As communication in English is quite common in Bremen and Bremerhaven, knowledge of the German language is not necessarily required in order to work here.
Nevertheless, we strongly recommend that you acquire a basic knowledge of German for everyday life in Bremen and Bremerhaven.

Tandem

The Tandem Placement Agency at the University's Language Centre can help you find a tandem language partner. This is a great way to improve your foreign language skills while helping your tandem partner learn or improve their knowledge of your native language. 

Another possibility is to use the app "Tandem". Here you have the possibility to get in contact with others and to exchange languages digitally and free of charge.

Summer Courses

The international summer courses organized by the Language Centre are open to students around the world who want to learn German in Bremen and Bremerhaven. Lectures and excursions complement your courses that last 4 weeks and cater to participants of 3 different levels of proficiency: beginner, intermediate, and advanced. More information can be found on the website of the Language Centre.

Language Cafés

Language Cafés offer the possibility to actively exchange with different people. Speaking in a local and casual environment helps a lot learning a new language. In Bremen and Bremerhaven there are several Language Cafés with different focuses. Here you can find an overview of the different cafés (unfortunately the file is only available in german).
The SZHB offers Language Cafés as well. They offer many different languages various times a week.

YUFE is also offering Langugae Cafés. Click here to get more information. 

Free Online Learning Course - Buchstaben.com

In collaboration with German teachers and volunteer teachers, buchstaben.com has developed a free online learning course that explains the German language in a clear and easy-to-understand way. In addition to exercises for listening and reading comprehension, idioms and vocabulary and individual learning tools are also offered to make learning German easier.
In addition, a free e-book has been published especially for refugees from Ukraine in cooperation with Ukrainian native speakers, which provides the first points of contact with the German language.

Further information and all free content can be found here.

DAA Professional Language Course

By participating in the professional language courses of the DAA (Deutsche Angestellten Akademie), you will acquire general language skills and competencies. In addition, the development of job-related skills is the goal of the course. The focus is on communication in the workplace, which should improve your chances on the job and training market.

The language courses are sponsored by the BAMF (Federal Office for Migration and Refugees).
Anyone who is authorized by the employment agency or the job center to participate is eligible.
You are considered eligible if you receive benefits according to the Second Book of the Social Code, are registered as a training seeker or job seeker, or are registered as unemployed.

The entitlement certificate is issued by the employment agency in each individual case.

Self-Study

In addition to the great selection of language courses, Tandems and other organisations, it can also be really helpful to study German on your own. In order to do so, you can have a look at the numerous free Apps and Websites that provide learners with study material. You can find some of these options in this list:

  • Memrise: You can download this app on your mobile phone and use it to learn German vocabularies and phrases. It can be particularly helpful to beginners.
  • Deutsch-To-Go: This website offers a great number of listening texts for different language-levels.
  • DW provides really good materials for reading and listening. The programme 'Nicos Weg' might be especially helpful for some, as it entails small videos with subtitles which introduce (basic) German phrases.