Buddy Program
Buddy Program
At the Bingen University of Applied Sciences, we cultivate a learning and teaching culture that is tailored to the individual needs of students and serves their personal development.
Do you like cross-cultural exchange? Do you enjoy taking care of people? Would you like to improve your foreign language skills or learn a new language?
Then sign up for the Buddy Program now!
What is the Buddy Program?
The Buddy Program is a peer orientation program that aims to promote international understanding in several ways.
The program supports international students (both exchange and foreign students) in settling in and establishing new contacts. Furthermore, it fosters the social and emotional skills of those who act as mentors for new students based on their experiences at the TH and in Bingen.
Why should I join the program?
As mentor, you have the opportunity to ...
- come into direct contact with someone from a different socio-cultural background.
- gain intercultural experience without leaving Bingen.
- practice a foreign language, or perhaps learn a new language.
- rediscover Bingen and the surrounding area from a perspective not known before.
- make a new friend!
Buddies, instead:
- gain an insight into the German world in all its facets, exploring German culture, nightlife, customs, habits, etc.
- get assistance with travel (if possible, e.g. pick-up from the train station or airport).
- are supported in daily university life.
- come to practice/improve language skills (be it German or another foreign language).
- receive support in everyday life, e.g. opening a bank account or signing a rental contract.
- gain a new friend!
Application & Matching
You can easily register using the registration form on the website. Fill it out and send it off!
Application Deadlines:
- Winter semester: August 15
- Summer semester: February 15
We will try to accommodate your requests, but we cannot promise anything.
After the matching...
Just before the semester begins, a coaching session and a Greet & Meet event will be arranged.
In the coaching event mentors will be informed about the objectives of the Buddy Program, the tasks of a mentor, possible problems and their solutions as well as about the participation certificates for the voluntary intercultural commitment.
In the Greet & Meet event, buddies will spend some time together to get to know each other and do some networking.
Please note that as a mentor, you must submit a one-page report on your experiences and 2-3 photographs to the International Office at the end of the program in order to receive a certificate of voluntary intercultural commitment. You are welcome to write this report in cooperation with your buddy and describe your joint experiences in it.
The submission of an experience report does not apply to international students who have registered for the program as a buddy.
What are you still waiting for?
Any questions? Please contact us:
International Office
Berlinstraße 109
55411 Bingen am Rhein
Deutschland
Gebäude 5, Raum 319
T. +49 6721 409 337
E. buddy@th-bingen.de
FAQs
The requirements for becoming a mentor are:
- You must have been enrolled at THB for at least one semester. The more experience you have, the better equipped you are to deal with certain questions.
- German language skills at least at level B2.
You can easily register using the application form at the top of the page. Fill it out and send it off!
The International Office will check your application and get back to you after the matching is completed. Later, we will offer an online coaching to explain you:
- the program in detail
- your role and responsabilities
- Dos and Don'ts
- possible problems and solutions
- certificate of participation in intercultural volunteering
...and much more!
You can be matched with 1-3 new international students, according to your desire and availability.
As a mentor, you can be the very first friend of an international student at Bingen University of Applied Sciences, helping them to integrate, settle in and adjust. You will fulfill a facilitation mission and try to make this new, huge, beautiful, but sometimes scary change of life less overwhelming for the student.
You can apply once per semester, and one semester is the time frame in which you are officially a mentor. Meaning: summer semester and\or winter semester of each year.
The program does not set an exact number of hours to spend on\with your match. From our side, the only conditions for you to be then issued the certificate of participation, are:
- email your match within 7 days after being matched
- meeting him\her at least once
- completing your end-of-term report (at the end of the semester)
If you want to change your buddy for any reason, please email us at buddy@th-bingen.de.
If possible, we will match you with someone else.