Buddy Programme at Bingen UAS

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At Bingen University, we cultivate a learning and teaching culture that is tailored to the individual needs of our students and serves their personal development.
Do you enjoy intercultural exchange? Do you enjoy caring for people? Would you like to improve your foreign language skills or learn a new language?
Then sign up for the buddy programme now!

What is the Buddy Programme?

 The Buddy Programme is a peer orientation programme that aims to promote international understanding in various ways.

This programme supports international students (both exchange students and foreign students) in settling in and making new contacts. In addition, it promotes the social and emotional skills of those who, based on their experiences at the TH and in Bingen, act as mentors for new students.

Why should I join the programme?

As a mentor, you have the opportunity to...

  • come into direct contact with someone from a different socio-cultural background
  • gain intercultural experience without leaving Bingen
  • practise a foreign language or perhaps learn a new one
  • discover Bingen and the surrounding area from a new perspective that you did not know before
  • receive a certificate of voluntary intercultural engagement, which is taken into account by the International Office when awarding scholarships for academic stays abroad
  • find new friends

Buddies…

  • gain an insight into the German world in all its facets and get to know German culture, nightlife, customs, traditions, …
  • receive support with their journey (where possible)
  • are supported in everyday university life
  • practise/improve their language skills (whether German or another foreign language)
  • receive support in everyday life, e.g. when opening a bank account or signing a rental agreement
  • make new friends

FAQ`s

The requirements for becoming a mentor are: You must have been enrolled at the TH for at least one semester. Your German language skills must be at least at level B2. The more in-depth your experience is, the better equipped you will be to answer certain questions.

You can apply easily using the registration form. To do so, click on the registration button.

The International Office will review your application and contact you once the matching process has been completed. You will then be offered online coaching to explain the following:

  • the details of the programme
  • your role and responsibilities
  • dos and don'ts
  • possible problems and corresponding solutions
  • certificates of participation in voluntary, intercultural engagement

 

Depending on your preferences and availability, you may be matched with 1-3 new international students.

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 try to make this new and wonderful, but sometimes frightening, change in the student's life less overwhelming.

ou can apply once per semester. A semester is the period during which you are officially a mentor. This means: the summer semester and winter semester of each year. 
The programme does not specify a precise number of hours that you must spend with your match. From our side, only the following requirements must be met in order for you to receive your certificate of participation:

  • Contact your match within 7 days of matching.
  • Meet him/her at least once.
  • Write a report on your experience (at the end of the semester).

If you would like to change your buddy for any reason, please send us an email at buddy@th-bingen.de. If possible, we will assign you a different buddy.

Registration and matching

Registration is easy using the registration form. To do so, click on the registration button at the top of the page.

Application deadlines:

  • Winter semester: 15 August
  • Summer semester: 15 February

We will try to accommodate your preferences, but we cannot guarantee this.

After the matching…

Shortly before the start of the semester, coaching and an introductory event are offered.

In the coaching event, mentors are informed about the objectives of the buddy programme, their tasks as mentors, possible problems and their solutions, as well as the certificates of participation for voluntary intercultural engagement.

During the introductory event, buddies will spend some time together to get to know each other and network.

Please note that as a mentor, you must submit a one-page report and 2-3 photos to the International Office at the end of the programme in order to receive a certificate of voluntary intercultural engagement. You are welcome to write this report in collaboration with your buddy, describing your shared experiences.