Karsten Fitz

Karsten Fitz holds a PhD and is a Professor of American Studies / Culture and Media Studies at the University of Passau. His expertise lies in the fields of Native American Studies, American popular visual culture, cultural memory, American political culture, and German-American cultural relations. What brings him to the TEFE-project is his interest in teaching American Studies in the EFL-classroom, on which he has also published, and his passion for intercultural academic exchanges.

Hans-Stefan Fuchs

Hi, I am Hans from Passau University. Together with my colleagues I’m part of Passau’s TEFE-Group. I’m looking forward to working with you together.

Teresa Fischler

Teresa Fischler is a research assistant at the University of Passau. She joined the TEFE-Team while studying International Cultural and Business Studies in the master’s programme at the University of Passau.

Matthias Fuchs

Matthias Fuchs is the Managing Director at the Centre for Teacher Education at the University of Passau, where all processes concerning teacher training are coordinated. One of his main areas of responsibility is the project management of national and international third-party funded projects. Alongside digitalisation, education for sustainable development and heterogeneity and diversity, there is a particular focus on the internationalisation of teacher training courses and enabling students to gain international experience. 

Jonas Scharfenberg

Jonas Scharfenberg holds a PhD and is a tenured researcher at the University of Passau in the field of educational science. His research interests are teacher professionalization and professionalism, career choice, diversity and interculturality, assessment in the context of diversity and inclusion as well as methodological issues, particularly in the context of transnational research. His research has an international focus; next to TEFE, he works together with partners in the US, South Africa, Sweden and Romania in both research and teaching practice.

Ricardo Römhild

Ricardo Römhild holds a PhD and is a researcher and lecturer in the field of language (teacher) education. He currently serves as acting professor for English language education at the University of Passau. He focuses on education for global citizenship and sustainability in the context of language education – particularly socio-environmental justice, decoloniality, cosmopolitanism, and pedagogies of (critical) hope. With a background as a teacher at secondary and tertiary levels in Germany and the USA, these perspectives and questions inform his work both in research and in teaching at university and in teacher workshops.

Eva-Maria Felscher

Eva-Maria Felscher is a teacher for upper secondary schools (Gymnasium). Currently, she is seconded to the University of Passau as a lecturer at the Professorship for Didactics of English Language, Literature and Culture, incorprating her practical experiences by supervising students on school internships and offering seminars interlinking the scientific theories with pedagogical and didactic practice in the first phase of teacher training.

• The Faculty of Law

• The Faculty of Business, Economics and Information Systems

• The Faculty of Arts and Humanities with the Department of Catholic Theology

• The Faculty of Computer Science and Mathematics

In December 2019 a number of 12,323 students and doctoral students were enrolled, including 1,742 international students (14.14%) from e.g. India (186), Austria (153), China PRC (111), Czech Republic (26), Spain (24), Poland (16), Slovakia (14), UK (≤ 4).As of winter semester 2019/2020, the figures show a total of 1,159 primary occupation. We count 472 academic support staff and 687 academics across the University, including 122 professors (chaired professors: 91, non-chaired professors: 29, assistant professors: 2), who teach and conduct research on a wide range of subjects (1 July 2019). The UP stands for excellent research, innovative teaching and intensive knowledge transfer activities as well as diversity and openness to the world. At the border to two countries, but right in the heart of Europe, science, teaching and culture find their unique combination in Passau. For us, internationalisation is an identity-shaping characteristic and an important strategic goal. Our international connections are underpinned by the vibrant partnerships we maintain on a global scale.

A total of 244 partnerships were concluded with universities across the globe (March 2019). We carry out student exchange with partner universities in e.g. Czech Republic (7), Spain (22), Poland (9), Slovakia (2), UK (8); the UP also has double degree programmes with EU Partner universities.

The Faculty of Arts and Humanities is the largest of the University’s four faculties and comprises the departments Education, Catholic Theology, Regional Cultural Studies/Area Studies, Governance and Historical Studies, and Language, Texts and Media, which together represent a total of 56 chairs and professorships. 6,775 students are currently enrolled in the 25 degree programmes – undergraduate (9), including Bachelor of Education, and Master’s programmes (12), including Master of Education – administered by the faculty. 2,439 of these students are enrolled in teacher education programmes: primary education, and three types of secondary education (Mittelschule, Realschule, and Gymnasium).

The certified Language Centre offers language courses for students of all faculties in Chinese, Czech, English, French, German as a Foreign Language, Indonesian, Italian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Thai, Turkish and Vietnamese. These language courses offer subject-specific language programmes for students of cultural studies & international relations (including teaching degree students); business & economics; law; and computer science & mathematics. As a pilot scheme, we have implemented an English course specially designed for teaching degree students focusing on educational sciences and ‘teaching in English’.