REFLECT: Going Abroad. Your Student Exchange Capstone Module
With REFLECT, you will embark on a reflective learning journey before, throughout and beyond your study abroad. A facilitated (teacher-led) discourse – online via ILIAS and face-to-face – as well as direct exchange with fellow students will inspire you to interactively discuss, reflect and contextualize your experiences.
REFLECT is special: It will move your learning experience beyond intercultural communication or specific country-related topics. This module will not deal with mere organizational issues pertaining to going abroad. REFLECT will be offered again in summer 2025.
In short: REFLECT will help you make your own way to become a reflective ambassador of your experiences and expectations as well as to understand and to engage with the idea of responsible global citizenship.
Learning Goals & Content
In the course of this module you will, together with other participants, learn to:
- explore your own identities and their co-relation with social and cultural imprints
- anticipate and reflect on challenges before, during and after studying abroad
- develop coping and solution strategies in the different stages of your student exchange
- refer your experiences in the host country and at the host university to the process of cultural adaption (culture shock)
- understand your social positioning and its consequences in reference to global power structures
- discover different approaches to deal with stereotypes in a reflective way and to support anti-discriminatory attitudes and action in your everyday life
- explore ways to transfer your experiences to future steps in life and to actively engage within your community.
Structure & Requirements
You will get involved in a hybrid-learning environment. This will allow you to engage flexibly and at your own pace with the module’s content.
REFLECT will kick off with a self-guided learning phase in mid-June. A face-to-face* pre-departure workshop for all participants will take place on 5 July, 2025 in Freiburg. During your stay abroad, online assignments will take place every 4-6 weeks. You will complete this module with a virtual re-entry workshop on 18 April, 2026.
Important note: It is possible to participate in this module even if you are still abroad in spring 2026. (There might be a lot of reasons for not yet having returned to Freiburg at this stage: taking exams, working part-time, travelling, doing in an internship, etc.) The online mode will allow you to participate in REFLECT wherever you are.
This is how you will embark on your reflective learning journey:
*All face-to-face elements may be subject to chance according to pandemic regulations at the University of Freiburg.
Credits & Recognition
Participants will receive two (2) ECTS upon full completion of the module: It is required to participate in both the pre-departure and the re-entry workshop, to complete regular online assignments, as well as to submit a final reflective essay.
For Bachelor’s students: Credits obtained in this module can count towards the field of profession-oriented skills (BOK).
For Master’s students: You will receive a certificate of attendance. Please check with your study program coordinator whether credits obtained in this module can count towards electives.
Participation in the module is voluntary and will not be a prerequisite for going abroad as a Freiburg Global Exchange or as an Erasmus outgoing student.
Eligibility & Registration
REFLECT will start by mid-June 2025. Registration is open primarily for nominees of the Freiburg Global Exchange Programme who will begin their stay abroad in summer/fall 2025 and who will spend one or two semesters at the partner institution. Erasmus outgoing students of all Freiburg faculties are also eligible to register.
Registration will open in mid-May. Information about the registration process in ILIAS will be available in due course.
Student Impressions
"REFLECT helped me to put my experiences into context and prepare for some feelings that arose during times of culture shock. It also helped me appreciate my stay [abroad] even more and made me aware of how lucky I am to be able to experience this exchange year!"
"I am happy to have chosen this module. It enabled me to meet and engage with other students who are going to study abroad. We all shared the same thoughts and fears, but also excitement. Overall, I can recommend taking this course."
"I really enjoyed the group meetings and having a chat with the others about what they expect the semester to be and how it turned out in the end. It also helped me to better categorize and understand the experiences I had during my time abroad."
“I can fully recommend the REFLECT module. It helped me a lot to reflect on my experiences and to classify them for myself.”
Questions & Contact
For further questions about the content and learning goals of this module please contact your REFLECT lecturer and facilitator:
Ms. Carolin Nagy
Lecturer at Zentrum für Schlüsselqualifikationen
Email: carolinnagy@hotmail.com
For any questions or concerns related to administrative issues (registration in HisInOne, ILIAS platform) please turn to:
Ms. Astrid Yadav
Zentrum für Schlüsselqualifikationen
Tel. +49 761 203 6833
Email: astrid.yadav@zfs.uni-freiburg.de
For all questions concerning administrative and organizational issues for your stay abroad, please continue to address your Freiburg Global Exchange coordinators Ms. Mareen Kästner or Dr. Jens Langer. Erasmus outgoing students please address your Erasmus Exchange coordinators.
Still unsure about the module? Have a look at 5 Reasons to REFLECT
