Studying abroad has become a lot easier today. Still, it can be quite scary and confusing to move to a foreign country, especially if you haven’t quite mastered the language yet. Since English is often considered lingua franca in the academic setting, our editorial team thought it appropriate to use in order to reach everyone at the RUB and welcome them (back) for a new semester.

 

Whether you’re a visiting student, an exchange student only here for the semester or you’re planning on obtaining a full degree at the RUB, it might be fun to submerge yourself not only into your studies but also into life on campus. The team of the :bsz (Bochum’s student and local newspaper) strives to keep their readers informed on a variety of topics including but not limited to what’s happening at the Ruhr-Universität. 

In this issue, for instance, you can read about the Centre for foreign language training (page 4) where you can not only learn a new language in a classroom setting but also find a Tandem partner to practise with. We’re also always interested in the university’s research and discoveries (see page 12). 

 

Apart from academics, the :bsz is also concerned with student self-administration: The members of the student committee (AStA) introduce themselves (page 5 and 8) and talk about their work. If you want to become involved yourself, try the student representatives of your department (see pages 2 and 10 for more information on the “Fachschaftsrat”).

 

If you’re interested in what the RUB and Bochum have to offer culturally, have a look at the student cinema (which also offers some movies in OV) or the Campus RuhrComer Festival, where student bands compete for a shot at fame (both page 9). Anyway, there’s always a lot of interesting stuff about your new home and working place to be discovered here!

We are planning a series of articles in English (and possibly other languages) so as to hopefully include any and all students and employees of the Ruhr-Universität. If you wish to contribute in any way, please contact us at redaktion@bszonline.de.