Freie Universitaet Berlin’s Founding Director of European Studies Program to Retire

After serving eighteen years as the academic director of Freie Universität Berlin’s European Studies Program (FU-BEST), Dr. Dirk Verheyen retired on May 31, 2023. In 2005, he worked together with the university’s Division of International Affairs to develop this special academic program for international partners and their students as an additional component to exchanges. Starting in 2011, he began sharing leadership responsibilities with Dr. Kristina Rödder as the program continued to grow. Dr. Rödder will continue to serve as the program’s sole academic director. Moving forward, she will have a larger team at her disposal to help shape FU-BEST in the years to come. “For many years now, the FU-BEST program has stood for both stability and change,” says Dr. Herbert Grieshop, director of the Division of International Affairs. “The program has shown a willingness to adapt to new developments and challenges like few others have. For example, when the pandemic hit, it quickly switched to offering online courses. And they continue to expand and develop the content and components of the program, like with their new internship opportunities. The European Studies Program has proven to be a real success story ever since it was founded in 2005 – not to mention the consistently high level of academic quality it delivers to its students.” To be sure, the many international universities that send their students to FU-BEST can count on this kind of continuity and stability moving forward.

FU-BEST is an academic semester program at Freie Universität Berlin that is offered in the fall and spring. The program includes a variety of courses, mainly in the social sciences and humanities, which are primarily taught in English. Students in the program also take classes in German as a foreign language. Throughout the program, Berlin’s role as a cultural and historical site is featured prominently. The program also includes a week-long trip that allows students to experience other cities in Germany and Europe. Students can earn internationally recognized credits based on the European Credit Transfer System (ECTS) for the coursework they complete.

The program follows the North American academic calendar, making it unique in Germany. The academic quality of FU-BEST was recognized again in 2020 by the Forum on Education Abroad, based in the United States, through 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 German industry representatives. FU-BEST has consistently grown since 2005, with roughly 340 students participating annually. About 3,700 international students have enjoyed the benefits of this program since it was first founded.