FAQ

The Faculty of Linguistics, Literature and Cultural Studies offers courses in the following departments. ERASMUS-students may attend all courses offered by the Faculty as long as they meet the required language skills.

Departments

• Institute of German Studies
• Institute of English and American Studies
• Institute of Romance Studies (French, Italian, MA-level in Spanish)
• Institute of Slavic Studies (Polish, Czech, Russian)
• Institute of Classical Philology (Latin and Greek)

Language Classes

Additionally, ERASMUS students can choose from various language learning and training courses offered by TUDIAS.  The registration to these language classes takes place via the Lehrzentrum Sprachen und Kulturen (Teaching Center for Languages and Cultures). The ECTS gained in each class also count for the Learning Agreement and for the Transcript of Records. 
Generally, each class is worth 5 ECTS, if it takes places twice a week (4 SWS).

Studium Generale

Another possibility of finding suitable courses is to look for 'Studium Generale/Studium Integrale‘ offers, which feature courses from Aall branches of study at the TU Dresden and enable all students to choose courses from other faculties than the one they are enrolled in.

School of Humanities and Social Sciences

Besides the Faculty of Linguistics, Literature and Cultural Studies, the School of Humanities and Social Sciences holds the Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, the Faculty of Education and the Faculty of Law. 

ERASMUS students can take part in classes offered by the Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences and the Faculty of Education if they meet the requierements. These classes have to be agreed upon with each resposible person at the faculty as well as the teachers. 

The course catalogues for each Institute can be found in the course catalogue for the Faculty of Linguistics, Literature and Cultural Studies. The information on this site is only available in German.  
The course catalogue is divided by Institutes. Erasmus students can take classes from the section "Bachelorstudiengänge" (BA studies) labelled as "Erstes Hauptfach" (main subject) i.e. "Bachelor SLK Germanistik (Erstes Hauptfach)". This does NOT include the Bachelor Wirtschaftspädagogik!
All information on the content, time and place and registration for each class can be found in the individual listing. 

Please note

Course catalogues for the winter term are usually available in August or September and those for the summer term in March. Thus, your Learning Agreement (Table A and B) usually will have to be filled in with the help of older course catalogues (e.g. the ones from the current semester or the one before) and then be updated in the first 2-3 weeks of the semester of your stay in Dresden (Table C and D).

Most of the abbreviations used at the TU Dresden can be clarified in the A-Z of the TU Dresden. Please find the most important abbreviations at the Faculty SLK for compiling your schedule and their meanings here:

• DS – ‘Doppelstunde’ (double period). One ‘Doppelstunde’ comprises 90 minutes. The time periods of the TU Dresden begin with the first ’Doppelstunde’ at 07:30 a.m and are interrupted by 20-minute breaks. As most teaching units at the TU Dresden are designed as one double period/‘Doppelstunde’, most courses are 2 SWS long, i.e. 2 ‘Semesterwochenstunden’ (2 periods per week in one semester; 1 SWS = 45 minutes, 30 SWS of work equal 1 Credit Point).
• EK (+T), V, Ü, PS, S, SLS, SPÜ, OS/K etc. – ‘Einführungskurs (+ Tutorium)’ (introductory course + accompanying tutorial), ‘Vorlesung (+AK)’ (lecture + study group), ‘Übung’ (exercise course), ‘Proseminar’ (proseminar), ‘Seminar’ (seminar), ‘Sprachlernseminar’ (language learning seminar), ‘Schulpraktische Übung’ (exercise course for teachers), ‘Oberseminar/Kolloquium’ (colloquium). These abbreviations of course titles identify the respective course types, which indicate the method of teaching and size of the course (e.g. big, teacher-centered lectures vs. small, students-centered language learning seminars), the degree of active participation and individual effort (e.g. passive listening in lectures vs. active participation in seminars), as well as the knowledge level demanded by the course (e.g. introductory courses vs. accompanying tutorials or advanced seminars/proseminars). Different course types comprise different amounts of credit points and SWS (see below).
• LP/CP – ‘Leistungspunkte’/’Credit Points‘/ECTS, 1 CP = 1 ECTS.
• Names of buildings are also abbreviated, e.g. “W48” for ‘Wiener Straße 48’, the building of the Faculty of Linguistics, Literature and Cultural Studies. You can find an overview over the locations of all TU Dresden campus buildings and their respective abbreviations here. In addition to maps, the interactive Campus Navigator helps you to find buildings on the campus or even particular rooms in these buildings, so you know exactly where to go to for your courses.
  You can also try a Virtual Campus tour!

ECTS/Credit Points reflect the type (EK, V, S, SLS, Ü, etc.) and workload (SWS) of each course as well as your academic performance in this course (the type of exam you have taken, e.g. written or oral assignments, presentations, term papers or combinations of those). Please make sure to discuss the possibility to gain your individual wished for amount of credit points with the teacher of each course at the beginning of the semester.

Learning Agreement

The Learning Agreement for international students at the Faculty of Linguistics, Literature will be signed by the individual responsible persons. For each Department, there is one responsible person and if the Learning Agreement contains classes from different Departments (i.e. German Studies and English Studies), each responsible person has to be asked for a signature. If that is the case, please prepare a space for each signature on the Learning Agreement. 

For general questions please contact the ERASMUS Office of the Faculty of Linguistics, Literature and Cultural Studies () and with specific questions concerning the classes of the individual Departments, please contact the responsible person for each Department. 

Transcript of Records

The Transcript of Records is not created automatically. For the ToR, you will need the Leistungsschein of each course you took during the term. The Leistungsscheine are filled in by the teacher of each class after they graded your exam - they are very important, as they contain all the information for the ToR. 
Please contact the ERASMUS Office for the creation of your Transcript of Records ().

Confirmation of Attendance

The Confirmation of Attendance can only be signed by the International Office. ( or ) 

The Language level for incoming students is decided upon on by the university. To participate in the university life and follow the lectures, at least a German Language level of B1 is required. 
In the Department of English and American Studies, the lectures are held in English, which requires at least an English Language level of B1. 
Classes in the Departments of Romance Studies and Slavic Studies hold classes in German as well as their respective languages, and participating in these classes requires a language level of at least B1 in the respective language. 
We advise to have a language level of at least B2 to better follow the lectures and participate in the seminars.  

To advance their language skills, Erasmus students can participate in the free language classes offered by TUDIAS at the TU Dresden. These free classes take place during the term. Erasmus students can participate in any language class.  
To prepare for their time in Dresden, international students can take preparatory language classes offered by TUDIAS which they have to pay for themselves. These spring and summer classes take place before each term. 

Yes, there are several offers by the International Office (‘Akademisches Auslandsamt’) of the TU Dresden:

• International Tutor Programme for international students at the International Office
• Service Desk for international students at the International Office

Or directly at the Faculty of Linguistics, Literature and Cultural Studies:

• the ERASMUS Office of the Faculty SLK  which can answer all your questions
• the participation in Buddy Programme of the Faculty of Linguistics, Literature and Cultural Studies will make it easier for you to start your time in Dresden and meet local people
• Study advisors of each department at the Faculty of Linguistics, Literature and Cultural Studies
• Student representatives of the Faculty SLK

You still have questions that have not been answered here? Write an e-mail to and we will answer as soon as possible.