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Thread resurrection! Since I last posted, I've taken a distance-learning DaF-Unterricht course through the Goethe Institute (I've completed 6 of 8 modules and am working on the exam for the 7th right now) and decided that what I want to do is teach people to speak German. I have a part-time job at a private language school in my area. I want to get the credential, tbh. I'm looking at MA programs, and there's a person in Georgia (new faculty since my original query) who does research in a vein I'm interested in. I'm also looking at Maryland, since they say they also train people who aren't interested in going into academia. A friend of mine has basically convinced me I should apply, but because of the timing (GRE, tracking down LORs, etc), I won't be able to do it this year. I'm also not entirely certain whom I should ask for recommendations! I got my BS in 1998, and my only German prof in college (I went to a small school) has since retired, and I don't know how to get hold of him. I have a professional doctorate in an entirely different field (medical-related), so should I track down one of my profs from back then? They wouldn't be able to speak at all to my German interests, but they could say that I can hack grad-level work (which my GPA would show; I got mostly Bs.) IDK, what do I do?

Thanks for all your replies! I hadn't checked this forum in a while, and suddenly lots of responses! Since I made this post, I've signed up for a distance learning course at the Goethe Institut in teaching DaF, which I hope to get the course materials for in a couple weeks. Assuming they accept my undergrad degree in chem/German as valid... (I have this terror that they won't, because, as most of y'all point out, German standards are *really* strict.) That only requires C1 level I keep changing my mind about whether I want to apply to grad school. Multiple times a day. It's nerve-wracking... I don't *need* a PhD to teach DaF. But it would get me teaching experience, and that's the one thing I can't figure out how to acquire! Language schools want experienced teachers, and a certificate with a practicum is a credential, not experience. So argh. (I can look at local community colleges, but they're not hiring German teachers right now.) Do any of you have suggestions for how to get teaching experience? Ideally, I want to live in Berlin, and I could teach German at a VHS (after I get experience here, see above). If I had a PhD, I could teach a literature class (they offer some) as well as German classes. Honestly, I'd be happy being a tour guide there, because I just want to tell everyone about the cool stuff there. I'm also a writer (SF/F), but that isn't making me any money yet. Other things I've considered include the Middlebury MA in Berlin, but that's extremely expensive, and financial aid is limited. (Also, I have aging cats and a house and a husband...) One option I'm considering is not applying to anything yet, teaching a while, saving some money, and applying to Middlebury once I have fewer cats. (I lost one last summer, quite suddenly, and I wouldn't be able to handle not being able to say goodbye.) There's one professor at my top-choice school who researches Turkish-German studies (mainly literature), as well as queer studies, marginal voices, and that sort of thing. Do you think I could just email her, introduce myself, and ask "so, this is the research area I'm interested in, would that be an appropriate topic?" I don't want to shoot myself in the foot. (I think a thesis on Turkish-German integration in football culture would be fun, and probably quite novel... or homophobia in football culture, quite a hot topic at the moment. At UNC, there's an option to do a cultural studies certificate, which is 5 courses, 4 of your choosing. It's through the comm department.) But a PhD is a LOT of work, a lot of stress, and a lot of time, and while I'd love to be immersed in German stuff again, I don't know that I *need* to. So I can't decide what to do.

Hi all, This is my first post here. I have a BS in chemistry and German and a PharmD, and I want to go back for German Studies. I think I want to teach German as a Foreign Language (DaF), or possibly do freelance translation work on the side. I have not yet applied; I'm still researching schools and all that. I have C1-level German (though no certificate; no money to pay for the test). I'm also interested in Turkish-German integration, belonging, and identity, as well as football culture. My main concern is whether I've got a good enough background to compete with, well, the rest of you newly minted BA German folks who have undergrad theses and whatnot. I live near Chapel Hill, and I'm planning to meet with the grad school admissions counselor to see about making my application sparkle. I'm looking at UNC/Duke and Maryland for US schools, maybe Georgetown and UMass. For German schools, Humboldt, FU-Berlin, Potsdam, and Halle. The thing is, I'm worried German schools won't even talk to me, since I don't have a BA in Germanistik, and I haven't just finished it (that seems to be a Thing there, to go straight from BA to MA, then promovieren if you're lucky). Do I contact the Ausländerberatung email on the websites? Ask them what further courses I need to take to meet their criteria? How likely is it for a non-traditional student who wants to teach to get into a PhD program? (Or an MA program?) I might be able to afford a summer session at Middlebury, which would a) get me back into school mindset and get me a few more credit hours. What questions do I need to be asking departments? Thanks, all.