Welcome!
- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
“Those who do not speak a foreign language, do not know their own.”
As the famous German writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe said two hundred years ago, learning a foreign language also means gaining a more thorough understanding of one’s own, and thus one's own cultural identity, as language and culture are considered by many to be synonymous.
But why study German, in particular?
Germany today has the world’s fourth largest economy, and German is the most widely spoken language in Europe. It is the official language of Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Luxembourg, and Liechtenstein. Also, it is the native language of a significant portion of the population in northern Italy, eastern Belgium, the Netherlands, Denmark, eastern France, parts of Poland, the Czech Republic, Russia, and Romania, as well as in other parts of Europe. For serious scholars in many fields, German is still the key to some of the world's best research in the sciences, and its literature and history are of paramount significance to the Western traditions.
Our program is designed to meet the individual needs of students from the elementary to the advanced levels, in keeping with Chapman’s mission to “provide a personalized education of distinction that leads to inquiring, ethical and productive lives as global citizens.”
Degree Offered: German Studies Minor
A minimum of 15 credits of the degree must be comprised of upper-division courses.
Students must complete a minimum of 12 credits from section one and six additional credits from either section one or two or equivalent courses taken abroad.
Some upper-division courses that count toward the German minor can also be applied to other disciplines such as:
- Music
- Business
- Various fields in the Humanities
- Holocaust Studies
Our classes cover a range of topics in literature, film, business and culture. Every semester one or two upper-division courses are offered. Under special circumstances, independent studies reflecting the special interests of individual students may also be possible.
