German Language Online Courses for International Visiting Scholars, Doctoral Students, and Staff at Heidelberg University
Overview
- What courses are being offered?
- Who can join the courses?
- When do the courses take place?
- What is the course fee?
- Can I get a certificate?
- How do I sign up for the courses?
- What do course participants say?
1. What courses are being offered?
We offer general language courses for all levels ranging from A1.1 (absolute beginners) up to C1.2/C2 (advanced learners):
- A1.1
- A1.2
- A2.1
- A2.2
- B1.1
- B1.2
- B2.1
- B2.2
- C1.1
- C1.2/C2
You complete one course per semester with us. In the following semester you normally move on to the next course level.
If you did not attend a course with us in the immediately preceding semester, we will need you take an online placement test (see ↓dates) in order to assign you to the most fitting level.
At all levels, you will be training the 4 basic skills (listening, speaking, reading, writing) and simultaneously learning about German culture.
Our goal is to develop the linguistic and intercultural competences that you need for your daily life and work in Germany, particularly in an academic context. The more advanced the course level, the more important become formal (written) grammar structures and vocabulary. However, the courses are not designed to prepare you for a specific exam format.
One semester course comprises 60 classes (60 x 45min), divided into 30 90-minute sessions.
Please understand that these courses can be offered only online; the in-person German courses at the International Study Centre are specifically intended for (prospective) students.
Other language services at Heidelberg University:
- As a doctoral student, you can profit from the personal writing support services offered by the →Graduate Academy.
- The →Language Centre (Zentrales Sprachlabor) offers courses for a wide range of languages other than German.
2. Who can join the courses?
- scholars (postdoc / "Professor" levels) at Heidelberg University and/or their partners
- doctoral students at Heidelberg University and/or their partners
- in limited numbers: members of Heidelberg-based Max Planck Institutes
- Lehrbeauftragte at Heidelberg University
- Non-scientific staff at Heidelberg University and/or their partners
3. When do the courses take place?
Classes take place as online video conferences during the →lecture periods on Tuesdays + Thursdays, 6:00 to 7:30 pm.
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4. What is the course fee?
The course fee is €195.00 per person. You will receive detailed payment information after your registration.
Cancellation with a refund of the course fee
In your course assignment e-mail, you will also be
notified about a cancellation deadline. This is
typically 14 days after the start of the courses or, if
you registered later, 14 days after your course
assignment. You will receive a refund of your course fee
only if you e-mail us your cancellation by that
deadline:
→welcomecentre@zuv.uni-heidelberg.de
(if you registered via the Welcome Centre) /
→gastwissenschaftler@isz.uni-heidelberg.de
(if you registered via the International Study Centre)
Please also note:
- A cancellation with a refund
after the deadline is not possible.
- Mere absence
from classes does not constitute a valid cancellation.
- Please inform us in any case if you no longer wish to
attend your course as this may offer someone else the
opportunity to obtain your spot.
Assumption of the costs by a third party
If your department, grant/scholarship provider, or
any other third party is willing to cover your course
fee, we will gladly issue a receipt confirming your bank
transfer to us. Please wait with your request for a
receipt until the cancellation deadline that you were
given with your course assignment.
5. Can I get a certificate?
These are a not-for-credit courses without tests or exams. If you do not miss more than 6 classes, you will receive a non-graded certificate of regular attendance at the end of the course.
6. How do I sign up for the courses?
Please register again for this semester's courses even if you attended a course in the previous semester.
Registration opens:
| ☀ summer semesters: March 01 | ❄ winter semesters: September 01 |
⇒Sign-up via the Welcome Centre: |
Scholars (postdoc / "Professor" levels) at Heidelberg University and their partners
To sign up for the German language courses, you first need to register online
with the →Welcome Centre.
If you are already registered with the Welcome Centre, you can sign up yourself
(and your partner) for the German courses via the Portal for International
Scholars: Log in
→
select “German language courses” in the column
on the left →
click “register for this event” at the end of the page.
For questions, please send an e-mail to
welcomecentre@zuv.uni-heidelberg.de.
Members of Max Planck Institutes
The spots available to members of Max Planck Institutes are limited and will be allocated on
a first-come-first-served basis.
Please send an e-mail to the Welcome Centre:
welcomecentre@zuv.uni-heidelberg.de
If you are both a Max Planck Institute employee and
(going to be) a doctoral student at Heidelberg
University, please register as a
doctoral
student via the
Internal Study Centre (see below).
⇒Sign-up
directly via the
International Study Centre:
Original e-mail feedback (courtesy of the course
participant):
Zurück zu vor fast 4 Jahren, als ich den ersten Deutschkurs an der
Uni besucht hat, wollte ich gleich nach dem ersten Unterricht aufhören.
Damals habe ich es zu schwer gefunden, dass nach langen Arbeitszeiten noch
am Unterricht teilzunehmen. Aber du war super nett, eine schöne Email zu
schreiben, um mich zu ermutigen, den Kurs weiterhin zu besuchen. Für mich
war es eine der besten Entscheidungen während meiner Doktorarbeit, mich für
den Besuch von Deutschkursen zu verpflichten. Nicht nur mein Deutsch
verbessert sich deutlich, sondern auch für einen Ausländer wie mich haben
die Kurse mir die Chance geboten, außerhalb der Arbeit nette Menschen
kennenzulernen und auf jeden Fall neue Freunde zu finden. Ich werde auch ***
danken, die eine großartige Lehrerin ist. Sie hat uns sehr geholfen, uns
miteinander zu verbinden, und eine schöne Atmosphäre zum Deutschlernen
geschaffen. Ich muss zugeben, dass ich ziemlich viel Unterricht verpasst
habe und nicht genug Zeit damit verbracht habe, hart Deutsch zu lernen. Auch
wenn ich sehr gut weiß, dass ich noch viele Dinge verbessern muss und viele
Fehler in der Verwendung von Deutsch mache, insbesondere beim Sprechen und
Schreiben, freue ich mich, dass ich bereits auf einem bestimmten Niveau auf
Deutsch unterhalten kann.
Four
years ago, when I had my first German course at the
university, I was going to quit right after the first
class. Back then, I found it too hard to join classes
after a long workday. But you were so kind as to write a
nice e-mail to encourage me to continue attending the
course. For me, it was one of the best decisions while
writing my thesis to enrol in the German courses. Not
only is my German improving significantly, but the
courses also offered me, as a foreigner, the chance to
meet nice people outside the workplace and to make new
friends for sure. I’m also going to thank ***, who is a
great teacher. She helped us a lot to connect with each
other and created a pleasant environment for learning
German. I have to admit that I missed quite a lot of
classes and did not spend enough time studying hard.
Although I know very well that there are many things I
still have to improve upon and that I’m still making
many mistakes using German, especially in speaking and
writing, I’m glad that I can already have conversations
at a certain level.
Please download our →registration form
(available from the start of the registration period
until the time of the placement test), complete it
digitally, and mail it back to
gastwissenschaftler.signup@isz.uni-heidelberg.de.7. What do course participants say?
