Language courses

Language Learning Services at the University of Hamburg

Different institutions at the University of Hamburg support students and teachers of the University of Hamburg with the learning of diverse languages. In the following, we'll introduce these institutions and their services. First, an overview of the services:

Courses for other languages which do not appear in this table can be found directly by contacting the individual institutions below.

Institutions

PIASTA offers a Tandem Service: Language learning in tandem is a language exchange between two students who meet to learn the native language of his or her partner. For example, if a German student would like to learn French and discover more about the francophone culture, then she would meet with a French partner who would like to learn German. The Tandem Service organizes these contacts and also offers an advising service for the organization of a tandem partnership. Furthermore, a journal for the documentation of the language learning process is available which offers guidance and tips for learning foreign languages in tandem. You can find more information here.

VHS University

The Volkshochschule (VHS) Hamburg, in connection with the University of Hamburg, offers courses on campus in English, French, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian, Low German (Niederdeutsch), Dutch, Swedish, Latin, Chinese, Turkish, German as a Foreign Language and German Sign Language. All courses provide target-oriented general language knowledge.

For the successful completion of these courses, you may receive elective credits. The language courses can be completed on different levels. The three language competence levels are A1 to B1 and are based on the Common European Framework of References for Languages developed by the Council of Europe.

Courses from the VHS may require a fee but, in comparison to other programs, are still inexpensive. You can find more information here.

Language Center

The Language Center offers language courses for students of all faculties. A new program is offered every semester. The courses are subject specific so that students can learn the language according to his or her different subjects of study.

To participate in a course, all students must complete a placement test with the Language Center. In certain cases, you can also provide a proficiency certificate from the VHS (specific requirements for this can be found here). The dates for the placement test are normally at the beginning of the semester and are posted on the website. Further information about registration and courses are available here.

The Language Center offers courses in English, French, Spanish, Russian and Italian (language competence levels B2 and C1).

Institute for German Studies

• Language courses in German as a Foreign Language for international students.
• Introduction to Yiddish and Low German (Niederdeutsch) for auditors of all faculties.
• Courses in pronunciation/phonetics, academic speaking and presentations, academic structures and lexica, academic writing, interculturality as well as courses about different countries and the city of Hamburg. Furthermore, there are subject specific classes and a preparation for the Große deutsche Sprachdiplom (GDS). Course offerings can be found in the current course catalogue under the keyword “Studienbegleitende Sprachlehrveranstaltungen”.

Institute for Scandinavian Studies

• Language courses in Norwegian, Danish, Faroese and Swedish for auditors of all faculties and continuing education students.
  
• ZMore information in the course catalogue for German studies.
  

Institute for German Sign Language

• Courses in the Institute for German Sign Language are not open to all students – but there are courses in Sign Language in cooperation with the VHS that are open to all students.
  

Institute for Greek and Latin Philology

• Language courses in Old and New Greek for elective credits for students of all courses of study.
• Latin language courses (level I-III) take place at the Uni-VHS. Only courses in Latin IV will continue to be offered at the Institute for Greek and Latin Philology.

Institute for Romance Languages and Literature

• The Institute for Romance Languages and Literature offers language courses in French, Spanish, Portuguese, and Italian. In the course catalogue courses open for elective credits are marked with a “W”. These courses are – in consultation with the teacher – open to all students.

Institute for Slavic Studies

• The Institute for Slavic Studies offers language courses in Russian, Polish, Serbo-Croatian, and Czech. These courses are primarily for students of Slavic studies. If there are still openings in a course after these students have registered then other students are allowed to participate! You can find the current course schedule in the current course catalogue.

Institute for Uralic Studies

• The Institute for Uralic Studies offers language courses in Finnish, Hungarian and Estonian. The courses are open to all students. You can find the current course schedule in the current course catalogue.

Asia-Africa Institute

• The Asia-Africa Institute offers language courses in Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Indonesian, Thai, Vietnamese, Han Vietnamese, Sanskrit, Hindi, Tibetan, Urdu, Arabic, Egyptian Arabic, Turkish, Old Turkic, Ottoman Turkish, Avestan, Persian, Middle Persian, Swahili, Hausa, Malay, Kazakh, Pashto, Zazaki, Wolof, Yoruba and Amharic / Ge'ez as well as introductions into other African languages. Courses can be found in the course catalogue. You can ask about courses open for auditors in the institute. You can find more information here.
  

Other university institutions

The University of Hamburg offers, free of charge, German courses for students. These classes take place twice a week for 90 minutes each in several groups. Requirements for participation are, at least, basic knowledge of the German language. You can receive 8 ECTS points for regular and successful participation. You can find more information here.

German courses for exchange students in the School of Business, Economics and Social Sciences. Exchange students from other universities can also participate in these courses. You can find more information here.

VHS Hamburg

In addition to the courses that the VHS (Volkshochschule) offers on campus in cooperation with the University of Hamburg, the VHS also offers external language courses. These are not free of charge but, in comparison to other courses, still inexpensive. Furthermore, credit points aren't available for these courses. You can find information about the courses and registration here.

VHS Norderstedt

The Adult Education Center in Norderstedt (VHS = German "Volkshochschule") offers reasonably priced language courses (starting from 2 € per hour) in Chinese, Danish, English, Finnish, French, Italian, Japanese, Croatian, Greek, Dutch, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Swedish, Spanish, Thai, Turkish as well as Esperanto and Low German. There are also many courses in German as a Second Language (levels A1 to C1). The current courses are listed at www.vhs-norderstedt.de. You can register online for most of the courses. If you need a placement test before registration, please call 040-535 95 900.

The Adult Education Center in Norderstedt is easily accessible by subway (U1). The classrooms are only minutes away from the stops “Garstedt” and “Norderstedt Mitte”.

For further information on foreign language courses please call Mr. Nicolas Vecchini (040- 535 95 912), for further information on German courses please call Ms. Camilla Grupen (040-535 95 915).

Other external services for language courses and language trips

You can find an overview of other external services for language courses and language trips here.

You can find private language schools for German as a foreign language in your area with a search engine from the Sector Network German as a Foreign Language.