Slavic / Eastern Europe Studies is the right course for you if you…

• harbor a fascination for the countries and people as well as for the culture, history, and politics of Russia and Eastern Europe
• enjoy reading (academic) texts and analyzing literature
• have an interest in the social interactions between language, culture, history, and literature
• are willing to deal intensively with language and its structures, as well as its origins and development, and to learn new foreign languages

For this university course you will need solid knowledge of the English language to read and understand specialist literature (international language of science). However, you do not have to provide evidence of this and would typically have obtained it already through your university entrance qualification. Prior knowledge of the relevant Slavic language is helpful but not necessary. You can also enroll in Slavic Studies without any prior knowledge and can attend one of the intensive language courses for beginners at JGU before the beginning of the lecture period.

You will study this subject as part of a two-subject bachelor’s degree program. The degree program always consists of an academic major and minor, which can be combined according to your interests or professional goals.

If you choose the subject as a minor, you will generally complete only a portion of the modules and classes taught to students of the major subject. As a result, you will focus on a selection from the content listed below.

Program structure

Slavic / Eastern European Studies as a major:

After an orientation phase at the beginning of the degree program, you will decide on one of the following three specializations from the third semester and thus create a focus entirely according to your personal interests:

• Philology (linguistics and literature)
• Literature and History
• Linguistics

Philology combines approximately the same proportion of linguistics and literature with a smaller proportion of regional studies. It allows you to choose different options within this subject area.

Literature and History combines literary and regional / cultural studies with those of East European history. Here, too, you have relevant thematic choices.

Linguistics combines Slavic linguistics with general and comparative linguistics (both also with questions on language history) and you will also acquire an understanding of different types of data and quantifying methods such as statistics.

Your studies comprise:

• Fundamentals and methods of Slavic / Eastern European studies with a focus on Russian studies
• Regional studies on Russian topics
• In-depth academic training in your chosen specialization
• Acquisition of a second language (Bosnian/Croatian/Serbian, Polish, Czech, Lithuanian, Latvian, Finnish)
• Internships and possible stays abroad with a focus on Russian-speaking areas or in Russia itself
• The final bachelor’s examinations in subject areas of your choosing

Good to know:
The Institute of Slavic Studies reacted to the Russian war against Ukraine promptly and developed alternatives to stays abroad at Russian higher education institutions. Your contacts at the institute can let you know what the current situation is.

Slavic / Eastern European Studies as a minor:

In the minor, you also choose one of the three specializations but you will take fewer courses and cover a selection of the above-mentioned topics. This keeps the focus more specific. You will also not learn a second language.

Stays abroad

Would you like to live abroad for half a year or a whole year? Do you want to get to know another language and culture? Would you like to get a different perspective on your particular degree program? A stay abroad provides you with the perfect opportunity to achieve this and is possible with every degree program – either self-organized or by taking advantage of one of the popular exchange programs. This is made possible by various partnerships with foreign universities.

For information on this topic, please visit our websites on studying abroad. An overview of cooperating universities that would suit your degree program can be found on our Student Exchange Platform.

A period of study or language study in the Slavic language area is not compulsory, but is expected. Slavic Studies maintains numerous partnerships with foreign universities. Starting from the 3rd semester, you can easily integrate a stay abroad into your program of study. The Slavic Studies department will be happy to support you in planning and implementing this.

Good to know:
The Institute of Slavic Studies reacted to the Russian war against Ukraine promptly and developed alternatives to stays abroad at Russian higher education institutions. Your contact(s) at the institute can let you know what the current situation is. Find out more about partner universities, Erasmus and scholarships abroad

Internships

As part of your studies (major subject), you will complete an internship or, alternatively, a language course lasting three weeks. We recommend the period between the 3rd and 5th semester for this. The Slavic Studies Academic Advisory Office will be happy to advise you on the internship.

Voluntary internships are another good opportunity to obtain more in-depth insight into a professional field.

An internship allows you to discover whether everyday life in a particular occupation suits your career expectations and interests. You can gain qualifications for a professional field and acquire important professional and personal skills to start a career. An internship helps you both shape your career path, and mold the remainder of your course sequence – in particular by selecting specializations that suit your practical experience.

You can find further information and relevant internships on the Career Service website.

As a graduate of Slavic Studies, you will acquire very diverse skills – all of which vary depending on your specialization. This includes expertise in the languages, literature, culture, history, politics, and society of Eastern Europe, especially Russia, as well as (in the Linguistics specialization) the use of quantitative procedures (statistics) for working with various data types. The latter creates good opportunities for links to other social sciences and humanities and provides a bridge to other areas where communication and information theory as well as data processing can be applied.

Graduates typically go on to work in the following subject-related fields:

• Language, culture, and literature research (e.g., at universities)
• Employment within companies and businesses in the free-market economy that cooperate with or have branches in Russian-speaking areas
• Foundations in an international and binational context
• International and non-governmental organizations (cultural exchange, etc.)
• Cultural management in the field of German-Russian cooperation
• Economy (especially human resources, foreign trade)
• Tourism, international trade fairs, regional partnerships between Germany and the Russian-speaking world

In addition to such traditional career fields, the program provides you with a wide range of professional opportunities that you can discover during your studies – both in professions related to your field of study and in the general fields of:

• Research
• Politics and social affairs
• Public service and administration
• Media, journalism, and advertising
• Education and culture
• Publishing
• Economics

Graduate testimonials of these experiences are available to read on the department website.

Not sure what to do after graduation? Don’t worry!

A university degree generally does not prepare you for a single profession but qualifies you for a wide range of career paths – for example, in research, in a typical profession related to your field of study, or in one of many other academic fields.

This is why career orientation is also part of your studies. Gaining practical experience is key, and you can do so through internships, working student positions, part-time jobs or voluntary work, for example.

JGU’s Career Service will support you throughout the entire process with information, advice, workshops and numerous events – from career orientation and working on your profile and skills to finding your dream job and successfully applying for it.