German Studies Major and Minor

Majors will become proficient in the German language, gain knowledge of German-speaking literature, culture, and history, and engage in the critical analysis of those traditions.

Placement

Students who have studied German prior to entering Davidson but have not been awarded college credit for it will take an online placement test administered by Davidson. They will be placed in German 250 or 260 if their preparation is exceptional; such students may request an additional oral examination to certify completion of the language requirement without additional courses. Students are placed in German 201 if their preparation is strong; in German 102 if less strong. In some cases, the department will recommend that a student who has studied German in high school begin in German 101. No student who has studied German in high school, however, should expect to take German 101 for credit without the express permission of the department.

Honors

To receive honors, a student must at the time of graduation have an overall GPA of 3.2 or better, have a 3.5 average in all courses counted toward the major,  have fulfilled all the requirements for the major, and the department must judge the thesis (written for German 495) and its defense worthy of honors. In the case of an exceptional academic record, together with a thesis of the highest quality, the department may confer high honors.