The shadow walker

What should you study if you’ve taken German and History as Abitur? German Studies – obviously; History – that makes sense; Journalism – perhaps, but Biology? Annika Schimmelpfennig took precisely this step last winter semester. A first-hand account.

Annika Schimmelpfennig can clearly remember her husband’s exasperated eye-roll just over a year ago: “Just enrol in whatever you want; I’ll sort it out later,” he said, when the 21-year-old was still wrestling with the decision of whether to study Slavic Studies, German Studies, Art and Media, or perhaps something completely different.

“It’s certainly not easy when you have such a broad interest in everything,” says Annika today, now that the decision has been made. For the past two semesters, she has been studying for a single-subject Bachelor’s degree in Biology. “I wanted a degree programme where I wouldn’t have to sit at a desk all day,” she says, citing one of the reasons that ultimately tipped the balance. After all, Annika had already spent plenty of time at a desk during her two-year apprenticeship as a media specialist, which she completed at a publishing house in Oldenburg before starting her degree.

Thrilled by the taster course

The Bremerhaven native found out about her future degree programme in various ways: it all started with an email to her former biology teacher, asking whether one should really study biology if one hadn’t taken an advanced course in the subject. The teacher had no objections. Then came the taster course.

“I just sat in on a biology lecture at the University of Oldenburg and was absolutely thrilled,” recalls Annika. Another important source of information was ultimately the first-year student blog on the University of Oldenburg’s website. “When I read about the field trips, digging around in the dirt and the interesting analyses, I knew for sure: that’s what I want too!” she recalls with a smile.

At first, Annika slightly underestimated the transition from vocational training to university. “Working means you start at eight o’clock, finish at four in the afternoon and then have the rest of the day to yourself,” she says. “When I started my degree, I first had to relearn how to study.” Annika advises first-year students to definitely draw up a timetable right at the start of their degree – and to remain realistic. “Many of my fellow students took on too much at the beginning,” she recalls.

“They’d planned their whole day from eight o’clock in the morning, without taking into account that sometimes you’re less motivated and therefore find it difficult to actually retain what you’ve read.” The right strategy, she says, is not to overburden yourself, but to keep at it consistently: “If a module requires you to work through two chapters by the following week, you really should do that; otherwise, it’ll all pile up before the written exam,” advises Annika.

Getting to know each other during ‘O-Woche’

The best remedy for the occasional lack of motivation to study? “I’m most motivated when I know I’m going out with friends in the evening,” says Annika. “If I absolutely have to finish an experiment report beforehand, I’ll get it done.” As a city with a lively nightlife, Oldenburg has plenty to offer; on Wednesday evenings in particular, you’re almost always bound to bump into familiar faces from your own degree programme in the city centre.

The early stages of your degree are crucial for making friends with fellow students: Many friendships are formed as early as orientation week, at the get-togethers organised by the student body. “Otherwise, the rule is: even if you’re not really the party type, you should at least push yourself out of your comfort zone for the first few weeks and go out with the others in the evenings,” says Annika.

Exam preparation, internships, holiday courses – as a biology student, the 21-year-old says she doesn’t really have proper semester holidays. But she is looking forward to her first field trip, which will take her to Costa Rica for two weeks at the end of September. The theme is “Field Methods in Biology”, and the aim is to practise scientific fieldwork using species-rich tropical ecosystems. Anyone interested can then read about Annika Schimmelpfennig’s impressions of the field trip on the first-year blog, to which she will continue to contribute as a ‘second-year student’.