PROGRAMME SPECIFICATION
PROGRAMME SPECIFICATION
Programme title:
German
Final award (BSc, MA etc):
B.A.
(where stopping off points exist they should be
detailed here and defined later in the document)
UCAS code:
R200
(where applicable)
Cohort(s) to which this programme
specification is applicable:
From 2007-08 intake onwards (updated 2013)
(e.g. from 2008 intake onwards)
Awarding institution/body:
University College London
Teaching institution:
University College London
Faculty:
Arts and Humanities
Parent Department:
German
School of European Languages, Culture and Society
(the department responsible for the administration of
the programme)
(if applicable)
www.ucl.ac.uk/German
http://www.ucl.ac.uk/selcs
Method of study:
Full-time or part-time
Departmental web page address:
Full-time/Part-time/Other
Criteria for admission to the
programme:
Length of the programme:
With the exception of ‘ab initio’ students (who may be admitted from
2013-14 onwards), an A-level in German (or equivalent) is the typical
pre-requisite for entry to any of our programmes. Standard offers for
A-level candidates are in the region of AAB-ABB.
4 years (1 year spent abroad)
(please note any periods spent away from UCL, such
as study abroad or placements in industry)
Level on Framework for Higher
Education Qualifications (FHEQ)
(see Guidance notes)
Relevant subject benchmark statement
(SBS)
(see Guidance notes)
Advanced Level (Level 6)
Languages and related studies
http://www.qaa.ac.uk/Publications/InformationAndGuidance/Pages/S
ubject-benchmark-statement-Languages-and-related-studies.aspx
Brief outline of the structure of the
programme
and
its
assessment
methods:
(see guidance notes)
The first year of the programme comprises a broad range of introductory
courses. GERM1001 The Modern German Language or GERM1002
German for Beginners and GERM1105 Introduction to Modern German
Literature are compulsory for all students. German Single Honours and
German with Management Studies students also take GERM1102
Introduction to German Language and Literature up to 1740. Combined
Honours students take one further course in German, chosen from
GERM1101 Introduction to German History, GERM1104 German Film I,
GERM1106 Introduction to German Linguistics, GERM1107 Reading
German Poetry and GERM2104 Politics Culture and Society in Germany
since 1945; German with Management Studies students choose a further
two courses from this list; German Single Honours students choose a
minimum of two and a maximum four courses from this list. In other words,
this group of students may take up to 25% of their courses in another UCL
department, in years 1 and 2 of the course.
In the second year, GERM2002 Modern German Language II and
GERM2111 Metropolen are compulsory for all. Additionally Combined
Honours students must take at least one literary/cultural survey course:
GERM2106 Love –Violence – Laughter: Medieval and Early Modern
German Literature up to 1740; GERM2107 Debating Enlightenment:
Literature and Culture 1740-1870; and GERM2108 The Challenge of
Modernity: Literature and Culture 1870-present. Single Honours students
take all three of these courses; German with Management Studies students
take at least two. Other options available in year 2 include GERM1104,
GERM1106, GERM1107 and GERM2104 for students who have not already
taken them, as well as the following: GERM2103 Aspects of German History
1918-1945 and GERM2109 Mysteries, Madness, Murders: Dunkle deutsche
Geschichten.
Year 3 is spent in a German-speaking country, unless German is studied
alongside another modern foreign language, in which case the year is split.
During this time students are expected to engage fully in university life, in
their work placement or in the work of a school language assistant. For all
students this participation has to be documented, in the case of university
students by the satisfactory completion of the assessment for a specified
number of courses). At the same time all students produce an extended
essay on an academic topic of their choice: 5000 words for Combined
Honours students, 10,000 words for German and German with Management
Studies students.
The final year of the course offers greatest flexibility, allowing students to
pursue their particular interests by taking a range of research-led courses.
Single Honours German and German with Management Studies students
take GERM4001 Translation from and into German and GERM4002
Discussion and Essay in German plus, respectively, a further six or four
courses in German. Combined Honours students take GERM4002 plus a
further three courses, which may include GERM4001. The range of optional
courses available varies from year to year but typically comprises
GERM4103 Wolfram von Eschenbach’s Parzival, GERM4124 Social History
of the German Democratic Republic, GERM4125 Austrian Literature 18901938, GERM4126 Recording Revolt: 1967 in Germany and after,
GERM4127 German Fiction and German History (The Novels of
Grimmelshausen), GERM4129 Language, Power and Ideology, GERM4130
Gender in Modernity, GERM4131 Modern German Art: A Cultural History,
GERM4132 Animals, Monsters, Hybrids: Representations of the Other in
German Literature and Culture from the Middle Ages to the Present Day,
GERM4133 Reading Modern Novels, GERM4119 Schiller, GERM4902
National Identity in Germany and Austria, and GERM4113 History and
Representation: The Holocaust as a Case-Study.
The programme is delivered primarily by means of seminars, given to
groups of 10-20 students. These frequently incorporate student-led activities
such as individual and group presentations and small-group exercises.
Lectures are occasionally used when there is a need to impart background
information, or as a component in a mixed-format class. Oral and translation
classes normally take place in groups of 10-15 students. During the year
abroad students improve their linguistic skills and cultural knowledge
through total immersion in the target culture and by engaging in approved
academic and professional activities.
The programme is examined in a variety of ways: timed examinations,
assessed coursework, oral examinations, assessed oral presentations, and
5-day take-home papers. Most courses have mixed assessment so that
students can show themselves to their best advantage. Choices between
examinations and continuous assessment do exist, but only insofar as
students opt for particular courses whilst being fully aware of the forms
assessment used in those courses.
In addition to fulfilling standard college requirements, students must pass an
appropriate German language course in years 1 and 2 in order to progress
to the following year.
Board of Examiners:
Name of Board of Examiners: SELCS Board of examiners
Professional body accreditation
(if applicable):
N/A
Date of next scheduled
accreditation visit: N/A
EDUCATIONAL AIMS OF THE PROGRAMME:
The BA degree programme in German has its centre of gravity in the intense and critical study of German language
and culture from the earliest times to the present. The first two years are 'contextual': that is, they provide students
with a broad overview and a methodological framework for their literary, linguistic and historical studies. The third
year is spent abroad in a German-speaking country – usually either as a student or as an English language assistant
at a German or Austrian school. Living and working in a German-speaking environment provides students with
enhanced fluency and complexity of language as well as first-hand cultural knowledge; for many students, it is a lifechanging experience and highly conducive to their personal and social development. The final year, to which many
return with a newfound intellectual and personal maturity, offers a wide range of options in literature, linguistics,
history and culture, allowing students to choose an in-depth specialty.
Courses in German may be divided into the following subject areas:
language - discussion and essay, comprehension, translation, grammar
linguistics - sociolinguistics, discourse analysis, history of the language
literature and literary theory - authors, themes, textual criticism
cultural studies - interdisciplinary analysis, diverse forms of representation
film - history, theory and analysis of film
history/politics - early modern to the present, East and West German politics and history, social and political theory
The aims of the programme are
--to provide students with a general/basic knowledge of all of these subject areas with deeper/specialist knowledge
in one or more
-- to enable students to develop an excellent command of the modern German language, both written and spoken,
and to be capable of functioning on equal terms in a German-speaking professional or academic environment.
PROGRAMME OUTCOMES:
The programme provides opportunities for students to develop and demonstrate knowledge and understanding,
qualities, skills and other attributes in the following areas:
Students on this programme are expected to develop an excellent command of the modern German language, both
written and spoken, and to be capable of functioning on equal terms in a German-speaking professional or
academic environment. Especially in the German Single Honours programme, they benefit from exposure to the
broad sweep of German language, literature, history, and culture from the Middle Ages to the present and acquire
considerable specialised knowledge in selected areas of this. Particularly in the last two years of the course, when
students produce an Extended Essay during the Year Abroad and a number of final-year assessed pieces, an
increasing emphasis is placed on the development of research skills and on the contextualisation of theoretical and
practice-led research.
At the same time as developing subject-specific skills, students acquire a wide range of transferable skills, the most
important of which is the ability to think, to reflect and to express their thoughts in precise, reasoned prose – both in
English and in German. Other generic skills developed include oral communication and presentation skills, time
management skills, the capacity to design and manage projects, bibliographical skills, ICT skills, the capacity to
identify and use web-based resources appropriately, the ability to maintain and manage records, and the ability to
reflect on students’ own intellectual training and development.
A: Knowledge and understanding
Knowledge and understanding of:
Teaching/learning methods and strategies:
General knowledge of various aspects of
German culture (literature, culture, film,
linguistics and history), with specialist
knowledge in one area
The programme is delivered primarily by means of
seminars, given to groups of 10-20 students. These
frequently incorporate student-led activities such as
individual and group presentations and small-group
exercises. Lectures are occasionally used when there is
a need to impart background information, or as a
component in a mixed-format class. Oral and translation
classes normally take place in groups of 10-15 students.
During the year abroad students improve their linguistic
skills and cultural knowledge through total immersion in
the target culture and by engaging in approved academic
and professional activities.
Assessment:
The programme is examined in a variety of ways: timed
examinations, assessed coursework, oral examinations,
assessed oral presentations, and 5-day take-home
papers. Most courses have mixed assessment so that
students can show themselves to their best advantage.
Choices between examinations and continuous
assessment do exist, but only insofar as students opt for
particular courses whilst being fully aware of the forms
assessment used in those courses.
B: Skills and other attributes
Intellectual (thinking) skills:
Analytical skills (analysis of literary/filmic
‘texts’ as well as cultural/historical
contexts; analysis of language)
Teaching/learning methods and strategies:
The programme is delivered primarily by means of
seminars, given to groups of 10-20 students. These
frequently incorporate student-led activities such as
individual and group presentations and small-group
exercises. Lectures are occasionally used when there is
a need to impart background information, or as a
component in a mixed-format class. Oral and translation
classes normally take place in groups of 10-15 students.
During the year abroad students improve their linguistic
skills and cultural knowledge through total immersion in
the target culture and by engaging in approved academic
and professional activities.
Assessment:
The programme is examined in a variety of ways: timed
examinations, assessed coursework, oral examinations,
assessed oral presentations, and 5-day take-home
papers. Most courses have mixed assessment so that
students can show themselves to their best advantage.
Choices between examinations and continuous
assessment do exist, but only insofar as students opt for
particular courses whilst being fully aware of the forms
assessment used in those courses.
C: Skills and other attributes
Practical skills (able to):
At the same time as developing subjectspecific skills, students acquire a wide
range of transferable skills, the most
important of which is the ability to think
analytically, to reflect and to express their
thoughts in precise, reasoned prose –
both in English and in German. Other
generic skills developed include oral
communication and presentation skills,
time management skills, the capacity to
design and manage projects,
bibliographical skills, ICT skills, the
capacity to identify and use web-based
resources appropriately, the ability to
maintain and manage records, and the
ability to reflect on students’ own
intellectual training and development.
Teaching/learning methods and strategies:
The programme is delivered primarily by means of
seminars, given to groups of 10-20 students. These
frequently incorporate student-led activities such as
individual and group presentations and small-group
exercises. Lectures are occasionally used when there is
a need to impart background information, or as a
component in a mixed-format class. Oral and translation
classes normally take place in groups of 10-15 students.
During the year abroad students improve their linguistic
skills and cultural knowledge through total immersion in
the target culture and by engaging in approved academic
and professional activities.
Assessment:
The programme is examined in a variety of ways: timed
examinations, assessed coursework, oral examinations,
assessed oral presentations, and 5-day take-home
papers. Most courses have mixed assessment so that
students can show themselves to their best advantage.
Choices between examinations and continuous
assessment do exist, but only insofar as students opt for
particular courses whilst being fully aware of the forms
assessment used in those courses.
In addition to fulfilling standard college requirements,
students must pass an appropriate German language
course in years 1 and 2 in order to progress to the
following year.
D: Skills and other attributes
Transferable skills (able to):
At the same time as developing subjectspecific skills, students acquire a wide
range of transferable skills, the most
important of which is the ability to think
analytically, to reflect and to express their
thoughts in precise, reasoned prose –
both in English and in German. Other
generic skills developed include oral
communication and presentation skills,
time management skills, the capacity to
design and manage projects,
bibliographical skills, ICT skills, the
capacity to identify and use web-based
resources appropriately, the ability to
maintain and manage records, and the
ability to reflect on students’ own
intellectual training and development.
Teaching/learning methods and strategies:
The programme is delivered primarily by means of
seminars, given to groups of 10-20 students. These
frequently incorporate student-led activities such as
individual and group presentations and small-group
exercises. Lectures are occasionally used when there is
a need to impart background information, or as a
component in a mixed-format class. Oral and translation
classes normally take place in groups of 10-15 students.
During the year abroad students improve their linguistic
skills and cultural knowledge through total immersion in
the target culture and by engaging in approved academic
and professional activities.
Assessment:
The programme is examined in a variety of ways: timed
examinations, assessed coursework, oral examinations,
assessed oral presentations, and 5-day take-home
papers. Most courses have mixed assessment so that
students can show themselves to their best advantage.
Choices between examinations and continuous
assessment do exist, but only insofar as students opt for
particular courses whilst being fully aware of the forms
assessment used in those courses.
In addition to fulfilling standard college requirements,
students must pass an appropriate German language
course in years 1 and 2 in order to progress to the
following year.
The following reference points were used in designing the programme:
 the Framework for Higher Education Qualifications:
(http://www.qaa.ac.uk/en/Publications/Documents/Framework-Higher-Education-Qualifications-08.pdf);
 the relevant Subject Benchmark Statements:
(http://www.qaa.ac.uk/assuring-standards-and-quality/the-quality-code/subject-benchmark-statements);
 the programme specifications for UCL degree programmes in relevant subjects (where applicable);
 UCL teaching and learning policies;
 staff research.
Please note: This specification provides a concise summary of the main features of the programme and the
learning outcomes that a typical student might reasonably be expected to achieve and demonstrate if he/she takes
full advantage of the learning opportunities that are provided. More detailed information on the learning outcomes,
content and teaching, learning and assessment methods of each course unit/module can be found in the
departmental course handbook. The accuracy of the information contained in this document is reviewed annually by
UCL and may be checked by the Quality Assurance Agency.
Programme Organiser(s)
Dr Sebastian Coxon, Head
Name(s):
Date of Production:
Date of Review:
September 2013
Date approved by Head of
Department:
May 2014
Date approved by Chair of
Departmental Teaching
Committee:
Date approved by Faculty
Teaching Committee