German Studies

Biology major Savannah Scott spent the year following graduation in Vienna, Austria, supported by her Fulbright study/research award. Scott successfully competed against graduate students for the Austria award to become Roanoke's first Fulbright to a European country. She took courses at the Medical University of Vienna and the University of Vienna, and she worked at the Technical University of Vienna, where she was part of its the collaborative Interuniversity Cooperation Center for Water and Health. Scott assisted with  microbial source tracking studies assessing the source of fecal contamination in various surface and ground waters, and she played a large part in developing a sample database with DNA extracts of approximately 150 organisms. She presented her research in two international research conferences and won an award for her work.

Stephanie Shields '17 was selected for a Fulbright U.S. Student Award to Germany while she was a senior at Roanoke. She conducted research in the lab of Dr. Lutz Wiegrebe at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München in Munich, Germany. There, she contributed to work on vocal learning – the capacity to learn to produce new sounds through imitation – in the bat Phyllostomus discolor.

Shields majored in psychology at Roanoke and earned minors in neuroscience and German. She is now a graduate research fellow at the University of Texas at Austin.

Study abroad in Germany with a Roanoke professor and students. This semester-long program immerses students in both the German language and culture, all while allowing them to receive regular course credit. Courses vary each semester but range from German and history to literary studies.

"The goal of it is to make study abroad more accessible," says Dr. Robert Willingham. "We're charging less for this semester than we do for European May Terms. It is open to all majors, and there is no language prerequisite." 

Roanoke College's exchange with Otto-Friedrich-Universitat in Bamberg, Germany, is designed to help students enhance their German language skills and gain firsthand knowledge of German culture. Bamberg, located in the very center of Germany, is a charming medieval town composed of winding streets and quaint architecture. Bamberg is known for its history, scenic beauty and quaint cafés. The historic Altstadt (Old Town) area of Bamberg has been declared a World Cultural Heritage site by UNESCO.