Student comment about German courses at TREFF PUNKT

Rachel from the U.K. spend 7 weeks in Bamberg, Germany for an intensive German course in the level B2 / C1.

Read what she wrote us after returning home:

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August 25, 2010

Dear Treffpunkt,

I'm a 20-year-old languages student from Durham University in England and I spent 7 amazing weeks in Treffpunkt in Bamberg as the start of the "year abroad" part of my German, Spanish and Italian degree.

I can honestly say that these 7 weeks were some of the best of my life: I met some incredibly interesting people, did some amazing things in a beautiful town and, most importantly of all, my German skills improved dramatically.

The school is brilliantly organised; the initial grammar assessment test places you in one of the tiered groups, and it\'s easy to be moved up or down if it\'s too easy or hard. I had some great people in my group during my stay, and our tasks were always varied and never dull, which was important for me as I was looking to improve quite rapidly, especially my oral skills. I am a self-confessed grammar geek, and I easily learnt more about the German language in 7 weeks in Bamberg than I have in 2 years in a British university.

The extra-curricular activities were unforgettable too. I made a resolution before I arrived to throw myself into everything, and I was busy every day when I wasn\'t in school - always practising German, of course! I visited the historically interesting towns of Regensburg and Nuremberg with a great tour guide associated with the school, we played sports in the beautiful park in the town once a week(great for bonding between the students), we watched the World Cup games together, we did brewery tours, went to a concert, experienced three of the town\'s biggest festivals and my personal highlight was a \"brewery tour\" through the Fränkische Schweiz: a 16km walk interspersed with a tour of 6 different breweries in the stunning natural area of the Fränkische Schweiz. All of these kind of activities mean that you get to know your schoolmates better, and forge relationships from people all over the world. The common interest is learning German and experiencing the German culture, meaning that regardless of how different everyone is, you always have something to talk about so you\'re always practicing the language.

I stayed with a Germam girl who was the same age as me, and I have definitely made a friend for life. My accommodation arrangements couldn\'t have worked out better: we cooked together, went out together and went on lots of little trips together, such as visiting her parents out in the country.

In summary, I can't recommend Treffpunkt enough: it caters for everyone, from absolute beginners to advanced learners of German both in and out of the classroom. Some students come back time and time again because they love it so much - and it\'s easy to understand why! I really must congratulate Joachim and Alexandra, because their school is phenomenal and I shall definitely be coming back next year to refresh my German before I start my final year of university!

My tips for the German course in Germany

• Tipp 1: From England, it's easier to fly to Frankfurt because the train journey from Munich to Bamberg caused me a lot of hassle in both directions, even though the flight itself was cheaper.
• Tipp 2: Throw yourself into absolutely everything that is offered by the
  school: see all extra-curricular activities as an investment in your German learning. If you stay in your accommodation and don\'t meet your coursemates for a beer in a beer garden, that\'s three hours of German speaking practice you\'re missing out on!
• Tipp 3: Every time you meet a new student, ask them their name, where they come from and why they learn German: you\'ll meet so many interesting people from all over the world in  the school, and often make friends for life.

Rachel

Rachel with collegues from school