Vom 11. bis 13. Juni 2010 findet in Tübingen das diesjährige Orientierungsseminar statt, das der Vorbereitung der deutschen VDAC-Stipendiatinnen und -Stipendiaten auf ihr Studium und ihren Aufenthalt in den USA dient. Auf dem Programm stehen u.a. Unterschiede zwischen dem deutschen und dem amerikanischen Universitätssystem, Strategien zum Umgang mit einem Kulturschock, die Vorstellung der US-Partneruniversitäten und das gegenseitige Kennenlernen. Als Highlight des Rahmenprogramms werden die Teilnehmer(innen) auf Einladung SKH Prinz Georg Friedrich von Preußen die Burg Hohenzollern besichtigen. 

Anmeldung: bitte bis zum 7. Juni bei Frau Ursula Bell-Köhler und Herrn Mike Pilewski .

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Foto: A. Kniesel

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to The University of the South! Usually known as "Sewanee", this remote academic institution is a unique place to be. Already the name has something beautiful in it.  Located on top of a mountain, the Cumberland Plateau in Tennessee, in the middle of a forest and surrounded by lakes, caves and bluffs, the college owns a spectacular natural setting of 13,000 acres called the Domain. Without a doubt, this physical environment provides an impressive academic and recreational resource. Sewanee invites you to get involved with nature. Hiking, canoeing, rock climbing, caving, cross-country running or mountain biking - everything is possible, and for free! The Sewanee Outing Program (SOP) offers students, faculty and staff the chance to explore the wonderful outdoor environment of Sewanee's domain.

The distinctive campus architecture seems to belong in a fairy tale or some similar enchanted place. Based on the Gothic tradition of Oxford and Cambridge, the campus features beautiful sandstone buildings and garden pathways embedded into a wooded landscape that is crowned with bell towers. The spiritual and physical center is the majestic All Saints' Chapel, which reminds me of cathedrals back home.

As one of the top liberal arts institutions in the US, Sewanee houses only about 1,500 students. Although The University of the South constitutes just a small community, there is a thriving cultural life. Besides the diverse outdoor activities, students have the opportunity to get engaged in musical ventures that range from the orchestra to radio shows on 91.3fm. Incorporating a huge pool, the gym called Fowler Center allows students to relieve stress and get away from books and laptops. Approximately seventy percent of the student body at Sewanee belongs to social fraternities or sororities. These 21 student associations are responsible for community service, promoting scholarships and maintaining alumni relations. On the weekends, the frat houses are the places to go. Concerts featuring popular musicians and even Sewanee students are regularly organized. Every week the Sewanee Union Theater (SUT) screens recent movies, interesting documentaries or all-time classics. The Organization for Cross-Cultural Understanding (OCCU) provides a forum for all students to share their cultural heritage and presents the interaction of these diverse cultures as a positive component of the liberal arts experience. Every semester a potluck dinner is organized to exchange international cuisine. In short, Sewanee's focus on cultural thriving testifies to its emergence among mainstream colleges and universities.

Current residents of the German House. From the left: Derek Taylor, Cody Bennett, Sam Fox, Claudia Schreiber, Michael Haywood, and April Dale.

Language houses in German, French, Spanish and Russian enhance cultural understanding and language learning. Based on the concept of several American students living together with one native speaker, I can speak from my own experience that these houses develop not only intercultural knowledge, but also lifelong cross-cultural friendships. Moreover, cultural events are frequently organized and hosted by these houses. For example, on the 9th of November, the German House celebrated the 20th anniversary of The Fall of the Berlin Wall. To mark that event, I myself presented a speech about the experiences my parents had growing up in former East Germany. Movie screenings, cook-ins and discussions also make the Language Houses vivid and culturally thriving places.

Tradition is an important value in Sewanee. Although there is no official dress code, students are usually attired in a decent way. Students participate in the Class Dress tradition in order to show respect for their professors and the education they receive. Nevertheless, flip-flops are the student body's footwear of choice. A more important principle is the Honor Code - probably the heart of Sewanee tradition. All new students at Sewanee are charged with signing and upholding this Honor Code upon matriculation. Signers pledge not to lie, steal or cheat. It was a unique experience for me to write my exams without the attendance of the teacher, and even being able to write a home-take test. The whole system here is based on trust and honesty, and it applies to all aspects of student life on campus, not just academics. Another tradition is that of the Sewanee Angels. Based on a folk story, it is said that the Domain of The University of the South is a place so beautiful that angels dwell within its gates. The Sewanee Angels protect the place and all its inhabitants. When departing campus, you have to tap the roof of your car as you drive through the gates in order to pick up your guarding angel. Upon your return, you tap the roof of your car to release the angel.

The education in Sewanee is rich and challenging. Classes are small, vivid discussions and participation are highly expected and the academic workload is eminent. Besides a midterm and a final exam, several papers, quizzes and presentations must be completed during the semester. In the beginning, I was a little afraid that I would not be able to fulfill all the expectations. However, the workload not only helps you to organize yourself, but provides a very intensive learning environment. I have read so many books since I have been in Sewanee. And that is only one fact out of many that makes me very proud to be part of the Sewanee experience.

Claudia Schreiber

Arriving in Birmingham, which is about one hour of driving away from Tuscaloosa, I fortunately got picked up by members of the German House of the University of Alabama. In this semester, the German House was inhabited by eight Americans, seven Germans, and one Belgium. The goal of this "living-learning-community" is to get to know each other's culture and language by living together. One major advantage of this way of housing, which is directly on campus, was that we could right away get to know a lot of Americans and their friends. Our American housemates willingly take us with their cars to get groceries, to go a restaurant or any other place we need to go. I came here with three other German students of the VDAC. Arriving in this house, I went into my new room which was ready-furnished with a bed, a desktop, and a dresser. In the following days, we were kept busy with many classes for orientation. Because of the Graduate Teaching Assistantship (GTA-ship) that was arranged for us by the VDAC we will be teaching German, which was why we had to start with a few classes on teaching methods. Due to this GTA-ship, I get a salary of $1200 a months. However, living in the German House costs almost $900 a months. Additionally, the university charges one about $200 for enrolling into classes per semester.

The cafeteria serves only food by different franchise-companies like "Burger King" or "Chick Fil-A". Because of any missing subsidization for students, daily meals are hardly affordable. I usually went two to three times a week to "Burger King" where one could still get the cheapest meal for about $4,50. All in all, the money earned from the GTA-ship is not enough for all living expenses. 

To keep our GTA-ships we have to take two German classes per semester, which makes it reasonable to aim for a German Master's degree for which ten classes are needed. Classes usually take 2 ½ hours. However, due to a more relaxed way of working in class and a lower number of classes, the amount of work is about the same as in Germany. I took two classes for teaching methodology, "teaching methods" and ITAP (International Teaching Assistantship Program). Additionally, I took three German classes: "Selected Authors" gave an overview on German Literature from Lessing to Brecht, "The Holy Grail" was about Wolfram's of Eschenbach Parzival; my third class "Independent Studies" about Nietzsche had a special way of teaching which I found very interesting: At this university students can just go to professors and ask them if they would do "Independent Studies", where one meets the professor two or three times per semester individually to talk about the topic. After a lot of reading, two to three papers are handed in within the semester. I really liked the individualized style of teaching that I could choose the object of study I want to do research on.

The "scholarship" comprises a maximum of four semesters, in which we receive payment by the university. Having attended six classes we have earned enough credit hours to start teaching. Until then, we help professors grading papers, copying books, and offering tutoring hours for American students of German. In my first semester, I took five classes so that I will start teaching in my third semester. 

I am planning to finish my Master within three semesters. We can either write a Master's thesis, or do two classes. Because I have always wanted to write a longer paper, I decided to write a Master thesis. It is going to be about Lessing and Nietzsche. Due to a very good rate of professors to graduate students (four professors and ten graduate students), we have a very friendly and close relationship to our professors. One has the feeling that the professors really care about our education and our future.

Furthermore, as a master's student we have the feeling that one has already a certain scientific standing, because it is much easier to go and apply at conferences. In a few days, for instance, I will go to a conference in Philadelphia about the topic "clothing and identity in German literature". There, I will present my slightly modified paper for one of my classes from last semester about Parzival: "outer aesthetics in Parzival". Most of the travel expenses will probably get funded by the University of Alabama.

During the time of last semester, many friendships have developed in the German House. We often do things together. For example, last semester we had a soccer-team that played in an intramural soccer league - same is planned for next semester. In general, there are many opportunities to do sports here. A huge place to play soccer is only in a one-minute walking distance. The recreation-center is only in a walking distance of five minutes. Furthermore, the "German Club" of the university often invites many people for social events like a barbecue at the German House. In this way, we were able to get to know more American students. I should not forget the football-culture: At this university is one of the biggest and most successful college-football-teams of the USA. It won the national championship at the beginning of January, which was the reason why the starting of classes was delayed for three days. If it was home game day, everything was about football. Thousands of families came with their RV's, the library and the recreation-center closed, and the campus was filled with many football-fans.

In the summer, it was almost unbearable to stay outside, especially during noon time, because temperatures went up to about 40°C with extreme humidity. Therefore, one went into buildings all of which were usually strongly air-conditioned. In fall and winter, however, temperatures and the weather is really nice. The wind hardly ever blows, the sun often shines and due to its small distance to the equator it is very strong even in the winter. If I had to say what I will miss when I come home to Germany, it will definitely be the weather, interlibrary loans that are free of charge, the good opportunities for research, and the many possibilities to do sports.

Reinhard Müller

Arriving in the small town Oberlin in the middle of Ohioan nowhere, I was asked many times why I came. My answer, that I wanted to get to know the USA from an inside perspective, was always responded to with "Well, Oberlin is definitely not the USA".

Indeed, Oberlin reminds me very much of the small Gallian village offering resistance to the big Roman Empire in "Asterix & Obelix". From an American point of view, Oberlin is as liberal as can be, with its Program House for Feminist and Transgendered People, its gender neutral bathrooms and countless events for political discussion. I can get a glimpse of what the "real USA" must be like when Students tell me about how shocked they were arriving at Oberlin, meaning that I learn most of other people's culture shocks, and not my own one.

That's not to say that I did not experience a little culture shock myself, I did. I'm still not a hundred percent used to getting asked "How are you" twenty times a day, and I still notice myself thinking about how I really am to give the most adequate answer instead of just saying something quick or not answering at all, which seems to be perfectly socially acceptable at times. But as I said, my culture shock must be tiny compared to what's possible.

Oberlin's liberality is by far not the only thing interesting about my first semester here, though. As the German Language Teaching Assistant, I have to live in one of the many program houses, in German House. It's a house for students with some German speaking abilities and an interest in German culture. As I found out, this is the perfect place to be to fulfill my mission of cultural exchange and diminishing prejudices between Germans and Americans. As one of my duties as LTA I organize "German House Events" (which have been very much food-related as I notice looking back), in which cultural exchange thrives at its best. But also while just hanging out in the lounge watching TV there's always some cultural learning going on. I would have never thought that I could get so much out of my simply living in German House.

Also, German House hosts a German movie night every week, the movies of which I get to pick. It has been incredibly interesting to me to talk to people about the movies and find out what they like or don't like and why. Another part of my work as LTA is attending the German Table at the dining hall and talk to students of German in German. That way, I got to know a lot of people pretty fast, and I have to say that Oberlin is full of absolutely interesting personalities.

This first semester I took Philosophy and Neuropharmacology, the former of which the most exciting course I ever had, the latter definitely the most challenging. I very much like and appreciate the idea of a Liberal Arts College, in which you can study a variety of subjects and will definitely get a much broader education. So I decided to try and broaden my horizon myself, not taking any psychology courses, which is my major in back in Marburg. I'm very glad I had the possibility to discover my huge love for philosophy here, and plan on taking it home with me.

Between fall and spring semester, the month of January, called Winter Term, is the time for students to go after their personal interests. Every student has to conduct a "Winter Term Project" which can basically be anything a student wants to do, if that project plan is accepted by a faculty member. People then, in their liberal Oberlin spirit, do anything, from an internship to brewing their own beer, from baking a different bread every day to building a bicycle out of bamboo. Another possibility is to take part in one of the projects offered by the college, for example a language intensive course. This Winter Term, I taught the conversation part of a German beginners class. Since I have never taught a whole class of students (26 students in this case), this was a very new and also very rewarding experience for me. Seeing the advances the students make from day to day was just great.

But it was not only work and studying that made my stay here so valuable so far. I also had the possibility to do some travelling and see some of the probably more "real" USA. During fall break I went to visit New York City together with my sister and we discovered Manhattan together, which was an absolutely amazing experience. I hope I will have many more opportunities to see more of the country next semester.

I cannot thank the VDAC enough for making all this possible. I learned so much last semester and am sure to learn much more next semester, so this is definitely one of the most valuable life experiences for me.

Kathrin Tertel