BA in Germanistik

Why pursue a degree in German at North Central College?

As a German major, you can discover the joys of learning about a culture from the inside out. You can develop translingual and transcultural competency, participate in international working and learning communities, prepare for a career in a globalized economy and society, qualify to teach K-12 German by completing a secondary education major, and boost your résumé while you’re at it. You can share your insights into German and European history and culture by conducting research and then delivering presentations at local and national conferences and our own Rall Symposium for Undergraduate Research.

You can also:

• Travel to Austria or Germany as part of the study abroad or spend your May Term in Berlin and Erfurt.
• Participate in language roundtables to boost your language skills.
• Qualify for induction into Delta Phi Alpha, the German honor society, or Phi Sigma Iota, open to students who study more than one language.
• Conduct independent research with your professor and apply for a Richter Grant enabling research travel.
• Participate in the College Scholar Honors Program.
• Earn an English language learning (ELL) minor if you plan to teach abroad after college or be an ESL teacher in Illinois.

Since 1861, North Central has been a place where new ideas lead to unlimited possibilities. We’re an independent college dedicated to the power of the liberal arts and sciences to transform students into leaders both in their careers and communities. Our nearly 3,000 students study across more than 65 undergraduate and graduate programs, with their education, made richer by supportive faculty and staff, world-class facilities, and countless opportunities to learn beyond the classroom.

A College on the move

Building on the foundation of more than 150 years of excellence, North Central continues to grow with numerous new facilities, programs, and initiatives in the works.

The College opened with 40 students in a single two-story building in Plainfield, Illinois. Since then we’ve changed names twice (to North-Western, then North Central), moved once (from Plainfield to Naperville), and grown steadily (to about 3,000 students).

Over the years, thousands of dedicated students, alumni, faculty, staff, and friends have helped us thrive through the toughest challenges – wars, economic crises, social upheavals, and more – and build a future brilliant with hope and promise.

We’ve met the changing needs of students from Civil War veterans to millennial entrepreneurs. And we’ve always stayed true to our heritage of moral courage and forward-thinking.

Today we’re a top-ranked private comprehensive college of the liberal arts and sciences. U.S. News & World Report counts us among “America’s Best Colleges,” one of the top six schools in the Midwest for a “strong commitment to undergraduate teaching.” Students choose from more than 55 undergraduate majors and five graduate program areas.

Although the College originally discouraged organized athletics as a distraction from weightier matters, our 26 intercollegiate sports in NCAA Division III make our athletic department the largest in the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW). North Central is proud of its 32 team national championships and 123 individual national champions.

Though affiliated with the United Methodist Church, we welcome and encourage students and staff of all faiths. We are thoughtfully expanding our academic programs to respond to the needs of our ever-changing world, recently adding Middle Eastern and North African Studies, along with Arabic. And we’re transforming our facilities – most dramatically with a new interdisciplinary Science Center located at the corner of Brainard Street and Van Buren Avenue.

It’s been an amazing 150+ years. But it’s clear that the best is yet to come!