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Part of Humboldt University of Berlin, the Centre for British Studies /Großbritannienzentrum (GBZ) is an interdisciplinary institute committed to teaching and research focused on the United Kingdom. In addition to interdisciplinary research projects and its
postgraduate Postgraduate or graduate education refers to academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications pursued by post-secondary students who have earned an undergraduate (bachelor's) degree. The organization and struc ...
"M.A. British Studies" course, the Centre offers a broad range of events for the public. The GBZ is the only of its kind in the German-speaking world.


History

The Centre for British Studies is an interdisciplinary research and teaching institute at Humboldt University. Inaugurated on 15 July 1995 by the governing mayor of Berlin and the British
ambassador An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or sov ...
, the Centre celebrated its twentieth
anniversary An anniversary is the date on which an event took place or an institution was founded in a previous year, and may also refer to the commemoration or celebration of that event. The word was first used for Catholic feasts to commemorate saints. ...
in the summer of 2015. The Centre was established in recognition of the UK’s role as one of the Western powers which protected
West-Berlin West Berlin (german: Berlin (West) or , ) was a political enclave which comprised the western part of Berlin during the years of the Cold War. Although West Berlin was de jure not part of West Germany, lacked any sovereignty, and was unde ...
during the Cold War.
Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...
had already taken an interest in the plan to establish such a centre on her state visit to Berlin in 1992. Subsequently, the
Prince of Wales Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the ruler ...
paid his respect to the GBZ on the occasion of his visit at the end of 1995. The purpose of the Centre is to offer an institutional framework for
interdisciplinary research Interdisciplinarity or interdisciplinary studies involves the combination of multiple academic disciplines into one activity (e.g., a research project). It draws knowledge from several other fields like sociology, anthropology, psychology, ec ...
, for teaching British Studies, and for furthering public relations between
Britain Britain most often refers to: * The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands * Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...
and Germany. As an
area studies Area studies (also known as regional studies) are interdisciplinary fields of research and scholarship pertaining to particular geographical, national/ federal, or cultural regions. The term exists primarily as a general description for what are, ...
institute the Centre is part of a larger network of area studies departments of the Berlin universities: The Centre for French Studie

(now at Free University of Berlin, Free University), the John F. Kennedy Institute for North American Studie

( Free University of Berlin, Free University), the Department for Northern European Studie

at the ( Humboldt University of Berlin, Humboldt University) and the Centre for Modern Oriental Studiesbr>
ref>Centre for Modern Oriental Studies: http://www.zmo.de/index_e.html Due to its interdisciplinary nature the GBZ is not part of one of the faculties of the Humboldt University of Berlin, Humboldt University, but enjoys the status of an independent institute with three chairs: for British Literature and Culture, for legal, economic and social structures of the UK, and for British History.


The study programme

The Centre for British Studies launched the postgraduate study programme “Master in British Studies” (today "M.A. British Studies) in 1999. It is designed for German and international graduate students from all academic disciplines. The programme lasts a total of four semesters, the first two of which constitute the taught element of the course (Certificate Phase) and take place at the Centre in Berlin. Teaching is offered not only by full-time staff working at the Centre, but also by guest lecturers from the UK and representatives of British companies and institutions. In the “core programme”, which takes place during the first semester, the students are familiarised with the history, legal structures, literature,
art Art is a diverse range of human activity, and resulting product, that involves creative or imaginative talent expressive of technical proficiency, beauty, emotional power, or conceptual ideas. There is no generally agreed definition of wha ...
, economic- and social history, the political system as well as the social structures of the UK. In the second semester the students can choose between six options that are to prepare them for the labour market. Following the certificate phase, the students are required to undertake a three-month work placement in the UK in order to acquire direct experience of working and living cultures in the UK. Subsequently, the students complete the course programme by writing and submitting a Master Thesis, whose theme may be selected by the student, and which should be related to one of the wide range of topics that were addressed in the programme. The successful graduates are awarded the degree “M.A. British Studies”.


Other institutions

Following the foundation of the Centre for British Studies at the Humboldt University of Berlin, other Centres for British Studies have also been founded at the
University of Applied Sciences Zittau/ Görlitz A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, ...
in 1999 and at the
University of Bamberg The University of Bamberg (german: Otto-Friedrich-Universität Bamberg) in Bamberg, Germany, specializes in the humanities, cultural studies, social sciences, economics, and applied computer science. Campus The university is mainly housed in ...
in 2000.


References


External links


Centre for British Studies/ Großbritannien-Zentrum BerlinGBZ BambergGerman Association for the Study of British History and PoliticsBritish Council Germany


Sources

*Gerlach, Rita, " Lord Patten besuchte das Großbritannien-Zentrum", in: HUMBOLDT, 02.11.2006, p. 

*Gerlach, Rita, „Very British, indeed. Extra-Seite zum 10-jährigen Bestehen des GBZ“, in: HUMBOLDT, 09.06.2005, S. 3 (https://web.archive.org/web/20061209210536/http://www2.hu-berlin.de/gbz/archive/pressarchive/press06_05.pdf) *Pütz, Stefanie, „Britische Eigenheiten verstehen. Aufbaustudiengang "Master in British Studies" soll interkulturelle Kompetenz vermitteln“, in: Der Tagesspiegel, 23.11.1999 *Riege, Birgit, „Erfolgreiche Annäherungsversuche. Das Großbritannien-Zentrum der Humboldt-Universität feiert heute sein 10-jähriges Bestehen“, in: Berliner Zeitung, 29.06.2005 *Warnecke, Tilmann. „Studieren mit Jobgarantie. Karriere-Check: Welche Absolventen aus Berlin und Brandenburg besonders gefragt sind“, in: Tagesspiegel, 09.10.2005, S. K

*Weber, Peter, „Das Wort "Landeskunde" ist tabu“, in: Berliner Morgenpost, 8.11.1999 *http://www.berlin.de/wissenschaftsatlas/einrichtungen/0140.html *https://web.archive.org/web/20050314060829/http://www.ruhr-uni-bochum.de/britcult/DOinstitutionenSchneider.htm {{authority control Humboldt University of Berlin European studies