Freie Universitaet Berlin Welcomes 111 International Students for the Spring Semester
The European Studies Program at Freie Universität Berlin (FU-BEST) welcomed 111 students from overseas to the university campus at the start of its new term. The sixteen-week academic program offers participants thirty-five courses to choose from, including German language classes and various subjects from other fields, such as art and architectural history, German history, cultural studies, political science, social sciences, philosophy, sustainable business, and German. The program will also be offering special mental health support services to the international participants, most of whom are students from universities in the United States. The program runs through May 19 and is synchronized with the North American academic calendar.
In the 2023 spring term, Freie Universität’s intensive semester program, FU-BEST, will be offering a broad spectrum of on-site courses for international students in all disciplines. FU-BEST students can choose from twenty-four academic courses taught in English in addition to different levels of German language instruction. Among the offerings are courses on integration, conflict, and security in Europe, contemporary German history, architecture in Berlin, green business, German philosophy, German and European politics, and art and dictatorship. Throughout the program, Berlin’s role as a cultural and historical site is featured prominently. A full-week excursion to a variety of German and European destinations is included as well. Students can earn internationally recognized credits based on the European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System (ECTS) for the coursework they complete.
As of last year, the program also offers special mental health support services to its international students from different personal and cultural backgrounds. All students receive an introduction to the topic of mental health and how it relates to new intercultural experiences. If they are interested, they are also able to participate in a one-on-one psychological counseling session.
FU-BEST, the academic semester program of Freie Universität Berlin, is offered annually in the fall and spring. The program includes various courses, mainly in the social sciences and the humanities, which are primarily taught in English. Students in the program also take German-as-a-foreign-language classes. FU-BEST students can receive credit points in their home countries for successfully completed courses.
The program follows the North American academic calendar, making it unique in Germany. In 2020, the academic quality of FU-BEST received recognition once again from the US-based Forum on Education Abroad as part of its Quality Improvement Program (QUIP). FU-BEST’s digital lecture series also received recognition from the German government’s initiative “Germany, Land of Ideas: Beyond Crisis,” which was launched by the German federal government and members of German industry. FU-BEST has consistently grown since it was established in 2005. Before the pandemic, the program hosted approximately 340 participants per year. To date, around 3,700 international students have enjoyed the benefits of this program.