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Meet Freie Universität Berlin

KinderUni (Children’s University) at Freie Universität Berlin

The KinderUni (Children’s University, only in German) is a free event held every September for students in grades 2 through 6. Topics in recent years have included “A Morning in an Egyptian Temple”, “How Honeybees Protect the Environment”, “Life in a Drop of Water”, “PhysLab – Swim, Float, Sink”, and “A Tour of the Anatomical Collection”.

inFU:tage for Future Applicants

Anyone who wants to study at Freie Universität Berlin should definitely attend the inFU:tage event beforehand! The event is traditionally held over two days between mid-May and mid-June – at the same time as the informational events for prospective first-time applicants held by TU Berlin and TFH Berlin, so that as many young people as possible can get time off from school to attend. Information includes presentation of a number of attractive degree programs. Experts provide information on BAföG student aid options, admissions, and study abroad, and there is a large number of information booths. The second day is dedicated largely to the “Studium live” segment, in which prospective applicants visit the various academic departments and institutes.

inFU:tage (Location)
Freie Universität Berlin
Henry Ford Building
Garystr. 35, 14195 Berlin
(subway station U3 Thielplatz, Bus 110, M 11 and X 11)

Uni im Gespräch - Talking about the University

The Uni im Gespräch discussion series, organized by the Center for Academic Advising and Psychological Counseling of Freie Universität, offers future students and their teachers an opportunity to get in-depth information on the application process and studying at Freie Universität.

Application details and the selection process, help with orientation and making decisions, and methodical work techniques are just some of the topics presented by experienced Freie Universität Berlin academic advisers and psychologists. During the StudienInfo-Talk event, advanced students also report on their experiences during their studies.

FUSS - Freie Universität Students and Schools

“Freie Universität Students and Schools” (FUSS) is a project organized and operated by the Center for Academic Advising and Psychological Counseling. It offers a forum for more detailed, extensive sharing of information and experiences between students at the university and secondary school students. The FUSS program offers discussions of how academic programs are structured, the programs available, and the application and admissions processes at Freie Universität Berlin.

Open Lecture Halls

With the Open Lecture Halls series of university lectures, Freie Universität Berlin offers students from all departments and the public at large the opportunity to attend interdisciplinary courses held by well-known figures in research and teaching, free of charge and without having to register first. Each semester, several lecture series on diverse topics are offered. Past topics have included the cultural history of the Devil, language diversity in Berlin, and entrepreneurship as a qualification of the future. Extensive program information is published in a brochure and online at the start of each semester.

Coordinating office
Thielallee 50, 14195 Berlin
Brigitte Werner, Telephone 838-735 35, -735 01
brigitte.werner@fu-berlin.de

Hands-on Experiments Beat Studying – Invitation from Sciences at Freie Universität to Elementary and Secondary School Students

  • Girls' Day – a Day for Girls to Explore their Future at Freie Universität Berlin

The nationwide German project Mädchen-Zukunftstag (only in German) offers girls in grades 5 through 10 the opportunity to get to know a wide range of fields in education and later professional activity. The project focuses on future-oriented professions in the sciences, technology, and engineering-related fields, along with jobs where few women hold leading positions – including university professorships.

Freie Universität regularly participates in Girls’ Day, offering various events. Institutes within the Departments of Biology, Chemistry and Pharmacy, Earth Sciences, Mathematics and Computer Science, Physics, and Law as well as the School of Business and Economics and the Botanic Garden invite girls to take part in a number of different activities and workshops.

 

  • Sommeruniversität (Summer University)

Students in grades 10 and higher are eligible to attend the Sommeruniversität (Summer University, only in German) program, held at Freie Universität Berlin in August. For two weeks, students are invited to take courses on interesting topics in mathematics, physics, computer science, chemistry, pharmacy, and biology and get to know Freie Universität up close and in person. Topics in recent years have included “How do brains learn?”; “Who’s killing the climate?” and “The camera/game console/sound system/video system all-in-one – what will the cell phones of the future do?”

 

  • Free Guest Auditor Status with Credit toward Later Studies at Freie Universität Berlin

Berlin students in grades 10 and higher are eligible for a special privilege from Freie Universität. For selected courses in the subjects of biochemistry, biology, chemistry, physics, mathematics, and computer science, they can not only apply for free guest auditor status, but also earn credit for successfully completed courses later on if they study the same subject.

Further information: Schülergasthörer an der Freien Universität (Secondary School Students as Guest Auditors at Freie Universität, only in German)

 

  • NatLab Hands-on Experimentation Center: Biology and Chemistry

The NatLab hands-on experimentation lab is designed for elementary and secondary school students, teachers, and university students working on a teaching training component. NatLab offers students in grades 4 through 6 and grades 11 through 13 an opportunity to experiment with equipment that is not generally available to them in school. As they do so, they have the chance to apply methods in biology and chemistry that they have previously known only from textbooks.

The experiments have been developed by Freie Universität scientists in the individual disciplines and tie in with topics covered in the curriculum. Subjects include ecophysiology of photosynthesis, neurobiology and behavior, genetics and developmental biology, evolution, and electrochemistry.

Before students can visit NatLab, their teachers are generally required to attend a one- to two-day NatLab training course that not only gives them a theoretical introduction to the experiments, but also the chance to perform them themselves.

During the NatLab visit, students are supervised and assisted by scientists within the specific discipline and by experienced Freie Universität students who are completing an internship for a teaching training component at NatLab.

In addition to these regularly scheduled events, NatLab also offers special events, such as lectures with experimentation in chemistry, hands-on courses during the Kinderuni (Children’s University) event, and weeklong courses as part of the Sommeruniversität (Summer University).

NatLab Hands-on Experimentation Center
PD Dr. Petra  Skiebe-Corrette
Department of Biology, Chemistry and Pharmacy
Fabeckstr. 34-36, 14195 Berlin
Telephone 838-549 05, Fax 838-542 04
skiebe@zedat.fu-berlin.de

 

  • Chemistry – It’s First-rate!

Specifically for students in secondary level II (Sekundarstufe II), the Department of Chemistry Education offers its course "Chemie (in) der Extra-Klasse" (First-Rate Chemistry). During this several-day course, participants gain insight into various professions in the sciences and technology, and especially into studying chemistry. They conduct experiments, in some cases using equipment that is not generally available in schools, and also work with new media. Field trips to chemical engineering businesses in the surrounding area are also part of the program.

Program participants are supported by professors and researchers from the Institute of Chemistry and Biochemistry, whether through interesting lectures that introduce them to the realities of everyday work in these fields, during hands-on study of questions in biochemistry and chemistry, or during development of presentations and short films presented to invited guests at the event marking the close of the program.

Institute of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Department of Chemistry Education
Prof. Dr. Claus Bolte, Sabine Streller
Takustr. 3, 14195 Berlin
Telephone 838-567 08, Fax 838-559 19
didaktik@chemie.fu-berlin.de

 

  • PhysLab – Building Bridges between Schools and Universities

The PhysLab (only in German) student lab, operated by the Department of Physics at Freie Universität, gives students in grades 10 and higher an opportunity for hands-on experiments involving test structures created specifically for the purpose. The lab is aimed both at individual students and at small groups or classes from the upper level of secondary school.

The lab currently offers a number of different experiments, covering numerous areas of physics (photoelectric effect, lasers, fuel cells, radioactivity, etc.). Students can work at the lab once (for instance during a day off from school) or repeatedly (such as during a week spent working on a particular project).

In addition to these regularly scheduled events, PhysLab also offers special events and activities, such as lectures with experimentation in physics, a physics study group, hands-on courses during the Kinderuni (Children’s University) event, and weeklong courses as part of the Sommeruniversität (Summer University).

One new option is an experimentation group for elementary school classes on the topic “Swim, Float, Sink,” which is offered for 5th and 6th graders in cooperation with NatLab.

Department of Physics, Physics Education – PhysLab
Prof. Dr. Volkhard Nordmeier, Jörg Fandrich
Arnimallee 14, 14195 Berlin
Telephone 838-567 72, Fax 838-567 71
physlab@physik.fu-berlin.de

Long Night of Science

The traditional Long Night of Science, held in Berlin und Potsdam, gives visitors a glimpse at the work of about 88 different teaching and research institutions. Freie Universität Berlin, of course, is one of them. Presentations, demonstrations, experiments, and short courses – the Dahlem campus of Freie Universität offers especially exciting snippets of everyday goings-on at the university.

Lecture and Course Catalog
Starting your study program