Wharton starts German Club

The Wharton German Club -- Was ist das? The newly-founded Wharton German Club, co-chaired by International Studies and Business freshmen Marco Lukesch and Matthew Commons, hopes to "increase awareness of the business, social and cultural concerns in German-speaking countries," Commons said. It is open to all members of the University community who have an interest in Germanic affairs. Practicing the use of the German language and focusing on cultural activities are among the other goals of the Wharton German Club, Commons said. In the future, Commons said he hopes the club will be able to attract business speakers who have affiliations with Germany. As one of their first events, the club co-presented the fourth session of the "Zeichen der Zeit" workshop with the Huntsman International Studies and Business Program -- which integrates business, liberal arts and foreign language in a dual-degree program between the College of Arts and Sciences and the Wharton School. The series of interactive discussions focuses on topics covering German society, business, culture and politics from both a historical and contemporary perspective. "I plan on spending one semester abroad, and I would also like to have an internship in Germany," College and Wharton sophomore Marianna Rozinov said. "This workshop [gave] me and other participants exposure to the cultural aspects of Germany, as well as the chance to improve our speaking ability." Conducted entirely in German, last Tuesday's session began with two first-year graduate students discussing their experiences working for American corporations in Germany. A question-and-answer period followed the speeches in which students could learn about the opportunities in Germany for job employment, as well as the similarities and differences between the German and American work atmospheres. "The work environment in Germany is very different from conditions in America. The relationships are stronger, the friendships formed grow deeper," said Banu Guliza Tansever, a first-year Wharton graduate student. "I hope that students here see many different experiences of working in Germany from many different perspectives. Then they will have a realistic picture of what it's actually like." Because of differences in business education in the United States and in Germany, gaining a quality business internship abroad will be very difficult for most American undergraduates, Tansever added. More than 20 people attended the session, and Commons stressed that "the speakers were very knowledgeable and the students asked very good questions about the corporate culture in Germany." The Wharton German Club plans to hold another "Zeichen der Zeit" session in late March that will focus on the European monetary union and the unemployment rate in Germany.