Spotlights

European Studies EU Campus Program 2024 has successfully completed!

From September 2nd, 2024 to January 17th, 2025, the third-year European Studies EU Campus Program was conducted at the EU Campus. Fifteen students from the Faculty of Sociology, Faculty of Law, Faculty of Economics, Faculty of Policy Studies, Faculty of Culture and Information Science, Faculty of Health and Sports Science, and Faculty of Global and Regional Studies participated.

In courses offered by the University of Tübingen (Tübingen International and European Studies: T-IES courses), the students could actively participate in small-sized classes with lectures, group work and discussions. Some students from University of Tübingen also joined the courses, which led the Japanese students to realize new perspectives and be exposed to a different ways of thinking. Since they had not experienced the similar learning environment in Japan, it facilitated their deep understanding the course contents.    

Each T-IES course included fieldwork, which was conducted at the Brandenburg Gate and the Berlin Wall (Berlin) as symbols of German unity, and public institutions such as the European Central Bank (Frankfurt), and the European Council (Strasbourg). Additionally, visits were made to Ritter Sport, a German chocolate manufacturer aiming for a sustainable society, where students received explanations of corporate policies from employees. They also participated in workshops where they made chocolate themselves, gaining various perspectives through practical experience. In Stuttgart, students visited various religious institutions representing Christianity (Protestant and Catholic) and Islam, learning about the history and basic tenets of each religion and denomination. Through lectures by local faculty members, they deepened their understanding of various issues facing Germany and the EU from a multidisciplinary perspective encompassing culture, religion, society, politics, law, economics, environment, human rights, gender, immigration, and refugees.

Other than the academic courses mentioned above, the students also enjoyed extracurricular activities, especially Buddy Program. Each Japanese student had their own Buddy, a UT student and could interact with and learn about German culture through their Buddy. This program helped the students smoothly settle into a new environment and to build valuable relationships and memories with their Buddy. 

We are sincerely grateful to the T-IES team, who were always engaged in delivering and improving the program, and provided such an attractive opportunity for the students.    

*We have published articles written by participating students during the program period, titled "Student Voice" on the EU Campus website in both Japanese and English. Please refer to the link below for more information.