmichael
- Analyst, US Dept of Defense
- Consultant, US Dept of Transportation
- Staff, Office of US Senator
- Physician, Internal Medicine Associates
- Editor, The Globe-London
- Company Manager, Atlanta Opera