What are the German Universities like?

I just realized that I have yet to actually describe what it's like to be a student at a German university. Aside from being interesting, I think this entry will help shed some light on the entire issue at hand.

(In this post I can really only compare the TU Dresden to the University of Georgia (and other SEC schools), because I can't really speak with much authority on anything else. So even though I might make sweeping generalizations, I am aware that my knowledge and experience is limited.)

The biggest difference I have noticed between Athens and this place is there is no presence of a collective university community or student culture. College is a place the Germans come to go to class, rather than being a much more social experience and an all-around lifestyle like it is in the US. There are no student organizations or clubs or common areas or activities, and there are no "groups" to belong to - at least that I have been able to find. There is a drastic lack of opportunities to participate, and the school is the size of UGA - with no central student body. There is no real community concept here like at home we are all part of the "Bulldog Nation," and there is no downtown area where everyone goes to socialize every weekend (there are tons of bars and clubs but they're scattered all around town, so how do you know where the "good" ones are without someone telling you?). I never realized how even though UGA is huge I always felt like I belonged there; it ran through my blood and the other students were just part of a big family.

There are no sports teams here, either. I didn't realize how much of a difference university sports make, and how they give the student body a reason to unite and come together to cheer for "your school" and collectively hate "the other school." In addition, I have yet to see one piece of university spiritwear on the entire campus. Part of that is due to German history and national pride that got them into so much trouble way back when, and it transferred over to other aspects of life too.

Classes themelves are also drastically different. The concept of core classes or electives doesn't exist - they start their freshman year taking their major classes, and stay within this field the entire time. And I'm finding out very quickly that classes are mainly student-directed and the professor takes a very passive role. For instance, I tried out a music history class at the Musikhochschule for the first time on Tuesday. As best as I could gather, Day One of the semester the teacher gave the class a list of 42 books and said "read these." Then in class every week the professor asks "ok, so did anyone read about anything interesting since last time? Does anyone have any questions about what you read?" and that's all he teaches. Because German universities are free, the question always arises of whether the professors are giving the students the initiative or if they are too lazy to be more hands-on and active presenters of information. It is very different from UGA, where such emphasis is (usually) placed on lectures and notes. Is it better to be so guided, structured, and regimented, like at home, or is it better to have total freedom and no guidance like here? Maybe somewhere in the middle.

As far as tests and assignments are concerned, the entire semester has no concrete assignments until the final test. It's every student's responsibility to read all books the professor puts on the reading list, and know the material in the books, then pass the end-of-semester test on the material. The lectures, from what I have witnessed, are broad and unspecific, and most of the semester work is reading books. Sometimes classes will require an oral presentation to get an additional credit toward the diploma. And that's the only way the university knows what classes each student takes - by whether they earn the test and/or presentation credit. There is no registrar's office and no OASIS system to register for classes - you just kinda show up to what you want, based on what credits you need.

It's all very interesting, and very different from what I am used to. There are still many things I don't know how to do or things I don't know about the system, but I guess all that you just learn as you go. Or not.