The Master of Arts in German program is a part of World Languages and Cultures in the College of Arts and Sciences

The BGSU Master of Arts in German majors spend their first year in Salzburg, Austria, meeting Austrian and international students.
  • Masters Available
  • Masters Available

Master of Arts in German

The BGSU graduate degree program in German offers intensive language skills and immersion in the Germanic culture.

MA in German students spend the first year of graduate study at the University of Salzburg in Austria and the second at Bowling Green State University in Ohio.

The program offers three different study tracks for pursuing your research interests. Focus your studies with a Literary and Cultural Studies Track, Language and Teaching Track or a dual M.A. degree in German and Political Science, History, Music History, or another field (such as another language, business, English, art, etc.).

Our graduates have found jobs with large international corporations, banks, local businesses and businesses in German-speaking countries.

Immerse yourself in Germanic culture in Salzburg, Austria

The Master of Arts in German offers students the opportunity to develop professional-grade German language skills, deepen their cultural knowledge of the German world and acquire advanced intercultural competence.

The MA in German program at BGSU is a two-year program that offers students the unique opportunity to spend the first year of study in Salzburg, Austria.

Our students carry out individualized research and are encouraged to examine different aspects of Germany, Austria, or Switzerland using a wide array of interdisciplinary approaches through history, politics, culture and the arts. Experiential learning, language immersion, and the ability to pursue individualized research allow students to enhance and supplement their prior expertise.  

The program helps meet a high demand for candidates prepared to work for international companies and organizations with specific interests in the German-speaking world.

The program will help prepare you for an international career in business, government, education, journalism, research, or the non-profit sector.

Stand Out in courses

  • Austria Today
  • German Linguistics
  • German Culture and Civilization
  • The German Film
  • Teaching College German
  • Contemporary German
  • The German Drama Workshop

One year of linguistic and cultural immersion in Salzburg, Austria.

Curriculum

The MA in German addresses the needs of academics preparing for doctoral-level study and professionals working for businesses or organizations with ties to a German-speaking country. The EU remains the 2nd largest trading partner of Ohio (after Canada). Germany, Austria and Switzerland have potent economies (in export numbers still outpacing even China) and many connections to Ohio.

The program offers three different possibilities for pursuing professional or personal research interests.

Literary and Cultural Studies Track

You can pursue a wide variety of literary and cultural topics in German. Comparative approaches and the development of specialized research interests are encouraged. This track can serve as ideal preparation for Ph.D. programs in the humanities, for a wide variety of professions and government positions that demand cultural expertise, or as preparation for teaching German at the college or high-school level.

Language and Teaching Track

In this track of graduate German studies on linguistic and pedagogical topics, you will acquire teaching experience and assist professors with their work. This track is ideal for perfecting your language skills; it will prepare you for the teaching profession or for working with businesses that have strong ties to German-speaking countries.

Dual Degree Track

You can pursue a dual M.A. degree in German and Political Science, History, Music History, or another field (such as a second language, English, art, etc.). This track is ideal preparation for further studies in both areas, for business and government positions that demand cultural, historical, or political expertise, and also for teaching more than one subject at the college or high-school level.

A Year Abroad in Salzburg, Austria

Bowling Green State University offers several opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students to study in Salzburg, Austria.

The year of study abroad experience may include a trip to Vienna, snowshoeing in the Nationalpark Hohe Tauern, an outing to Golling an der Salzach to witness the infamous Perchtenlauf or a visit to the Salzburg ORF studio.

As well as immersive cultural study, students earn credit toward graduation and the building of invaluable German contacts and experiences for future study, careers and life.

Over 70 study abroad alumni traveled, at their own expense, to Salzburg to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the program in June 2018. More than 400 alumni are members of the Salzburg Alumni Facebook page.

Career

The M.A. degree in German will allow graduates to pursue a wide variety of careers.

A number of our graduates continue into a Ph.D. program. Our graduates have placed into Ph.D. programs at top-ranked universities around the world.   

Students in the MA in German program are also encouraged to complete internships while studying abroad. The practical component not only enhances your German language learning experience, but leads to invaluable networks and contacts for future careers. Almost every year, several graduates return to Germany or Austria to work, or on Fulbright fellowships to teach English as a foreign language in a German language secondary school.

Our graduates have also found jobs with large international corporations, banks, local businesses and international NGOs, many in German speaking countries. We have also placed graduates in U.S. government positions where knowledge of a foreign language is required.

GO FAR in your career

  • Museum Curator
  • Languages Research
  • Cultural Translator
  • International Business
  • Media and Cultural Affairs
  • Intelligence Analyst
  • Travel and Tourism
BGSU also welcomes international students to our Ohio campus, as well as sending MA in German students to Salzburg.

Three tracks to focus your German language graduate studies
 

Program Requirements

Application Process

Tuition and Fees

The Master of Arts in German program is a part of World Languages and Cultures in the College of Arts and Sciences

Learning Outcomes 

Upon completion of the graduate degree, students in German are expected to be able to:

  • Attain “Advanced Mid” or higher (following ACTFL guidelines) proficiency in German.
  • Demonstrate understanding of the aesthetic qualities and socio-historical contexts of a set of representative texts from German culture. 
  • Utilize advanced intercultural and international competence—compare and assess cultural, political, historical, economic or other similarities and differences between North American and a German speaking country.
  • Be able to employ different interpretive approaches to cultural, historical, political, or economic texts. 
  • Demonstrate ability to interact in professional contexts with German native speakers.
  • Demonstrate ability to analyze and solve real life professional problems collaboratively in a professional setting in a German speaking country.
Accreditation

Bowling Green State University [BGSU] is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. BGSU has been accredited by the Higher Learning Commission since 01/01/1916. The most recent reaffirmation of accreditation was received in 2012 - 2013. Questions should be directed to the Office of Institutional Effectiveness.

The German program will go through its next Program/Cluster Review during the Academic Year 2022-23.

Professional Licensure

Bowling Green State University programs leading to licensure, certification and/or endorsement, whether delivered online, face-to-face or in a blended format, satisfy the academic requirements for those credentials set forth by the State of Ohio.

Requirements for licensure, certification and/or endorsement eligibility vary greatly from one profession to another and from state to state. The German program does not lead to professional licensure.

Gainful Employment

Under the Higher Education Act Title IV disclosure requirements, an institution must provide current and prospective students with information about each of its programs that prepares students for gainful employment in a recognized occupation.

The German program is not a recognized occupation that requires a Gainful Employment disclosure.



* Job placement and salary information was compiled by the Office of Academic Assessment through the Graduation Survey from AY2015-2018. The data are gathered around the time of Commencement and a follow-up survey six months post Commencement. For the salary question, data for programs with fewer than fifteen responses are not included. Salaries for those programs are from the National Association of Colleges and Employers Summer 2019 Survey. For questions regarding the data, contact assessment@bgsu.edu.

Updated: 04/28/2022 10:26AM