Program Descriptions

The BGSU M.A. in German is a two-year program in which you spend the first year of graduate study at the University of Salzburg in Austria and the second at Bowling Green State University in Ohio.

The program offers you three different possibilities for pursuing your research interests.

Language and Teaching Track: You will focus on linguistic and pedagogical topics, and acquire teaching experience and assist professors with their work. This track is ideal for perfecting your language skills; it will prepare you for the teaching profession or for work with businesses that have strong ties to German-speaking countries.

Literary and Cultural Studies Track: You can pursue a wide variety of literary and cultural topics in German. Comparative approaches and the development of specialized research interests are encouraged. This track can serve as an ideal preparation for further studies (Ph.D. programs) in the humanities, for a wide variety of professions and government positions that demand cultural expertise, or as preparation for teaching German at the college and high-school level.

Dual Degree Track: You can pursue a dual M.A. degree in German and Political Science, History, Music History, or another field (such as a second language, English, art, etc.). This track is an ideal preparation for further studies in both fields, for business and government positions that demand cultural, historical, and/or political expertise, and also for teaching more than one subject at the college or high-school level.

Graduate study in German at Bowling Green State University takes place in a friendly atmosphere. The department emphasizes personal guidance and advising. The curriculum is flexible enough to meet a variety of student needs and career orientations.

A special feature of the department is the writer-in-residence program, sponsored by the Max Kade Foundation, which brings an Austrian or German writer to campus each fall semester. In addition to public readings, the writer ordinarily teaches a course on contemporary literature for advanced undergraduate and graduate students.

You can take part in the German Drama Workshop in the spring semester. Most recent performances include Roland Schimmelpfennig’s Der goldene Drache, Friedrich Dürrenmatt’s Die Physiker and Heinrich von Kleist’s Der zerbrochene Krug.  

You will be able to participate in activities, such as the German Club, the weekly Stammtisch, and the International Film Series.

There are also many opportunities to become acquainted with German and Austrian exchange students who are on the Bowling Green campus each year.