Tag: 2015

Vorstellung // Introduction

Published on by KatharineLeave a comment
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University of Tuebingen

Hello all! My name is Katharine Wilson and welcome to my first blog! I’ll be spending the next year studying abroad at the University of Tuebingen in Tuebingen, Germany. I chose this program because of it’s language immersion, as well as the fact that I get to spend a whole 10 months abroad! Hope you like the post!

This morning, like every morning, I decide to check my email on my phone. The only message that appears is “inbox storage full, please delete messages to make room.”

Of course.

I’ve always been anal retentive about keeping my inbox clean. I’ll keep the things I absolutely need, but I’m always happiest when my main inbox shows a beautiful, clean “0 messages.”

What the heck is going on here?

Let’s start from the beginning. My name is Katharine and I’m a current student at the University of Denver majoring in English Literary Studies and German. And starting this September, I am going to live and go to school in Tuebingen, Germany for at least the 10 months until I graduate. Woohoo!

How did this happen? I’ll explain: DU is number one in the nation for study abroad participation, and going abroad the first quarter of one’s junior year is a tried and true DU tradition. But I wanted to take it a step further. I’ve been studying German since I was 14, taking it every year in high school and every semester/quarter at two different universities for the past four years. Fun times! I decided upon my arrival at DU to become a German major, and it was one of the best decisions I could have made! The program is pretty great– fun professors, interesting courses and small enough participation that I met almost every other German major in the school, and let me tell you, they are wonderful people! I’ve been confident and happy in my decision to study German since my first class 🙂

When my junior year rolled around, there was no question I wanted to study abroad in a German-speaking country, and my preference was Germany itself. DU had several different programs in Germany, but I wanted something immersive, where I could continue to study literature while learning about German language and culture as deeply as possible. The University of Tuebingen exchange ended up being my goal: one full academic year abroad in Tuebingen, with the ability to take classes primarily taught in German, all while learning and living with mostly native students. Another (slightly terrifying) plus: only one student from DU was sent on any given year, so I would enter Europe with a clean slate, knowing almost no one on the entire continent!

Okay, maybe I’m exaggerating when I say I am happy and confident in my course of study. I’m happy, confident, terrified, and incredibly anxious. But I love every second of it!

This is definitely the craziest thing I’ve done in my life, and once I got a tattoo with no one holding my hand! See, I’m not ashamed to admit that I’ve lived a slightly sheltered life. Before starting college, I lived in the same bedroom of the same house for my entire life. Aurora, Colorado (a suburb of Denver) was my home for all 18 years leading up to college. And then I moved a grand total of 20 minutes away to go to DU, where I stayed with the same roommate for two years. I’ve only left the United States once: in my Sophomore year of high school, my orchestra class went to London for 5 days.

Okay, maybe I’m slightly ashamed.

Recently, I’ve had a crazy strong desire to branch farther away from all the stuff I’ve relied on so long: Colorado, my family, my high school, and everything else about my relatively stable (read: boring) life.

Coming to college was the first step in my big transition: I got two piercings and got my first tattoo; I had my first serious boyfriend; I came out to my parents as pansexual. Not all of the things I’ve done ended up for the best, but it has definitely been a crazy ride when compared to high school. And on top of all of this, 7 months ago I was diagnosed with Persistent Depressive Disorder, which has led to its fair share of life changes. Needless to say, my time at DU has, for better or worse, been really interesting!

But despite this, I’m still craving change, and I couldn’t think of a bigger one than moving an ocean away from everything I’ve ever known! That’s not to say I’m not utterly terrified (scenes of being lost in German train stations or suddenly forgetting every German word I know frequently feature in my nightmares) but I’ve been trying my best not to let fear get the better of me.

So, back to the emails. My inbox currently contains the following: my application instructions for direct enrollment in University of Tuebingen, DU’s study abroad handbook, information on billing, my visa requirements, my official admission letter from Tuebingen, a long string of emails with me trying to enroll in, register, and pay for a month-long orientation course, my flight confirmation, a time change to the flight confirmation, my rent contract for my student apartment, an exchange between me and the head of the German department where I’m trying to obtain a letter stating my language abilities, and a letter to my coordinator trying to get a copy of a payment form (from another email I had mistakenly deleted). Phew!

Packing up and going to study in a foreign country for a year takes a lot of work, but it has slowly been coming together since my acceptance in February. All I need is to pay the first month’s rent on my apartment, open a German bank account, obtain the abovementioned letter from DU’s German Department, send in the registration materials for my orientation course, pay for said orientation course, then pack my stuff and go! Actually, I thought that list was going to be a lot shorter when I began writing it…

And of course, there are other, smaller concerns. I need to seriously downsize, because I can only bring so much stuff on the plane with me. I need to buy a new purse and backpack suitable for traveling. I need to replace my old, slow-as-molasses computer. I need to brush up on my knowledge of German (and American) politics. And a whole host of other things.

So that’s where I’m at right now! Surrounded by to-do lists and mounds of papers in German I can only half-understand, I’m just trying to live in the moment and enjoy what will be my last few months in America until next July or August!

Wish me luck?

Katharine Wilson is currently studying English and German at the University of Denver. On an exchange year in Germany, she is exploring German language and culture as one of Universität Tübingen’s resident stupid Americans. Sie versteht nur Bahnhof.

Anticipating Abroad: Hopes, Fears, and Goals

Published on by emilywolvertonLeave a comment

In the two years I have been at the University of Denver, I have found that it is not uncommon for my peers to be remarkably well-traveled. In addition, as DU was recently ranked the #1 school in the country for study abroad, I never hear my peers asking each other if they are studying abroad, but rather where they are studying abroad. I am Emily Wolverton, and this fall I will be studying at the Danish Institute for Study Abroad (DIS) in Copenhagen, Denmark. I narrowed down my destination options with two main criteria: classes taught in English and a program that provided interesting pre-medicine classes. I ultimately decided on DIS in Copenhagen because it met those criteria and includes experiential learning opportunities, has a strong student support system, and integrates travel into the semester via class study tours and independent travel breaks. Frankly, I am terrified for all that is to come. However despite my fears, I am also ecstatic to get the opportunity to learn about a new culture in depth for four months.

My biggest fear stems from my inexperience traveling independently. I love traveling with my family and have taken a few trips with groups of students since attending DU, but never have I set off completely on my own for a foreign country with no companions. I am anxious but also excited to be pushed out of my comfort zone and forced into independence. I rarely go home during the school year at DU, but there is something intimidating about knowing there is an ocean between my family and friends and me, so I couldn’t go home if I wanted.

Another fear is that I won’t achieve the level of cultural immersion for which I am hoping. DIS is a school geared completely toward students (mostly from the U.S.) who are studying abroad. It is an English-speaking school with a lot of support, which is comforting but also a little disappointing. I do not know a word of Danish and will only be taking a beginner language and culture course, so I worry I will not be able to connect with the Danes closely due to this language barrier and the physical separation I anticipate within the school.

bookphotoA third fear I have is that I will get too caught up in my school work to enjoy the fact that I am in a beautiful and unique foreign country. I am looking forward to all of the classes I am registered for, but am worried I will become a little too engrossed in my studies. I want to explore Scandinavia and Europe as a whole, but my education has always been my first priority. I am afraid this personality trait may limit my enjoyment and appreciation of the time I have abroad because I will be so focused doing well in my classes.

Now that I have made studying abroad sound scary and somewhat undesirable, I want to explain some of my hopes and goals for my experience as they are the things that occupy my mind most often as I look forward to the coming semester. My biggest hope is to build lasting relationships. I love exploring and going on adventures, but those experiences are always made better by having people with whom to share them. There are two separate week-long breaks set aside during the semester to allow students to travel, so I hope to find friends with whom I can explore Copenhagen, Scandinavia, and even Europe.

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This is a famous canal in Copenhagen which I cannot wait to see for myself.

I not only want to get to know my peers and professors, but I also hope to get to know people from Denmark so I may develop a better understanding and appreciation for the country and culture. My goal is for these relationships to remove me from “tourist” status to become a true temporary resident. I hope to really know Copenhagen and feel like it is a second home to me. One thing I think will help me connect best to Copenhagen is working hard to understand the culture and language which is why another goal of mine is to be able to listen to people speaking in Danish and understand the gist of the conversation. Additionally, I hope to be able to go out to eat and order a meal (correctly) in Danish.

One major reason I applied to DIS was the number of outstanding experiential learning opportunities it provides for its students. The classes I have taken for my major in biology and for the pre-med track have undoubtedly been necessary as a foundation for my future education. I have high hopes, however, for the specific medicine-based courses I will be taking in Copenhagen which are accompanied by multiple experiential learning adventures. In my main course, I get to learn how to suture, insert an IV, and more. My goal is to master these skills as they appeal to my interests and are applicable to my career aspirations. The clinical approach to the science of medicine is the root of my interest so I cannot wait to learn how to “write a structured medical report,” and “explain the rationale for choice of tests and treatments in clinical practice,” both of which are course objectives for my main class. My goal in these classes is to excel and to master the skills and knowledge with which I am presented. I chose an academically rigorous program because I love my major and am excited for a future in medicine, so I hope to do well in these classes and affirm my love for the medical field.

Another hope I have (although it is also a fear) is to realize what I am capable of when I am out on my own. I expect to be out of my comfort zone often, but I am excited to gain some independence and develop socially and culturally. I hope to embrace a new lifestyle while abroad and to gain a more worldly perspective.