Become an intercultural facilitator
Contact
Office hours
Availability by phone
Mondays: 9 -12 a.m. and 14-15.30 p.m.
Thursdays: 14 p.m.-15.30 p.m.
Online office hours
Tuesdays 9.30 a.m.–10.30 a.m. in our virtual meeting room (BigBlueButton)
Face-to-face office hours
Tuesdays 14.00 p.m.-16.30 p.m. (SSC)
Thursdays: 10.00 a.m.-12.30 p.m. (SSC)
Training programme
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Training programme Orientation PLUS Training week in summer semester 2025 (in German)
Become an intercultural facilitator
If you’re looking for a combination of exchanges, skills acquisition and meaningful involvement, you're in the right place!
The programme has the following benefits:
- intensive and authentic contact with international students
- expanding your diversity skills
- taking on responsibility and developing leadership skills
- obtaining 6 ECTS points
What does an intercultural facilitator do?
International students have very different backgrounds when they begin their studies in Germany. The transition to day-to-day academic life in Germany provides this group with opportunities, but also poses big challenges. As an intercultural facilitator, you’ll make an important contribution to the acculturation process of your fellow students from abroad. In so-called cheer-up meetings*, which you will organise and carry out independently in teams of 2 with a fixed group of international students during the semester, you will
- eat together,
- talk about topics that move you, that you wonder about, can’t get out of your head, think about, puzzle you and
- provide relevant information on diversity and interculturality, which you will prepare and teach together.
*The verb “cheer up” encompasses the idea of motivating someone through positive reinforcement, keep going, not giving up and sticking to their goals.
How do I become an intercultural facilitator?
We will prepare you thoroughly and comprehensively (28 hours) for your task and role. You’ll receive basic knowledge on intercultural communication and competence as well as on the cultural sphere of higher education, with its very specific rules. You’ll also learn the tools for planning and implementing semi-formal teaching and learning settings, the so-called “cheer-up meetings”. You’ll get the opportunity to try this out yourself and to receive feedback.
You can sign up here in advance before the actual registration period on StudIP (15 March/ (15 September):
How does the module work?
- Sign up for module pb389 in StudIP from 01 March / 01 September.
- There will be a week’s training course (19 March – 27 March 2025) for your role as an intercultural facilitator. We’ll get you ready for it!
- During the following semester, you’ll plan and hold six cheer-up meetings, each lasting 180 minutes, possibly with another facilitator.
- You’re free to organise the cheer-up meetings as you like and can set your own course, but you're also welcome to use a predetermined structure.
- You’ll receive professional help to design and run the cheer-up meetings (e.g. supervision/peer support).
- You’ll write an evaluation report about your experiences.
What examination components do I have to take?
Write a 10 page long evaluating the planning and implementation of the cheer-up meetings.