The International Summer University is a short-term program that is held during the summer season by the University of Kassel every year. In addition to the international master programs, University Kassel organizes the ISU as one of its internationalization strategies. The program of the ISU is designed for university students as well as researchers and professionals who want to learn more about

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

and European perspectives in

Environmental Sciences Environmental science is an interdisciplinary academic field that integrates physics, biology, and geography (including ecology, chemistry, plant science, zoology, mineralogy, oceanography, limnology, soil science, geology and physical geo ...

and German Language & Culture. Environmental science has been one of the strengths of Uni Kassel since its foundation in 1971. During the winter season the University Kassel offers the

International Winter University (IWU) Kassel International Winter University (IWU) Kassel is a short-term program that is held during the winter season by the University of Kassel every year. The IWU inspired from the international short-term programs held in Germany, then International S ...

. The theme "sustainability" covers not only the academic content of the ISU/IWU, but also the program design which encourages continuous learning within and outside classrooms.

History and development of the programme

The International Summer University started as one of the Hessen International Summer Universities that have been designed to attract international students to Hessen. Established in 2001, ISU offers short-term credit-bearing academic program featuring the strengths of University Kassel in the areas of Environmental Sciences and German Language & Culture studies. Apart from the academic components with specific foci, ISU is unique in its host-family program for students to experience first-hand German lifestyle. The University's long-standing partnerships with industries in the region and experiences in university-industry

knowledge transfer Knowledge transfer is the sharing or disseminating of knowledge and the providing of inputs to problem solving. In organizational theory, knowledge transfer is the practical problem of transferring knowledge from one part of the organization t ...

also bring additional benefit to ISU students by giving them opportunities to witness the application of academic knowledge in industrial settings. Since its inception, ISU has brought some 50 international students to Kassel every year. Some of these students returned to Kassel for further studies and many of them have become the ambassadors of the University and the city of Kassel in their home countries. The uniqueness of ISU lies in the concern for the

sustainability Specific definitions of sustainability are difficult to agree on and have varied in the literature and over time. The concept of sustainability can be used to guide decisions at the global, national, and individual levels (e.g. sustainable livi ...

of global environment and

cultural heritage Cultural heritage is the heritage of tangible and intangible heritage assets of a group or society that is inherited from past generations. Not all heritages of past generations are "heritage"; rather, heritage is a product of selection by soci ...

. While ISU Kassel embraces

globalization Globalization, or globalisation (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), is the process of interaction and integration among people, companies, and governments worldwide. The term ''globalization'' first appeared in the early 20t ...

and

innovation Innovation is the practical implementation of ideas that result in the introduction of new goods or services or improvement in offering goods or services. ISO TC 279 in the standard ISO 56000:2020 defines innovation as "a new or changed entity ...

in the study program, the best practices of the program have been kept – arrangement of host families – to ensure that the visiting students are fully engaged in the local community and culture during their short stay in

Kassel Kassel (; in Germany, spelled Cassel until 1926) is a city on the Fulda River in northern Hesse, Germany. It is the administrative seat of the Regierungsbezirk Kassel and the district of the same name and had 201,048 inhabitants in December 2020 ...

. Students are arranged to live with carefully selected host families and to practice their classroom knowledge with tandem partners and tutors. Workshops (e.g. German dancing, cooking, sports), field trips and excursions in Kassel and neighboring areas are also organized to introduce local culture and traditions to the students. Since the program is held during the term time, ISU students also have abundant opportunities to meet local students and participate in student activities on campus.

Program of study

The study program of ISU includes German language courses which are designed to meet the criteria of the

Common European Framework of Reference for Languages The Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Learning, Teaching, Assessment, abbreviated in English as CEFR or CEF or CEFRL, is a guideline used to describe achievements of learners of foreign languages across Europe and, increasing ...

(European Language Portfolio) at the following levels: A1, B1 and C1. Students will study in small groups under the supervision of experienced teachers qualified in "'teaching German as a foreign language"'. Interactive and innovative teaching methods are characteristics of this German language course. The seminars for the engineering module usually cover the following topics: adaptation strategies to climate change,

earthquake engineering Earthquake engineering is an interdisciplinary branch of engineering that designs and analyzes structures, such as buildings and bridges, with earthquakes in mind. Its overall goal is to make such structures more resistant to earthquakes. An earth ...

, environmental engineering, and integrated environmental science

environmental science Environmental science is an interdisciplinary academic field that integrates physics, biology, and geography (including ecology, chemistry, plant science, zoology, mineralogy, oceanography, limnology, soil science, geology and physical geograp ...

. Seminars for the German culture module usually covers topics such as

history of germany The Germani tribes i.e. Germanic tribes are now considered to be related to the Jastorf culture before expanding and interacting with the other peoples. The concept of a region for Germanic tribes is traced to time of Julius Caesar, a Roman gene ...

, German politics of the 20th century,

intercultural communication Intercultural communication is a discipline that studies communication across different cultures and social groups, or how culture affects communication. It describes the wide range of communication processes and problems that naturally appear w ...

, and German fairy tales. Students proficient in German language may choose the German-taught seminar of "Deutsche Geschichte und Politik im 20. Jahrhundert". Students will be awarded 9 ECTS upon completion of the German language course and two academic seminars in either the engineering module or culture module. The seminars are taught by experienced faculty members in English and optionally in German. Students of the engineering module are arranged to visit industrial partners. Students from the cultural module are arranged to visit the museums and cultural establishments in Kassel.

About Kassel and Uni Kassel

is a mid-sized city located in northern Hessen in the center of Germany. The city has around 198,500 inhabitants and a total area of 107 km2. Kassel is known as the "Capital of the

German Fairy Tale Route The German Fairy Tale RouteThis is the official name used on the website - se''Portrait'' However, many English sources also call it the "German Fairy Tale Road". (german: Deutsche Märchenstraße) is a tourist attraction in Germany originally esta ...

" for it is the place where

Jacob Grimm Jacob Ludwig Karl Grimm (4 January 1785 – 20 September 1863), also known as Ludwig Karl, was a German author, linguist, philologist, jurist, and folklorist. He is known as the discoverer of Grimm's law of linguistics, the co-author of th ...

and

Wilhelm Grimm Wilhelm Carl Grimm (also Karl; 24 February 178616 December 1859) was a German author and anthropologist, and the younger brother of Jacob Grimm, of the literary duo the Brothers Grimm. Life and work Wilhelm was born in February 1786 in Hanau, in ...

spent more than 30 years of their lives to collect and compile the Grimm's Fairy Tales (German: ''Grimms Märchen'') collection. Kassel is also the city of "

documenta ''documenta'' is an exhibition of contemporary art which takes place every five years in Kassel, Germany. The ''documenta'' was founded by artist, teacher and curator Arnold Bode in 1955 as part of the Bundesgartenschau (Federal Horticultura ...

" where the world's largest exhibition of contemporary art takes place every five years. In 1971, Uni Kassel was founded in the city of Kassel as a reform university. The University is one of the first universities to have developed an international and inter-disciplinary perspective in research and learning. Being the youngest public university in the state of Hessen, it has currently a student population of over 25,000, which includes some 3,200 international students from over 120 countries.See the University of Kassel'
"Facts and figures"
page.

History and development of the programme

Program of study

About Kassel and Uni Kassel

References

External links