Helping international students to settle into the academic, linguistic and cultural environment in Passau, the aim of this course is to raise awareness of the cultural character of communication and to learn techniques, practices and customs that are common at German universities.
What is considered appropriate in communication varies from cultural area to cultural area. This becomes evident in differences such as handshakes or bows, acceptable speaking volume and distance to the interlocutor, or the choice of words in a newspaper report. The same applies to communication in science and in the academic field.
This course was designed with the help of international students, who shared their personal experience starting at the University of Passau.
The goal was to learn about the "oh, I wish I had known that beforehand" - moments, so that we can provide you with exactly that information right from the start.
However, we also know that student life can be busy.
Simultaneously juggling seminars and lectures as well as extra curriculars, work and free-time can be challenging; especially if you are new to the country.
Therefore, aiming for easier accessibility as well as independency of time and place, we decided for an asynchronous self-learning online course format, that can provide exactly that.
Goals of the course:
Participation in the course is creditable for the iStudi Pass (Module C or E).
The course available on the learning platform ILIAS.
You can join by clicking on the link:
The course is generally organized as a self-study online format which can be accessed at all times.
Module 1: Cultural Orientation
Module 2: Orientation at the University of Passau
Module 3: Everyday Student Life
Module 4: Dealing with Literature
Module 5: Writing a Term Paper
