Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin - Department of Social Sciences

Program Overview

The GET MA program is operated by two top universities: the Department of Social Sciences of Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin and the Graduate School of Social Sciences of the Middle East Technical University (METU) in Ankara.

Students spend the first year of study at METU before coming to Berlin to finalize their studies. Graduates receive a double degree (Master of Arts) from both universities.

Due to the international profile of GET MA the language of instruction for courses is English. However, students take additional language classes in Turkish or German or a third language throughout the academic year in Ankara and may choose additional language courses in Berlin as well.

The program helps students to enrich their academic experience by providing them with the opportunity to undertake a 6-12-weeks long internship during the summer break before the second year. Thereby, students gain valuable insight into the professional life in Germany, Turkey or abroad.

GET MA-US-Track

In cooperation with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC-CH) the GET MA-US-Track is a variation of GET MA which adds a transatlantic experience to the program. Students in this track spend their first semester at UNC-CH. In their second semester the students join the GET MA group in Ankara and continue their studies at METU and HU. Applications for TAM-GET MA need to be submitted to UNC-CH directly.

Academic Schedule

  Semester I Semester II Summer Semester III Semester IV
Period Sep-Jan Feb-Jun Jul-Sep Oct-Mar Apr-Sep
Place Ankara Ankara TR or D Berlin

Berlin

Academic Program

GET MA offers academic courses on various topics in the field of social sciences such as modernization, Europeanization and migration. Students deepen their empirical knowledge of political processes using Germany, Turkey and other countries or regions of Europe as examples.

Interdisciplinary Focus

Teaching and research have an interdisciplinary focus: the program covers various sub-disciplines of political science as well as sociology while incorporating cultural and economic questions into the course curricula. This is made possible by engaging highly qualified professors from different academic schools in the program.

Joint-Teaching

A specific characteristic of GET MA is ‘Joint-Teaching’: Each semester one course is taught by faculty members from both partner universities. By experiencing academics from Germany and Turkey within one course, GET MA students come to understand research topics from different perspectives while benefitting from the long-standing teaching traditions of both universities.

Courses

The courses of the study program offer a specialized perspective on current academic and political debates in these fields by using the examples of Turkey and Germany:

Looking at the interplay of politics and society in German-Turkish relations as well as the European dimension of domestic and foreign politics in both countries will help students to cultivate the theoretical and methodical tools used in comparative politics, integration studies, and analyses of social and political change.

Semester Content
Semester I Ankara (Sep-Jan)
  • Turkey as a Modern State
  • Making of Modernity in Turkey and Germany
  • Language Course
  • Elective
Semester II Ankara (Feb-Jun)
  • Societies in Transformation
  • Turkey as a Regional Player
  • Language Course
  • Elective
Summer (Jul-Sep) Internship
Semester III Berlin (Oct-Mar)
  • Germany, Turkey and the EU
  • German Democracy in Comparison
  • Germany in Change
  • Optional Language Course
  • Elective
Semester IV Berlin (Apr-Aug) MA-Thesis

Additional Courses

Most GET MA courses are taught specifically for GET MA students, some may be conducted together with our other international MA programs.

In addition, electives that are related to the topics of the GET MA study program and allow students to acquire a broader perspective can be chosen from the course catalogues of both universities and other universities in Berlin.

Internship

In order to complement their academic experience, students complete a 6-12 weeks internship after their first year of studies, thereby gaining valuable insight into potential careers in Germany, Turkey, or elsewhere.

Partner Universities

Sponsoring Institutions