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Welcome to the Department of Political Science at Freiburg University!

This website informs about our academic profile and the courses offered at the Department of Political Science. Moreover, it provides information on the bureaucratic tasks ERASMUS students must go through during their exchange. If you are not an ERASMUS student, please visit the website of the International Office to get the relevant information for your program.

 

General information Courses Getting started in Freiburg...

 

EU Office & International Office

The International Office(for non-Erasmus students) and the EU-Office(for Erasmus students) are your first point of contact for all administrative issues such as Online Registration, Housing, Enrollment, Certificates of Arrival/Departure etc.

Moreover, the International Office provides a Welcome Guide for International Students at the University of Freiburg, which also provides useful information for exchange students.

Departmental Coordinator

The departmental coordinator helps you with all questions concerning your course choice and is also responsible for signing your Erasmus+ Learning Agreement as well as your Transcript of Records.

Please direct all your questions concerning courses in Political Science to erasmus@politik.uni-freiburg.de.

Also, you are welcome to see us during our office hours and discuss your questions in person.

Marius Fröhle

Seminar für Wissenschaftliche Politik
Rempartstr. 15
79085 Freiburg

Room 4312

Ida De Bièvre
(Assistant to Erasmus Coordinator)

 

Course Catalogue

 

Important note:

Courses change every semester. This means that courses that were offered in the winter semester 2023-24 (or any other previous winter semester) will most likely not be taught again in the winter semester 2024-25. Instead, other courses will be offered. The same applies for courses offered in summer semesters.

In order to find out which courses you can actually choose for your exchange semester, you will have to wait until the new course catalogue is published. 

There are also certain introductory courses that are offered on a regular basis, i.e. every or every second semester. An overview of these courses is provided in the following table: 

Course title Type of course Offered in... ECTS
Einführung in die Politikwissenschaft lecture course winter term 6 or 4
Grundlagen der Vergleichenden Politikwissenschaft seminar course winter & summer 6
Grundlagen der Politischen Theorie seminar course winter & summer 6
Grundlagen der Internationalen Politik seminar course winter & summer 6
Einführung in das politische System der BRD und in die vergleichende Politikwissenschaft lecture course summer term 6
Einführung in Geschichte und Entwicklungslinien politischer Theorie lecture course summer term 6
Einführung in die Internationale Politik lecture course winter term 4
Introduction into International Relations lecture course summer term 6
Einführung in das politische System der EU lecture course winter term 6

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Types of Courses and Areas of Study

This section provides some general information on how the academic course system is organized at the Department of Political Science in Freiburg.

Generally, we offer three different types of courses:

  1. Vorlesung / lecture
  2. Proseminar / intermediate seminar course
  3. Hauptseminar / advanced seminar course
     

Vorlesungen (lectures) are open to students of all academic fields and are usually accompanied by tutorials, which are intended to give students the opportunity to discuss the topics of the lecture and help preparing them for the exam.

For seminarsthe number of participants is limited to 25 and some places are always reserved for exchange students. In seminars, active preparation and participation are expected. Students who have been studying for at least one year can enrole in seminar courses of the intermediate level (Proseminar), whereas Hauptseminare (advanced level) are reserved for advanced bachelor students (third year) or master students.

 

The studies of Political Science at the University of Freiburg consists of three different areas of studies:

  • Vergleichende Politikwissenschaft / Comparative Politics
  • Internationale Politik / International Relations
  • Politische Theorie / Political Theory
     

Moreover, our department has a special focus on Multi-Level Governance and Development Theory and Policy. To find more detailed information about the research focus and the lecturers of each division please visit this website.

German students have to cover all three areas. As an exchange student, however, it is advisable to check in advance for which courses/exams you will be given credit points at your home university. The course program and a syllabus is often included in the course description, which can be found in the course catalogue.

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ECTS Table

The rules by which ECTS-Points are awarded are the same for all courses offered by the Department of Political Science.

The table below specifies what you have to do for a certain number of ECTS. The standard option for each type of course is highlighted in blue. If the study plan of your home university requires you to obtain more ECTS for a specific course than you would normally receive at our department, you should talk to the lecturer in the first session and ask whether individual arrangements are possible. Please be aware that the lecturer is not obliged to offer any other than the standard option, but most of them will be willing to help you meet the requirements of your home institution.

 

Type of Course Performance ECTS
Vorlesung
Regular attendance and preparation + simplified written exam or essay (1500-2100 words)* 4

Regular attendance and preparation + written or oral exam

6
Proseminar (intermediate level) Regular attendance and preparation, presentation + essay (1500-2100 words) 4
Regular attendance and preparation, presentation + course paper (3000-3600 words) or written exam 6

Regular attendance and preparation, presentation + course paper (4500-5400 words) or written exam + essay (1500-2100 words)

8       

Hauptseminar (advanced level) Regular attendance and preparation, presentation + course paper (6000-7500 words) 8
Regular attendance and preparation, presentation + course paper (7500-9000 words)10
Tutorat (tutorial)

Regular attendance and preparation

Tutorials will not be awarded any ECTS points as they are part of the exam preparation at the end of the lecture (Vorlesung)

 

0

 * The essay option is only available for the lecture "Einführung in die Politikwissenschaft" (lecturer: Haas). For this lecture, writing an essay may be recommendable instead of taking the exam, because the resit exam normally takes place at the beginning of the following semester, at which point most exchange student have already returned to their home universities.

Example:

  • To receive ECTS for a Proseminar, you will have to regularly attend the course, participate in group work, give an oral presentation about one topic the course deals with and write a term paper of 10-12 pages. Sometimes the term paper is substituted by a written end-of-term exam. The specific requirements will be announced by the instructor in the first session. If you successfully meet these requirements, you will be awarded 6 ECTS.
    Upon agreement with the instructor, you may also obtain only 4 ECTS for handing in an essay of 5-7 pages instead of a longer term paper. Also upon agreement with the instructor, you may be able to obtain 8 ECTS for writing a longer term paper (15-18 pages) or taking a written exam and writing an essay of 5-7 pages.

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Learning Agreement

You can send your (provisional) Learning Agreement to erasmus@politik.uni-freiburg.de in order to get it signed by the Departmental Erasmus coordinator.

Case 1: Course catalogue for exchange semester has not yet been published

If your home university requires you to submit a signed Learning Agreement before the course catalogue for your exchange semester has been published, we recommend to make a very general course choice based on the areas of study, in which you plan to take seminars and lectures. For example: Proseminar in International Relations or Grundlagen der Politischen Theorie.

Case 2: Course catalogue already published

Then you can work out your choice of courses based on the courses that will actually be available during your exchange semester. You can change your courses within the first four weeks of the teaching period if you wish.

It is also possible to attend courses of other departments (e.g. Law or Economics). If you intend to do so, please contact the Erasmus coordinator of the respective department to make sure that exchange students from other academic fields are generally allowed to participate in this course. A list of all Erasmus coordinators at the University of Freiburg can be found here [pdf].

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Course Registration

In order to participate in seminars and lectures, you have to register for your courses online on Campus Management. This is only possible once you have arrived in Freiburg and matriculated at the International Admissions and Services office. After completing this, you will receive your personal login data for your online university account. You can then simply register for courses over the online course catalogue on Campus Management.

For further information about the registration process you can have a look at this website, where you can find step-by-step instructions.

 

Important notes:

  • Registration for lecture courses should always be possible during the registration period. For seminar courses, it might be the case that online registration is not possible because the course is already fully booked. Since some places are always reserved for exchange students, you will still be accepted for the course. Just go to the first session and inform the lecturer that you are an Erasmus student.
  • You should only register for a course, if you really want to attend. Otherwise, seats are blocked for other students. If you don't want to attend a course you registered for, please unsubscribe again.
  • In any case, you should attend the first session of the course and talk to the lecturer about your attendance and the requirements to obtain your desired number of ECTS-points.
  • Like regular students, you have to register for your exams in the first weeks. Please discuss everything concerning examination with the academic staff of your courses.

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Transcript of Records

Your Transcript of Records will be automatically finalized and can be downloaded on Campus Management (HISnOne).

Important: Please consider that the old "Schein"-procedure will no longer be implemented!  top

Housing

Since the housing situation in Freiburg is tense, we strongly recommend to apply for a room in student dormitories.

Deadlines for submitting your housing application are:

  • For the winter semester: 15th of June
  • For the summer semester: 30th of November

 

Overview of student accommodation provided by SWFR (Student Services Freiburg): Link.

Further Information: International Office

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Language Courses


During the semester, the University's Language Teaching Centre (SLI, Sprachlehrinstitut) offers free German language courses for Erasmus students (these courses are marked with "-P" at the end of the course title). They deal with German grammar and writing, but also German history, society and culture. You can find further information here

During the instruction free period of the university term, the SLI offers three different intensive language courses in German as a foreign language. They include courses of language and culture as well as a variety of extra curricular activities. For the three week introductory language courses in March, August and September please check the website of the SLI

Important: The free German courses for Erasmus students are very popular. Therefore it is advisable to register for these courses as soon as possible.

 

There are also German courses offered by Goethe-Institut 

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Buddy Program

The idea of the Buddy program is to connect exchange students and regular students at the Department of Political Science and thus promote international understanding.

As an exchange student, you might benefit from the help and advice of a German buddy, who's studying the same subjects and is also familiar with the University of Freiburg and the city. Above all, however, it's about meeting new people from different cultural backgrounds and have a good time.

Some weeks before the start of the semester we will pair exchange students and regular students, who then form buddy teams. Every match is different - so how much time you spend together and what activities you pursue depends entirely on you. There are only some basic guidelines:

  • Both, you and your buddy agree on a convenient and efficient method of communication (Email, WhatsApp etc.)
  • If you have any questions concerning life in Freiburg or your studies, your German buddy can be your first point of advice.
  • If you wish, you may ask your buddy if he or she will pick you up at Freiburg train/bus station to help you find your way to your new accommodation.
  • There will be a Welcome Event organized by the Department of Political Science, where you can meet other exchange students and their buddies.

 

Want a Buddy?

Fill in this form and send it to buddy@politik.uni-freiburg.de by 15th August (for the winter semester) or 15th February (for the summer semester).

We're looking forward to welcoming you in Freiburg :)

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