FUBiS International Summer and Winter University of Freie Universität Berlin adds an Online Program to the digital summer semester
Online Courses and Digital Lecture Series
№ 087/2020 from May 28, 2020
Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the International Summer and Winter University FUBiS had to cancel its summer terms with on-campus instruction in Berlin. Instead it is offering five online courses for students in one four-week term. ECTS credit transfer applies to the courses in history, literature, and philosophy as well as German language. In addition, there is a public, digital lecture series with eleven – including interactive – lectures. The FUBiS online program includes offerings in the fields of sociology, art history, history, political science, economics, philosophy, and German. The Online Program will run from June 3 to August 14.
Sophia Schmieder, FUBiS Program Director, points out that this nuanced approach is addressed to a wide range of international students who are dealing with the current crisis in many different ways and have different needs and preferences, as well as possibly guidelines from their home universities as to how and if a short-term study abroad experience is feasible for them this year. Schmieder adds, “At the same time, we are maintaining positive relationships with the FUBiS faculty and our international partners.” She stresses that FUBiS is taking advantage of the crisis as an opportunity to try out new formats and to consolidate expertise in digital teaching.
During the 2020 summer, for the first time FUBiS is offering an academic online program with German language courses at all skill levels as well as several subjects taught in English. Students can chose among German philosophy, German history during National Socialism, and the history of Berlin in the 20th century. For all the FUBiS courses, Freie Universität Berlin offers credits under the European Credit Transfer System (ECTS).
In addition, FUBiS is offering weekly digital lectures to give an impression of its program. There will be live German language sessions designed to be interactive, and there will be video presentations given by FUBiS faculty. The eleven sessions will focus on placing the course matter in the context of Berlin as a cultural and historical location. The lecture series is intended to give potential students an impression of the FUBiS study abroad experience, whereby the setting of Berlin, society, culture, and language all play a central role.
The FUBiS Summer University was held for the first time in 1998, and in 2007 a winter term was added. In 2018 the academic quality of FUBiS was reevaluated and again recognized by the Forum on Education Abroad through its Quality Improvement Program (QUIP). It is the only summer and winter university in Germany that successfully completed the QUIP evaluation. In 2019 FUBiS welcomed a total of 594 students from 40 countries to Freie Universität Berlin.
For current information about the FUBiS Online Program and the courses, please see the website www.fubis.org/online.
More Information
Friederike Zähringer, Coordinator Marketing & Communications, Freie Universität Berlin International Summer and Winter University, FUBiS, Tel.: +49 30 838 - 66560, Email: friederike.zaehringer@fu-berlin.de