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This past spring, 21 students spent the semester studying engineering and German language and culture in the Lafayette faculty-led program at Jacobs University Bremen (JUB). William Hornfeck, professor of electrical and computer engineering, led the trip.
Students took a variety of courses including engineering professionalism and ethics, analyzing circuits, differential equations and modeling, strengths of materials, ancient civilizations, and German language. All classes were conducted in English.
All students took a German politics and culture course, through which they traveled to Berlin, Dresden, and Munich, Germany, as well as Brussels, Belgium and Copenhagen, Denmark.
Students lived in residence halls on the JUB campus, but were integrated with students from around the world. They also had host families from neighboring communities to help them feel welcome and learn about social and cultural traditions.
“Study abroad for second-year students at Lafayette is intended to be a transforming experience in terms of academic progress, breadth of experience, and personal and social growth,” explains Hornfeck. “These students returned to America having been a part of a faculty-led study abroad program offered to Lafayette College engineering majors to prepare them for the steady march toward globalization in their professional fields. They have learned of European Parliament functions in Brussels, the history of a divided Berlin, the rebuilding of the German city of Dresden, the traditions associated with Bavaria, and the customs unique to Copenhagen and the Danish royalty.”
For Trustee Scholar James Connolly ’09 (Bloomfield, N.J.), the opportunity to experience a diverse range of cultures and languages was one of the program’s greatest strengths.
“Jacobs University is an international university, so it is not just German students, but students from all over the world,” says the mechanical engineering major. “This was a very enlightening experience.”
Much of Bremen’s appeal lies in its central location. Marquis Scholar Alyssa Batula ’09 (Cleona, Pa.), an electrical and computer engineering major, enjoyed the chance to travel around Europe.
“Germany’s in the middle of Europe, so it’s easier to travel to other countries,” she says.
Batula visited Cologne and the Black Forest in Germany, the Netherlands, Czech Republic, Austria, Italy, Croatia, and France.
Travel opportunities are what drew mechanical engineering major Christopher Bliss ’09 (Natick, Mass.) to the program.
“Germany is known for its incredible engineering and the ability to travel so easily and readily within Europe,” he says.
Bliss visited Heidelberg in Germany, England, Italy, the Netherlands, France, and Spain.
Connolly traveled to Ireland, Czech Republic, France, Italy, and Spain.
“I learned a great deal about other cultures from all over the world,” he says.
Other students who participated include electrical and computer engineering majors Derek Alley ’09 (Hummelstown, Pa.), Andrew Jameson ’09 (Hagerstown, Md.), Peter Paone ’09 (Philadelphia, Pa.), Marquis Scholar Rob Schmid ’09 (Ellicott City, Md.), Colin Tareila ’09 (Brooklin, Maine), and Marquis Scholar William Towne ’09 (Litchfield, N.H.); chemical engineering majors Trustee Scholar Jeshua Gonzalez ’09 (Alburtis, Pa.), Martha Were ’09 (Kampala, Uganda), and Trustee Scholar Jeffrey Wyckoff ’09 (Reva, Va.); mechanical engineering majors Ryan McGinnis ’09 (Charlotte, Vt.), Patrick O’Dell ’09 (Newtown, Conn.), and Marquis Scholar MacKenzie Mor ’09 (Blue Hill, Maine); civil engineering majors Marquis Scholar Kyle Henning ’09 (Rochester, N.Y.) and Gavin Kaiser ’09 (Kennet Square, Pa.); Marquis Scholar Jeffrey Beavan ’09 (Nazareth, Pa.), who is pursuing a B.S. civil engineering and A.B. with a major in economics and business; George Dinkov ’09 (West Des Moines, Iowa), a double major in A.B. engineering and economics & business; Marco Tjioe ’09(North Sumatera, Indonesia), who is pursuing a B.S. mechanical engineering and A.B. with a major in chemistry; and Martin Tjioe ’09 (North Sumatera, Indonesia), who is pursuing a B.S. civil engineering and A.B. with a major in mathematics-economics.
Located in northwestern Germany and only a 15-minute train ride from Bremen, JUB is a private institution modeled after the American semester. It has strong programs in the natural sciences and engineering, and the majority of the student population is international. Lafayette began offering its faculty-led program there in the spring semester of 2005, when the institution was known as International University Bremen. The university changed its name in 2006 after receiving a major gift from the Jacobs Foundation.
Lafayette offers a variety of faculty-led and other study abroad programs. Over the winter break, more than 170 students took special Lafayette courses in the Czech Republic and Germany; Kenya and Tanzania; Austria and Germany; Guatemala; Belgium, Germany, and the Netherlands; England, France, and Belgium; England; France; and Arizona and Utah.
For information, contact Roxanne Lalande, director of study abroad programs and professor of French in the Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures, (610) 330-5918 or lalander@lafayette.edu.