"First Impressions"
Rafaela Brand, Tradition Reporter

Did you know that, in Germany, it takes about nine years to finish going to Gym? That’s because in Germany the “Gymnasium” isn’t an elective class where everybody just sits in the bleachers looking at their phones. It’s a type of school that prepares students for University.  

What other big differences between the US and Germany are worth mentioning? Glad you asked.

Difference is good.  Difference makes life interesting.  As an exchange student from Germany, I have experienced both cultures and have noticed some significant differences between the two countries.

The school system really is completely different in Germany. In America, the students go to elementary school for six years, junior high school for two, and high school for four.   Students in Germany however go to elementary school for four years, then at age ten, choose between three types of schools: the Gymnasium, the Realschule, or the Mittelschule. 

Each of these three schools has a different duration. The Gymnasium takes nine years, the Realschule six years and the Mittelschule five years. Each school allows students to obtain a different degree, but they can only go to university after attending the Gymnasium and getting the Abitur. 

The Abitur is the highest degree you can get before going to university. By comparison, attending the Mittelschule or the Realschule means students are expected to either start an apprenticeship or go on to get their Abitur from a different school. 

The differences don’t stop with academics. As unbelievable as it may sound, schools in Germany frequently do not have school-related “extracurricular”  sports teams. If students want to participate in a sport, they have to become a member of a sports club outside of school. A good example is my friend Emmi. She plays soccer, and to join a team she had to become a member of “TSV München OST,” a sports club in Munich. She joined the team years ago and the cool thing is that she only has to pay for her soccer clothes and not to be on the team itself. But it’s a lot easier here than there to be on a team. If fact, just a couple of weeks ago I decided to try out for soccer and am now on the team, simple as that. 

Another difference is the food. In the USA, there is a large variety of fast food whereas in Germany most people cook fresh meals everyday rather than eat out. German dishes are often more traditional, usually including potatoes or sausages. There is for example the “Wiener Schnitzel mit Bratkartoffeln”, the “Schweinebraten” or the classic “Brotzeit”. The “Brotzeit” is most common in the south and is a kind of dinner, consisting of bread, sausages like “Salami”, cheese, and often vegetables.   

One of the more obvious changes is the reliance on cars for transportation. In Germany lots of people use their bikes, walk, or take the bus or  subway to move around their city/region. On the other hand, in the US it appears that most people use a car for everything, whether for going to the grocery store, the movies, or the mall. I thi is a thing which is better in Germany, because it is bad for the environment if everybody uses a car for everything. 

German health care is vastly different.  In Germany, citizens have a universal healthcare system which covers most people. Everyone is required to  pay a relatively small price each month, and everyone in need of medical care is for the  most part then covered by insurance. On the other hand, in the states the healthcare system is mostly private and really expensive.

In my German opinion, some things are definitely better here. Others, Germany still . , for example the healthcare system, are better in Germany. I’ve only been here for a couple of weeks and I’m looking forward to experiencing more of those differences during the rest of my exchange year in America, and maybe at the end I will think differently about both states.