“I absolutely encourage underclassmen to apply to the DAAD RISE scholarships… Since all of the scholarships are STEM field related, it’s a great way for science students at K to combine an academic experience that is related to their field with the cultural learning that is so integral to a liberal arts education.”
Sarah Smith ’17, who did her Biology SIP in Germany
Boost your future career!
Knowing German opens doors to many opportunities in the US and abroad that can boost your resumé, help you get internship experience in a wide range of fields, and help fund work and study abroad. If you’re majoring in a STEM field, you can do a paid summer internship in Germany and gain lab experience. If you’re interested in teaching or working with kids, you can teach English in Germany or Austria after graduation. If you’re interested in business, you can gain experiences with German companies in the US or abroad. And if you’re interested in politics, you can participate in a program that fosters connections between the U.S. Congress and the German Bundestag! The options are endless! Check out some of these opportunities, and talk to your German professors for more information about:
German Studies has the highest success rate on campus for applicants for Fulbright!
Since 1964, we have had 29 Kalamazoo College alumni receive a Fulbright grant to Germany! Many of our graduates take advantage of this wonderful opportunity to live, work, or study abroad. Recent alumni who received grants to Germany include Libby Burton ’22, Kiernan Dean-Hall ’22, Katie Miller-Purrenhage ’21, Mattew Flotemersch ’20, Emma Eisenbeis ’19, Ian Freshwater ’19, Kate Bennett ’19, and Madeline Lauver ’19. In 2017, Riley Cook received a research grant in the field of political science for a project entitled “Wir Schaffen Das?: A Comparison of Initiatives for Refugee Integration in Franconia.” Other students have been granted Fulbright awards to Austria, such as recent alumni Nina Szalkiewicz, Matthew Flotemersch, Georgie Andrews, Ben Flotemersch, Sean Gates, and Vincent DeSanto.
Grants, fellowships, and internships that our students have received:
- Fulbright U.S. Student Program – Study/Research programs as well as English Teaching Assistant positions. Open to graduating seniors and recent graduates, October annual deadline, but internal (Kalamazoo College) deadline is often week 0 or week 1 of fall term.
- Austria Teaching Assistant – Live and teach in Austria! Open to graduating seniors, January 15 deadline.
- Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst (DAAD) – many programs and grants for undergraduates including the DAAD RISE for STEM majors, for funded summer research in STEM (Jan 15 deadline), other deadlines vary.
- Congress Bundestag Youth Exchange for Young Professionals – Scholarship program though the U.S. and German governments, for studying, interning, and living with hosts on a cultural immersion program. December 1 deadline.
- Cultural Vistas – Many internship programs ranging from 3-12 months in length. Must have 2 years of post-secondary German instruction. December 15 deadline.
- Internationales Parlaments-Stipendium (IPS) – 5-month program in Berlin focusing on the German parliamentary system, with a 13-week internship with a member of the Bundestag. July deadline.
“After I finished my research and teaching with Fulbright I went on to get my MA here [in Austria], worked for a UN organization, got married and now work for a US State Department contractor bringing religious minority refugees from Iran to the US.”
Emily Jeitler (Ackerman), who studied abroad in Erlangen, and spent a year teaching English with the Fulbright Austria program after graduation
Meredith Steward ’25 spent the summer 2024 in the microbiology department at Düsseldorf’s Heinrich Heine Universität with a DAAD RISE grant. Meredith’s study abroad experience in Erlangen helped prepare her for living in Düsseldorf and work in the lab. A typical day during the summer program was 8 hours doing plasmid creation, cloning, or expression. Mornings were cell harvests and PCR or attending the weekly lab/departmental meetings where she presented short summaries of the previous week’s work. She was also able to travel and enjoy local museums. Meredith’s DAAD mentor was extremely helpful, assisting with arrival and finding housing near the university.
Meredith says to future students interested in DAAD: “I loved my time in Germany. Though I study its language/history in college, nothing substitutes for being IN Germany while doing research with terrific folks in a field I love. I would enthusiastically come back given the opportunity and thus look forward to applying to DAAD programs for graduate students in the coming few years. Good luck to all applicants; you won’t regret taking this opportunity if it is offered to you!”
Justin Lakamper ’08, now City Manager for Plainwell, Michigan: “In 2013 while in grad school I took part in the Internationales Parlaments-Stipendium in Berlin, offered by the Bundestag. It allows participants a chance to intern with an MdB, to take part in a bunch of cultural and political seminars, and study at any of the Unis in Berlin for a semester. All expenses are covered and there is small monthly stipend. K students are perfect candidates for this program.”
Justin notes that taking part in this program directly led to his job at the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung and has gave him a useful network of alumni in DC and Berlin. He later went on to become Village Manager (Edmore, MI) and now City Manager.
“The goal is to immerse myself in German society as much as possible and be able to gain cultural understanding through different settings. During my time in Germany I hope to give an adequate representation of my country to Germans and hope to bring back to the U.S a small glimpse of German culture to share.”
Blanca Moreno ’17 was a participant in the prestigious Congress-Bundestag Youth Exchange for Young Professionals program 2017-18. Sponsored by the U.S. Congress and the German Bundestag, she represented the US in Germany as a junior cultural ambassador for a year-long diplomatic, and cultural exchange. Participants come from a wide variety of career fields, and from all over the United States. The program has a language training phase, a study phase, and an internship phase.