Foreign Exchange Program
Studying Healthcare from Germany to Texas
Across all disciplines, Texas State is committed to international programs that prepare students for success in our global environment. Through our exchange program with the Hochschule Hannover University of Applied Sciences and Arts, five German students studying health information management spent the fall 2018 semester in San Marcos. All five are from Lower Saxony, the German state of which Hannover is the capital.
Meet these students and learn how their time at Texas State is making an impact!
Kai Günther
Hometown: Ronnenberg, Germany
What has your study abroad experience been like?
The sense of community and the possibilities of participating in the life on campus have really impressed me, as well as all the extracurricular activities that are offered to students. San Marcos makes for a brilliant college town where I felt comfortable immediately. The food is great and definitely benefits from the different cultures that influence it. The most striking experience so far has been my visit to the Austin City Limits festival. Seeing so many people enjoying music together was fantastic.
What are your educational and career goals?
In Germany I will finish my bachelor's degree by writing my thesis. The focus of my thesis is to find ways to streamline the procedures involved in patient recruitment for clinical trials to make the process more pleasant and effective for both patients and physicians. Possibly there is a way to automate the query of patient data to compare it to corresponding clinical studies for the patient. A different question is: how can the eligibility criteria of studies be recorded and displayed so that a comparison with patient data can be performed effectively?
I am looking into master’s degrees with a focus on statistics or epidemiology and want to work on studies and clinical research once I finish my studies.
Wiktoria Kaczmarek-Sondej
Hometown: Burgdorf, Germany
What are your goals?
I love to travel and visit other countries, so I applied for a semester abroad and fortunately I got the chance to study at Texas State University. My major in Germany is medical information management. When I return home, I will write my bachelor's thesis, possibly in the field of rheumatology and immunology. After that, I want to do my master’s degree in medical information management.
How is Texas State different from Hochschule Hannover?
It was something totally new for me when I heard classes have assignments due regularly, weekly quizzes and there is more than just one exam. In Germany we have only one exam for each class at the end of the semester. Sometimes we have assignments, but they are also due at the end of the semester.
What have you enjoyed here?
What I enjoy about Texas State is the campus size (ours is smaller), the various number of events people can attend, the openness of people and many more aspects. I’m interested in food from other countries and international culture, so this is a good opportunity to learn more about these topics and try different foods (and that’s exactly what I did). In Texas I’ve visited New Braunfels (including Wurstfest), San Antonio (Riverwalk) and Austin (kayaking on Lady Bird Lake). I plan to visit Houston and Dallas before leaving San Marcos. I will miss San Marcos and hope to visit again someday! Go Bobcats!
Pia Mielczarek
Hometown: Hamelin, Germany
What are your educational and career goals?
I am studying abroad at Texas State in my last semester before I graduate. For my graduation I will write a bachelor's thesis on the risk factor of obesity in relation to the treatment of breast cancer with a comparison between the USA and Germany. After my graduation in health information management at my home university I want to pursue my master’s degree. Afterwards, I hope that I can work for a pharmaceutical company in drug development and clinical trials.
How is Texas State different from Hochschule Hannover?
I have really enjoyed my time at Texas State so far. The campus life is very different in comparison to Germany. At Texas State there are more activities outside of learning and studying, and I really enjoy this.
What are some Texas experiences you’ve had?
I like the town of San Marcos, especially all the friendly people, the Mexican food and the San Marcos River. I have also visited Austin, Houston and Dallas and I really like these cities. The Kennedy museum in Dallas was so interesting, and in Houston I visited the NASA Space Center which was great. After all the experiences I had here so far, I can honestly say that I am in love with Texas, San Marcos and Texas State!
Stephen Schueuerhuis
Hometown: Emlichheim, Germany
Why did you want to study abroad?
I decided to study abroad at Texas State to experience the American culture, to see how American universities work and to improve my English skills, and all my expectations have been completely fulfilled so far. The classes here are pretty different from Germany. In Germany, we have a lot of classes (approximately 20 hours per week), but we usually do not have homework and our attendance is not required. It is one single exam or a paper at the end of the semester that determines our grades.
What has your study abroad experience been like?
Being part of Texas State University feels like belonging to a big family with a strong relationship and a great atmosphere. People in Texas are very welcoming, friendly and always make a happy impression, and that good mood is often contagious.
San Marcos is, in my opinion, a perfect city for students as it offers everything a student wants and needs. San Marcos has many restaurants offering every different type of food, but primarily Mexican food which I personally like!
I had the opportunity to visit the big Texan cities Austin, Dallas and San Antonio so far, and I will visit Houston soon. Furthermore, I went to New York and to San Francisco, and I will fly to Los Angeles before I leave America.
Anna Streichhardt
Hometown: Hildesheim, Germany
What has your study abroad experience been like?
The community, deep friendships and a lot of recreational activities have made my life here a wonderful adventure. The international events showing similarities and differences between cultures — you don’t learn just a lot about other cultures but also about your own culture. This experience has shown me that friendship and community knows no rules or language barriers.
Some of the events I’ve done include paddling in Austin and visiting Six Flags in San Antonio. I also enjoyed exploring the town square and karaoke evenings in San Marcos. I’ve joined different sports at Texas State.
What are your educational goals?
As well as attending classes at Texas State, I’m working on my bachelor's thesis. My thesis is about the comparison between clinical trials and real-world data for a medication to treat iron deficiency. I will finish my bachelor of arts when I return to Germany. After this, I plan to apply for the master’s program in clinical data management in Hannover. If I get a chance, I would like to return to Texas and apply for a job after graduation.
Germany Exchange - Summer 2014
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HIM Student/Faculty Foreign Exchange Program
A formal student/faculty exchange agreement has been finalized between the Texas State HIM Department and Fashhochschule Hannover (FHH) Univeristy of Applied Sciences and Arts in Hannover, Germany. This agreement provides the opportunity for both HIM faculty and student exchange opportunities between the two universities. Texas State faculty Sue Biedermann, Chair & Associate Professor, and Kim Murphy-Abdouch, Clinical Assistant Professor, traveled to Hannover in October 2011 to meet with faculty and staff there to discuss the exchange opportunities and to provide initial lectures to various groups of students, faculty, and staff.
Foreign Exchange Student
Lena Roebbel, a FHH student, is attending Texas State this spring enrolled in courses in the HIM Department and is living in Jackson Hall. At FHH, Lena is studying Medical Information Management, and will return to her studies in Hannover after the Spring semester. Three Texas State students are scheduled to attend classes at FHH in Hannover during Summer I, 2012.