Prospective Students

Why study German?

German is spoken by some 100 million Europeans. To study German at an in-depth level is to order your very own passport to possibility. Not alone will you be highly employable in Ireland, the EU and further afield, you will also see the world around you differently. English may be the language of Shakespeare, but German is the language of Freud and Marx and some of the most influential ideas of our own time. The German-speaking world has produced thinkers, artists and innovators of astonishing brilliance and impact. It also inflicted on Europe the most evil regime it has ever seen—followed by the most profound reflection on that awful fact. All of this makes German a fascinating language to learn and a fascinating degree subject to study.

German: The course for you?

We teach most of our language and culture modules in small groups, which is a real advantage for the language learner and sets us apart from most other universities in Ireland and further afield. Whether you are a beginner or have completed German to post-Leaving Certificate (or equivalent), with us you will acquire advanced competence and fluency, spoken and written, in the German language. You will also develop reading and communication skills alongside methods of research and analysis in literature, history, culture, film, and society of the German speaking countries. If you are interested in stretching your horizons, habits and hopes; if you are curious about the relationship between who we are and how we speak; if you want to understand the magic that can happen when cultures meet; if you consider literature, film and history all part of our human make-up... then a German degree at Trinity could be just for you.

German at Trinity

We offer a wide range of modules in written and spoken language, in literature, culture and ideas. We teach in small groups and we offer both beginners and post-school-leaving programmes. Being a small Department has given us a strongly student-centred ethos. We get to know all our students and do everything we can to help each and every one of them thrive in their studies. Each undergraduate student is an individual whose talent and potential it is our privilege to nurture.

Graduate skills and career opportunities.

Employers value the language skills of German graduates, and their ‘transferable skills’: the creativity, confidence, and sensitivity which marks the advanced linguist, the maturity and flexibility that comes from engaging with another culture, and from experience gained abroad. Recent graduates work for Google, Deutsche Bank, and Enterprise Ireland, also in telecoms, IT, education, public service, the media, law, and in universities in Ireland, Europe, and North America.