German at King's
The German-speaking countries have made a major contribution to European culture and civilization, having produced some of its greatest writers, musicians, philosophers, and scholars. A degree course in German at King’s reflects this, by giving you an exceptionally wide choice from a full range of specialist modules in German Studies, from language and literature, history and linguistics to contemporary politics, cultural studies and film. Our teaching spans everything from medieval German, through to the very latest developments in German politics and culture in the 21st Century.
The Department was ranked in the top 15 of German Departments in the UK by The Times Good University Guide 2012.
Undergraduate Experience
Our undergraduate programmes are designed to give you both a thorough grounding in all aspects of German Studies, but also the chance to tailor a programme that suits your specific interests. You can specialize in areas of study such as German literature (of all periods), film, history, philosophy, cultural studies, and political thought, and the history and structure of the language from its beginnings to the present day. You are also encouraged to develop an enquiring and analytical approach to your work, and the courses have been specially designed so as to allow you to undertake independent study next to your lectures, seminars and small-group teaching. The German language is taught at King's by means of an innovative, specially designed course which develops skills in written and spoken German geared to practical use. By the end of the programme, you will have a range of transferrable practical language and intellectual skills essential to ensure your future employability.
Postgraduate Experience
The Department of German is home to a lively postgraduate community, both on the German PhD and MA/MRes programmes, and our MA in German and Comparative Literature. Ranked the best research department in London, and second in the country, we are an obvious choice should you be considering postgraduate study. The Department is also home to a highly innovative and unique Joint-PhD programme, run with the University of Stuttgart and the Sorbonne (Paris IV), which offers PhD candidates the opportunity of study at all of these institutions during their PhD, with full supervision by all parties, and resulting in a joint award from two of them. This means that our postgraduate culture is not only vibrant but highly international, and we currently have students funded by the AHRC, the Studienstiftung, and Landesgraduiertenfoerderung. Many of our previous students have gone on to work in German Studies in the UK and abroad. With regular Graduiertenseminare, and the opportunity to study abroad as part of your PhD, the Department provides a friendly, supportive and intellectually rigorous base for MA, MRes and PhD candidates.
Excellence and Employability
The Department of German's research ratings have consistently placed it as the best German Department within London, and we scored the highest possible mark for research in the 2008 research rankings. In the 2010 rankings, and measured by the top two categories of research (“world-leading” and “internationally excellent”), our department is ranked first in the UK. When all research categories are taken into account, we are second only to Oxford, and ahead of both Cambridge and UCL. Our teaching is consistently inspired by our research, so this strong research profile means the best possible teaching for our undergraduates – your teachers will be genuine experts in their field. Our undergraduates are highly employable, and we provide you not only with the practical language skills, but the intellectual training to succeed in your future career.