“A few months ago, we ran into each other again quite by chance after many years,” says Prof. Dr. Harald Husemann, who retired in 2003 as a professor of English at Osnabrück University. “I was approached by two former students in a parking lot. They still have very fond memories of their time studying here and wanted to introduce the university to the students.” During the conversation, the idea arose to visit the Euregio Gesamtschule Rheine in North Rhine-Westphalia.
The English professor had already been invited there a few weeks earlier to speak as a contemporary witness in the 8th-grade history class, where he talked about his childhood during the Nazi era. “A few weeks later, the students were asked to fill out a worksheet on the topic of contemporary witnesses, and one of the students mentioned Mr. Husemann,” says Marion Zumsande. She teaches English and History at the Euregio Gesamtschule and completed her state examination in English at Osnabrück University in 2007. “That first visit was followed by a participation in our intercultural breakfast.” The return visit to the university took place last Wednesday, for which the class traveled all the way from Rheine.
After breakfast in the Schlossgarten cafeteria, they headed together to the seminar rooms of the Institue of English and American Studies. There, the students also had the opportunity to ask Adolf Klein, the university’s custodian, and Emma Borchert, a student teacher majoring in English and Art, some questions.
“I’m actually from Hamburg, but I started studying here because of the good reviews,” says Emma Borchert, and continues to describe her daily life as a student. The students were particularly interested in how long it actually takes to complete a degree and what student life is like. “There are many paths to higher education, often with detours, and that’s totally normal. That’s why it can sometimes take longer to finish your degree,” Borchert continues. “I actually started studying computer science here before switching to English.” At Osnabrück University, she says, there are plenty of opportunities to find what suits you best.
And what’s it like to return to the university after all these years? “The seminar rooms really do look exactly the same as they used to,” says Marion Zumsande, laughing, and continues: “Many of the students come to our comprehensive school without a high school recommendation, but they graduate with an Abitur. For the students, today’s visit was a great opportunity to get to know the university for themselves, and Mr. Husemann takes their questions very seriously—that was already the case back then.”
For Prof. Husemann, the visit by young students is just as valuable: “All this modern technology—smartphones, social media, and all that—I don’t know my way around it. But I think that even at 88, I can learn a lot from the students, give something back to them through visits like this, and help them see new perspectives for their future.” During one of the previous visits, the class already introduced him to the world of Snapchat. And perhaps one or two of them will be sitting in the Institute's seminar room in a few years.
More information about studying at the University of Osnabrück is available on the website.
Additional information for the media:
Prof. Dr. Harald Husemann, University of Osnabrück
Institute of English and American Studies
