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What is the Department of German at Georgetown University?
The Department of German at Georgetown University is an academic department that studies the German language together with the literature, culture, history, media, and thought of the German-speaking world. Its stated approach is interdisciplinary: students learn German while examining broader cultural and intellectual questions, and the department describes its mission as preparing students to engage with German-speaking contexts in both academic and professional settings.
Department of German | Georgetown University
H3 What it offers
- Undergraduate study: A German major or minor built around an internationally recognized curriculum intended to develop linguistic competence and cultural literacy.
- Graduate study: An M.A. and Ph.D. in German, plus a joint MAGES/Ph.D. degree offered with the BMW Center for German and European Studies.
- Faculty research: Topics span gender and performance, belonging and Heimat, visual culture and digital humanities, cultural negotiations of economic concepts, globalization, and multiple literacies in second language acquisition.
- Beyond the classroom: Visiting speakers and an annual Max Kade professor from a German-speaking country, alternating between a scholar and a writer-in-residence.
H3 Who it suits This department fits students who want German as part of a broader humanities education rather than purely conversational language training. The undergraduate track suits those combining German with another field such as international affairs, history, or economics; the graduate track suits those aiming for research or teaching careers, or for policy-oriented work through the joint degree.
H3 A practical next step If you are considering the program, decide first whether you want language proficiency alone or language plus cultural and interdisciplinary study, then check the undergraduate or graduate program pages for specific requirements. For general and undergraduate questions, the department directs inquiries to Professor Mary Helen Dupree, Department Chair and Director of Undergraduate Studies; for M.A. and Ph.D. matters, to Director of Graduate Studies Professor Joe Cunningham. The department also invites interested readers to subscribe to its email list for events and activities related to German language and literature.
Should I choose a German major or minor at Georgetown?
Choose the major if you want German to be a central part of your degree and you are willing to pair it with substantial literature, culture, and language coursework. Choose the minor if you want working proficiency and cultural literacy alongside a different primary field, such as government, history, business, or biology.
At Georgetown, the Department of German describes its undergraduate curriculum as internationally recognized and designed to help students become competent, culturally literate users of German. Both paths sit inside an interdisciplinary department that covers the German-speaking world through language, literature, culture, media, and thought. The department also runs an annual Max Kade professorship, alternating between a scholar and a writer-in-residence, which means even undergraduates can encounter visiting intellectual life outside standard coursework. See Department of German, Georgetown University.
H3 When the major usually makes sense
- You are considering graduate work in German, comparative literature, or European studies; the department offers an M.A., a Ph.D., and a joint MAGES/Ph.D. with the BMW Center for German and European Studies, so a major keeps that route open.
- You want the language to function as a research tool for another discipline, and you are ready to do advanced reading and writing in German.
- You want the department's full range of faculty research areas—gender and performance, Heimat and belonging, visual culture and digital humanities, globalization, and second-language acquisition—to shape your program.
H3 When the minor usually makes sense
- Your main degree already has heavy requirements (engineering, pre-med, business), and you want German as a durable second skill rather than a second identity.
- You want to study abroad, read primary sources, or work in a German-speaking environment without committing to a literature-heavy sequence.
- You are pairing German with a field where Germany and the EU matter professionally, such as international affairs, policy, or trade.
H3 A practical way to decide Ask one question: do you want to be evaluated on your German, or to use German to be better at something else? If the first, major. If the second, minor—then revisit after one upper-level course, because that is usually where the difference becomes obvious.
For either choice, email the department before registration. General and undergraduate questions go to the department chair and director of undergraduate studies, and graduate questions to the director of graduate studies. The department also maintains an email list for events, which is a low-commitment way to test whether the intellectual life actually appeals to you.
How do I apply to the M.A. or Ph.D. program in German at Georgetown?
The Department of German at Georgetown describes separate graduate study in German leading to an M.A. or Ph.D., plus a joint MAGES/Ph.D. track run with the BMW Center for German and European Studies. The department page itself does not lay out the application steps; it points to graduate program information and requirements and names the Director of Graduate Studies as the contact for M.A. and Ph.D. matters.
Department of German | Georgetown University
Where to start
- Read the department's graduate program and M.A./Ph.D. requirements pages to confirm the degree track you want and what each program expects.
- Contact the Director of Graduate Studies with any questions about graduate study — the department lists Professor Joe Cunningham in that role. For the joint MAGES/Ph.D., also check the BMW Center's own pages, since that degree is administered jointly.
- Apply through Georgetown's graduate admissions process, not through the department page. The department site is an information hub; the actual application, deadlines, and required materials live with the university's graduate school and, for the joint degree, the BMW Center.
Practical notes
- The department's email list is for events and activities related to German language and literature, not for admissions — subscribing won't substitute for contacting the graduate director.
- If you are deciding between the M.A. and the Ph.D., ask the graduate director directly about typical preparation, funding, and whether applicants are expected to enter with a master's already in hand. Those details are program-specific and best confirmed in writing.
- For the joint MAGES/Ph.D., expect two sets of requirements to satisfy. Confirm with both the German department and the BMW Center so nothing is missed.
What can I do with a German degree from Georgetown after graduation?
A German degree from Georgetown is built around language proficiency plus interdisciplinary study of German-speaking cultures, so graduates tend to move into roles where reading, writing, cultural interpretation and cross-border communication matter. The department describes its curriculum as training students to become "competent and culturally literate users of German" who can engage the German-speaking world academically and professionally — that combination is the practical asset.
Common paths after graduation
- Business, consulting and industry: German-speaking markets are significant in engineering, automotive, chemicals, finance and logistics. Alumni-style roles include market research, account management, procurement and operations liaison work for firms with DACH-region ties.
- Translation, localization and content: Localization testing, subtitling, technical writing and transcreation suit graduates who want language to be the core skill rather than a supplement.
- Government, policy and international organizations: The joint MAGES/Ph.D. route with the BMW Center for German and European Studies signals that Georgetown treats European policy as a serious specialization. That path feeds into diplomacy, think tanks, EU-facing analysis and NGOs.
- Academia and teaching: The M.A. and Ph.D. programs exist for students aiming at research or university teaching; a B.A. alone more often leads to K-12 teaching, tutoring or language-program coordination, sometimes with an added credential.
- Media, museums and cultural work: Faculty research areas listed by the department — visual culture, digital humanities, gender and performance, notions of belonging and Heimat — map onto curatorial, editorial, archival and cultural-programming jobs.
- Further study in other fields: Law, public health, library science and international affairs programs all value applicants who can work in a second language.
How to decide
Ask what you want language to do in your career. If you want it as the primary tool, pursue translation, teaching or interpreting and expect additional formal training. If you want it as a differentiator, pair it with a second competence — data analysis, economics, engineering, public policy — and let German open doors in German-owned firms or Europe-focused teams. The department's own framing supports this: it emphasizes engaging the German-speaking world "both academically and professionally," which is an argument for combining rather than choosing.
A useful next step
Look at the faculty research topics and the graduate requirements pages on the department site, then compare them with two or three job postings you would actually want. If the postings ask for skills your coursework does not cover, that gap tells you what to add — a minor, an internship, or a master's — before you graduate. For a broader view of the university's language offerings and how German fits alongside them, see Georgetown University.
Who are the faculty in the German Department and what do they research?
Georgetown's Department of German presents its faculty as active across several cross-disciplinary areas rather than confined to literary periods. The department lists research interests including gender and performance, notions of belonging and Heimat, visual culture and digital humanities, cultural negotiations of economic concepts, globalization, and multiple literacies in second language acquisition. That range suggests a student can find supervision or coursework touching on film and media, identity and migration, and language pedagogy, not only canonical literature.
What the department says about its faculty
- Faculty are described as engaged in research projects that "address cross-disciplinary issues."
- Named research clusters: gender and performance; belonging and Heimat; visual culture and digital humanities; cultural negotiations of economic concepts; globalization; multiple literacies in Second Language Acquisition.
- Two named contacts: Professor Mary Helen Dupree, Department Chair and Director of Undergraduate Studies; Professor Joe Cunningham, Director of Graduate Studies.
- The department also hosts an annual Max Kade professor from a German-speaking country, alternating between a scholar and a writer-in-residence — an extra visiting faculty presence beyond the standing roster.
The page names only the chair and director of graduate studies; it does not list the full faculty roster or individual research profiles in the supplied material. For a complete list, the department's own faculty page is the place to look: Department of German, Georgetown University.
How to use this if you are choosing a program
If your interest is, say, migration and identity in contemporary German film, the Heimat/belonging and visual culture clusters are the relevant signals — but you would still want to check which individual faculty member works on that specifically. A practical next step is to open the faculty page, note two or three names whose stated interests match yours, and read one recent publication or course description from each before contacting them. For graduate applicants, Professor Cunningham is the listed first point of contact; undergraduates and general inquiries go to Professor Dupree.
For broader context on German studies in the US, the American Association of Teachers of German AATG and the German Studies Association German Studies Association publish conference programs and resources that show what faculty in this field actually work on.
How can I subscribe to the German Department's email list for events?
You can subscribe to the German Department’s email list using the sign-up option on the department’s website. The department says the list is used to send information about events and activities related to the study of German language and literature.
Start on the department homepage and look for the “Have Questions?” section, where the email-list invitation appears. If you don’t see a direct sign-up form, contact the department directly and ask to be added to the events and activities list. For undergraduate or general questions, the page names Professor Mary Helen Dupree as Department Chair and Director of Undergraduate Studies; for M.A. and Ph.D. matters, it names Professor Joe Cunningham as Director of Graduate Studies.
A useful next step is to check the department site first, then email the relevant contact if the sign-up link is not obvious: Department of German | Georgetown University.
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