Fulbright Scholar Dr. Loretta Ovueraye explores higher education in Germany

This summer, I was honored to receive a Fulbright International Education Administrators (IEA) Award to participate in a Fulbright seminar in Germany for the 2024-25 academic year from the U.S. Department of State and the Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board. The program is organized by the German American Fulbright Commission (Fulbright Germany) and aims to promote academic exchange between the U.S. and Germany.

As part of the Fulbright Program, I joined 17 U.S. administrators on a visit to universities in Berlin and Hannover, Germany. Attendees were asked to select universities to visit based on their areas of interest. The institutions were in Berlin and one of three additional cities. My chosen city was Hannover, home to a University of Applied Sciences and Arts. This university offers programs similar to those at Seminole State College of Florida and provides students with an education tailored to workforce needs.

University Visits in Berlin

Upon our arrival in Berlin, we were warmly greeted by our hosts, Fulbright Germany. My new colleagues and I represent universities and community colleges, working in areas such as student success, career engagement, and global affairs. Collectively, we are responsible for strategic and administrative initiatives that support students and foster international partnerships. During the first five days, we visited two universities based on our interests and toured local historical and cultural sites.

In Berlin, six scholars and I visited the Technology University (TU), where we visited the campus, took a tour and met with the international students, exchange student and entrepreneurship team. This exchange showcased the similarities between student life in the U.S. and Berlin. Another six scholars and I also visited, Berliner Hoshschule fur Technik also known as the Berlin University of Applied Sciences and Technology (BHT). This University is a university of applied sciences and is the second largest university of applied sciences in Berlin. This university has similar leanings to Seminole State, since it had programs similar to workforce-focused bachelor’s and several distance education courses. Both visits were delightful. 

The universities shared their experiences and their intentionality with student onboarding and international exposure as part of the experience as well as the minimal cost of an education at either the undergraduate or graduate level. It was interesting to see that the universities saw themselves as public domain, so families and citizens were seen biking through the campus at will. TU had its rich history around technology and relationship with T-Mobile amongst its historic founders. BHT, a much older university had historical programs in engineering and energy and automation systems and showcased their simulation sun used to test a product’s ability to withstand heat. The university also had a new unique program called Vocational and Technical Education (M.A.), which was a conversation piece since it was not a title that we would call a master’s program in the U.S. What was surprising is that they had most of their master’s programs in English, which made them easy for international students to enroll in with no tuition and a semester/annual contribution of about 3,000 euros which is about $3,178.56 depending on the exchange rate of the day.

German Higher Education Landscape

On the seventh day, five fellow administrators from community colleges and universities in the U.S. visited Hannover University of Applied Sciences and Arts (HsH). The focus of the three-day visit was on exchanging ideas about the German higher education landscape and the specific features of a university of applied sciences. My fellow Fulbrighters and I received an overview of HsH and participated in workshops addressing topics such as internationalization, university communications and the student life cycle. The sessions were characterized by lively discussions about the challenges and opportunities in higher education.

In addition to the academic topics, we got to know Hannover better through a city tour. We gained special insights into the daily life of a German university by visiting various faculties and facilities at the HsH campuses in Linden and Expo Plaza.

After the visit we returned to Berlin, where we met with German Fulbright Scholars to the U.S. We had healthy discussions over two days about the two education systems and what we learned from our visits. On our last day, we visited the German senate, met with a state representative, and had an opportunity to watch them in session. The seminar ended with a dinner session of German food and sharing.

I am humbled and honored to have been selected for the Fulbright Award to Germany and to spend two weeks with the Fulbright team and my fellow Fulbrighters learning about the German education system. Visiting universities such as the Technische Universität Berlin, Berliner Hochschule fur Technik, and HsH – definitely an unforgettable experience! 

Since 1946, the Fulbright Program has provided over 400,000 talented and accomplished students, scholars, teachers, artists, and professionals of all backgrounds with the opportunity to study, teach and conduct research abroad. Fulbrighters exchange ideas, build people-to-people connections, and work to address complex global challenges. Notable Fulbrighters include 62 Nobel Laureates, 89 Pulitzer Prize winners, 80 MacArthur Fellows, 41 heads of state or government, and thousands of leaders across the private, public and nonprofit sectors. For more information about the Fulbright Program, visit https://fulbrightprogram.org.

About the Author
Dr. Loretta Ovueraye is vice president of Academic Affairs and chief academic officer at Seminole State College of Florida.