German
German Program
Learning German introduces you to the lands of ideas and diversity. Germany has Europe’s strongest economy and plays a central role in current issues such as the environment, politics, migration, and 21st-century globalization.
Germany is a leader in innovation and creativity and a major force in international
business, engineering, and science. German speakers have played a prominent role in
literature, art, music, and philosophy. German is one of the world’s major languages and is the most widely spoken language
in the European Union after English.
German Major
Our degree will provide you with the linguistic proficiency, critical-analytical skills, and cultural knowledge to help you succeed in a global, changing world!
German is an official language of five European countries (Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Belgium, Luxembourg, and Liechtenstein) and serves as the lingua franca of Central and Eastern Europe. It is a commonly spoken language in many other areas and has growing numbers of learners worldwide, notably in Brazil, China, and India.
The German major offers two emphases, each designed for a certain student population. The Society and Culture Emphasis is for students who come to the U without any background in German and must start language classes at the 1010 level.
The Advanced Language, Literature and Culture Emphasis can still be completed if you start at the 1010 level at the U, but it will take more time to complete than the Society and Culture Emphasis. The Advanced Language, Literature and Culture Emphasis is designed for students who start at a higher language level at the U and wish to acquire a higher language proficiency level.
If you declared your German major prior to Fall 2021, you have the option to either finish the requirements you have, or re-declare the major in one of the two emphases described above if you would rather complete the requirements associated with them instead.
Students should declare their major as soon as possible. Declaring a major locks in course requirements so students do not have to worry about requirements changing. To graduate, students must apply through the Graduation tile on their CIS Student Homepage by the graduation application deadline in the term they wish to graduate (and have all their requirements completed or in progress at that time). Please visit our Undergraduate Advising page for more information.
major requirements society & culture emphasis-post fall 2025MAJOR REQUIREMENTS ADVANCED LANGUAGE LITERATURE & CULTURE EMPHASIS-post fall 2025
major requirements society & culture emphasis-pre fall 2025MAJOR REQUIREMENTS ADVANCED LANGUAGE LITERATURE & CULTURE EMPHASIS-pre fall 2025 WLC PRACTICUM OPTIONS
Note that this plan is a prediction of courses but does not guarantee this exact availability of courses. Also note that students with prior language learning experience do not necessarily need to begin at the 1010 level and should visit our Language Placement FAQ page for questions about where to begin.
Students with advanced language skills (e.g., native speakers, heritage speakers, students who have lived for an extended period abroad) should not enroll in first, second, and some third-year courses. If you do not know what your language level is or if you think your situation justifies petitioning for an exception, contact the WLC advisors before enrolling in classes. For pedagogical reasons, the department reserves the right to remove advanced speakers who have not successfully petitioned from classes not appropriate for their language level.
German Minor
Students are required to declare their minor at least two semesters before their expected graduation date. Please visit our Undergraduate Advising page for more information.
Students with advanced language skills (e.g., native speakers, heritage speakers, students who have lived for an extended period abroad) should not enroll in first, second, and some third-year courses. If you do not know what your language level is or if you think your situation justifies petitioning for an exception, contact the WLC advisors before enrolling in classes. For pedagogical reasons, the department reserves the right to remove advanced speakers who have not successfully petitioned from classes not appropriate for their language level.
Student Opportunities
We encourage our students to take advantage of the many student opportunities offered through our program and our university, including learning abroad, internships and scholarships.
🚨 Calling all U of U German students! 🚨
Ready to use your German in real life AND make a difference? 🇩🇪✨
Join our after-school German program in Salt Lake City! Teach kids, boost your language skills, gain pro experience—and have a blast doing it! 🎒🗣️
💥 Are you level A2-B1?
💥 Love teamwork & teaching?
💥 Want to become the coolest person in your students’ lives?
You’ll get:
✅ Pedagogical training
✅ Real-world German practice
✅ A Goethe Institute course for just $25
✅ Course credit (GERM 3940 & 4888)
✅ Weekly prep support
🕐 Fridays 1–3 PM at SLARTS Middle School
📲 Apply now: karin.baumgartner@utah.edu
Learning Abroad
Learning abroad is the opportunity to live, study and intern abroad while completing your degree here at the University of Utah. Learning Abroad helps connect you to over 500+ program options in over 50 countries, many of which are great for improving your proficiency in another language. Learn more about Learning Abroad by visiting learningabroad.utah.edu and completing Learning Abroad 101.
To get started, see below for program options for German.
For questions, email Learning Abroad at learningabroad@utah.edu, call them at 801-581-5849, or visit in person at Union 159.
Faculty-Led Programs
The U partners with external organizations (Affiliates) to expand where you can go and what you can study on a learning abroad program. Affiliates offer programs at study centers, local institutions, or a combination of both in the host country. Programs are commonly structured around a particular theme or topic, such as "Language, Culture, and Society". Program options can also include internships, service learning & community engagement opportunities.
Exchanges
The U partners with universities around the world to offer you the opportunity to complete coursework in an immersive university environment alongside local students. Coursework can be quite flexible with students oftentimes completing major, minor, and general education requirements. Additionally, the cost of an exchange program is the same as paying U of U resident tuition, which makes exchanges one of our most affordable options!
- Christian-Albrechts University KielExchange Scholarship - CAU Kiel offers a 740 euro per month stipend to all eligible University of Utah undergraduate students who plan to participate in the U of U/CAU Kiel exchange program. Master’s students receive 800 euro per month and doctoral students receive 900 euro per month. This scholarship helps cover living expenses. Please contact Learning Abroad for more information.
- Heidelberg University Scholarship - Heidelberg University (HU) offers two semester scholarships each year to University of Utah undergraduate students who apply to participate in the U of U/HU exchange program. This scholarship provides students with a 700 euro/month stipend and also covers the cost of a free preparatory language course. All students who apply on time to the Heidelberg University Exchange program, regardless of length of program, will be automatically considered for this scholarship.
- Ludwig Maximillians University
- MCI Management Center Innsbruck - Ernst Mach Scholarship for studying at an Austrian university of applied sciences (Fachhochschule). Students (Undergraduate/Graduate) looking to spend one or two semesters at Management Center Innsbruck during the 2020-2021 academic year are welcome to apply for this scholarship. The grant is EUR 1,050 per month. Please note that this is a grant offered by the Austrian government, not by MCI, and it is competitive.
Affiliate Programs
The U partners with external organizations (Affiliates) to expand where you can go and what you can study on a learning abroad program. Affiliates offer programs at study centers, local institutions, or a combination of both in the host country. Programs are commonly structured around a particular theme or topic, such as "Language, Culture, and Society". Program options can also include internships, service learning & community engagement opportunities.
- German focused affiliate programs: click here
- University of Kiel Summer School Scholarship
University of Kiel offers one scholarship each summer for a U of U student participating on their German Language and Culture program. This scholarship, which is typically due in March, includes free participation in all course activities, food (half-board) and housing. The scholarship is open to students from all fields and at all levels (undergraduate, graduate, PhDs), but you must have basic German language skills since all lectures are given in German. Students should have passed the CEFR level A 2.2 before they can participate in the Summer Course.
*Note: This is NOT the U of U faculty-led program
Scholarships
University of Utah Scholarships
The Department of World Languages and Cultures, College of Humanities, and University offer many Scholarship opportunities.
View and Apply for Scholarships
University of Utah Scholarships
2,000 grants are awarded to US students and professors annually to study and research in Germany. Go to DAAD and Fullbright for scholarship information.
Internships
RISE- Research Internships in Science and Engineering
Summertime internships with German doctoral students at universities and research
institutions--no German required!
Date for applying: Early December
RISE Professional
Students about to complete their bachelor's or undergrads who are DAAD alumni can
apply for these summer internships with German companies.
Application deadline: Late January
InternXchange
Summer program in Berlin for American journalism and communications students with
advanced-intermediate German.
Application deadline: Late January
Paper Submissions
Green Talent Competition
Join the Competition and get the chance to visit the hot spots of sustainability research in Germany.
Graduate Sooner
Announcing the following changes to the German major and minor to help you graduate sooner and make it easier for you to double-major! Changes include exciting new courses, expanded range of classes and schedule time slots, and more flexible ways to get German credit!
New Courses
GERM 3050: Topics in German Culture, with an emphasis on German film!
GERM 4060: Advanced Grammar
GERM 4900: Love, War, and Betrayal in the German Middle Ages
And many more!
Flexibility
Take 1-credit German conversation course (GERM 3600) 3 times for 3 credits toward the major/minor! (can also be combined with 1-credit CLAC sections for major/minor credit)
Also choose from approved courses taught in English for German credit (Medieval History, Modern Germany, Holocaust and Remembrance, etc.)
Earn German Service Learning credits during our summer study abroad program in Kiel!
For Majors
Either WLC 2010 (formerly LANG 2010) or WLC 2020 (formerly LANG 2020) now required for major, not both!
For Minors
Either GERM 3550 or GERM 3560 now required for minor, not both!
Career Opportunities - Why Study German?
Your possibilities are unlimited when you study German. “Made in” Germany, Austria, or Switzerland are labels that signal quality of products, design, and lifestyle. That reputation translates into business and career opportunities, intellectual achievements, and vibrant cultural exchanges. Learning German unlocks the door to many career paths.
- Germany is one of the most important trading partners of the United States. German-American relations for the past 65 years have been, and will continue to be, the bedrock of transatlantic relations.
- Germany is the third largest investor in the US, the fourth largest national economy worldwide and the largest in the European Union.
- German companies, such as Adidas, BASF, Bayer, Bosch, Lufthansa, SAP, Siemens, T-Mobile or Volkswagen account for 800,000 jobs in the US (making them the third largest group of foreign employers in the country), and US companies have created approximately the same number of jobs in Germany.
- The competitiveness and desirability of “Made in Germany” products are indicated by Germany’s substantial trade surplus—162 Billion Euros ($209 Billion).
- Knowing German can boost your annual salary in the US by 4%, in Europe by even more.
Faculty
Tenure-Line Faculty
Career-Line Faculty
Learning Outcomes
By the end of their course of study, students enrolled in the Emphasis in German Society and Culture will be able to:
- Communicate in the German language at the Intermediate Level according to the ACTFL
scale; specifically:
- Students can engage in conversation, provide and obtain information, express feelings and emotions, and exchange opinions.
- Students can understand and interpret written and spoken languages at the intermediate level on a variety of topics.
- Students can present information, concepts, and ideas to an audience of listeners or readers used to non-native speakers on a variety of topics.
- Gain knowledge and understanding of the culture, history, and society of the German-speaking
countries; specifically
- Students demonstrate an understanding of the relationship between the perspectives and practices of the various cultures of the German-speaking countries.
- Students demonstrate an understanding of the relationship between the perspectives and products of the various cultures of the German-speaking countries
- Connect with other disciplines and acquire information
- Students reinforce and further their knowledge of other disciplines through the German language.
- Students acquire information and recognize the distinctive viewpoints that are only available through the German language and its cultures.
- Develop insight into the nature of language and culture
- Students demonstrate understanding of the nature of language though comparisons of German and their native language.
- Students demonstrate understanding of the concept of culture through comparisons of German and their native language
- Participate in multilingual communities at home and around the world
-
- Students use German both within and beyond the school setting.
- Students show evidence of becoming life-long learners by using German for personal
enjoyment and enrichment.
The Learning Outcomes will be assessed using the following:
- Students receive feedback in the form of exams, essays, quizzes, oral interviews throughout their course of study.
- Students will take a nationally exit exam, the OPIc, developed by the American Council for the Teaching of Foreign Languages and administered through L2 TReC on the campus of the University of Utah.
- We will track the achieved language levels of all students graduating with the Emphasis in German Society and Culture
- We will track alumni employment through the Alumni Center at the University of Utah.
By the end of their course of study, students enrolled in the Emphasis in Advanced Language, Literature, and Culture will be able to:
- Communicate in the German language at the Advanced Level according to the ACTFL scale; specifically:
-
- Students can engage in conversation, provide and obtain information, express feelings and emotions, and exchange opinions in all tenses, using a variety of advanced language structures.
- Students can understand and interpret written and spoken languages on a variety of topics.
- Students can present information, concepts, and ideas to an audience of listeners or readers not used to non-native speakers on a variety of topics.
- Gain knowledge and understanding of the culture, history, and society of the German-speaking countries; specifically
-
- Students demonstrate an advanced understanding of the relationship between the perspectives and practices of the various cultures of the German-speaking countries.
- Students demonstrate an advanced understanding of the relationship between the perspectives and products of the various cultures of the German-speaking countries
- Connect with other disciplines and acquire information
-
- Students reinforce and further their knowledge of other disciplines through the German language.
- Students acquire information and recognize the distinctive viewpoints that are only available through the German language and its cultures.
- Develop Insight into the nature of language and culture
-
- Students demonstrate understanding of the nature of language though comparisons of German and their native language.
- Students demonstrate understanding of the concept of culture through comparisons of German and their native language
- Students practice close critical analysis of cultural texts from the target culture and therefore gain stronger critical thinking skills, more nuanced cultural understanding, and greater ability to process complexity. They are therefore positioned to become better citizens of their own society and of a global world.
- Participate in multilingual communities at home and around the world
-
- Students use German both within and beyond the school setting.
- Students show evidence of becoming life-long learners by using German for personal
enjoyment and enrichment.
The Learning Outcomes will be assessed using the following:
- Students receive feedback in the form of exams, essays, quizzes, oral interviews throughout their course of study.
- Students will take a national exit exam, the OPIc, developed by the American Council for the Teaching of Foreign Languages and administered through L2 TReC on the campus of the University of Utah.
- We will track the achieved language levels of all students graduating with the Emphasis in Advanced Language, Literature, and Culture.
- We will track alumni employment through the Alumni Center at the University of Utah.