News
New Erasmus Partnership with Ireland: Expanding Opportunities for Students and Staff
28 April 2025
The English Department is delighted to announce a new Erasmus+ partnership with a multi-campus technological university in Ireland: Atlantic Technological University (ATU).This exciting cooperation opens up new opportunities for both students and academic staff to engage in international exchange and deepen their academic and cultural experiences.
Starting from the upcoming semester, English Studies students will be able to apply for Erasmus-funded study placements at the Letterkenny campus of ATU, located in the town of Letterkenny, the largest town in County Donegal.
The partnership offers modules in English Literature, Linguistics, Cultural Studies, and related fields, all taught in an immersive English-speaking environment. In addition to student mobility, the cooperation also supports staff exchanges for teaching and training purposes. This will strengthen academic collaboration and foster new research connections between the two institutions.
“We are thrilled to expand our international network and offer our students the chance to experience academic life in Ireland,” said Professor Christina Sanchez-Stockhammer, Head of the English Department. “This partnership reflects our commitment to promoting intercultural learning and academic excellence.” A special thanks goes to Dr. Patrick McCafferty, himself from Donegal, who played a key role in establishing this partnership. His initiative, dedication, and personal efforts were instrumental in bringing this cooperation to life.
More information about application deadlines and available courses are shared via the Erasmus Office and the English Department homepage. Interested students and staff are encouraged to attend the upcoming information session in November 2025. For any immediate questions, please contact our Erasmus coordinator, Dr. Isabelle van der Bom, at isabelle.vanderbom@phil.tu-chemnitz.de
3rd TUC-KHS Language Tandem Project launched
14 April 2025
The third official kick-off workshop took place on 10 April, marking the continued success of the tandem language learning programme in Chemnitz. Launched originally as part of the preparations for Chemnitz 2025 – European Capital of Culture – the programme brings together international English-speaking students and German-speaking volunteers from Kulturhauptstadt Chemnitz (as well as anyone interested in improving their language skills!) who wish to improve their English in preparation for welcoming international visitors.
Now in its third iteration, the tandem project has proven to be more than just a language exchange. What makes it particularly special is its ability to foster intercultural and cross-generational connections. Many previous tandem pairs have formed lasting friendships, bridging the gap between international students and local residents, and enriching the cultural fabric of our community.
The idea for the tandem project originated from a service learning initiative led by Dr. Stefanie Troppmann from Hochschuldidaktik at TU Chemnitz. The current programme is coordinated by the English Department (Dr. Isabelle van der Bom and Dr. Patrick McCafferty), in collaboration with the Volunteer Programme of Chemnitz European Capital of Culture 2025, represented by Delfina Zdebel (Assistant) and Anton Schneider (Coordinator).
Special thanks go to Dr. Maria Worf, Managing Director of the Foreign Language Centre, for her generous support and hosting the event, and to Silvia Langhoff from the Deutsch-Britischen Gesellschaft Chemnitz for her valuable partnership. We also thank Dirk Zinner, Head of the Volunteer Programme at Chemnitz 2025, for his continued support.
We look forward to deepening these collaborations and further developing the tandem project as a lasting legacy of Chemnitz’s year as European Capital of Culture.
Professor Christina Sanchez-Stockhammer and co-host Dominic Piazza launch new podcast “Linguistics Behind the Scenes” for general audiences
18 March 2025
Is the language in comics particularly simple? Which words from Star Wars have already become part of everyday language? And does the German afternoon last as long as the English afternoon? The new podcast Linguistics Behind the Scenes, produced at Chemnitz University of Technology, explores these questions and more in an engaging and approachable manner. This podcast is for everyone who enjoys or even loves language. You can listen to the episodes on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Youtube
Award for Excellent Teaching
14 November 2024
Jun.-Prof. Dr. Jennifer Schluer, head of the TESOL section in the English Department at TU Chemnitz, has been honored with this year’s “Award for Excellent Teaching” (Lehrpreis “Herausragende Lehre”). She received the award for her innovative and student-centered teaching in the TESOL Research Colloquium, which addresses the heterogeneous academic backgrounds, teaching experiences as well as research interests of Master’s and doctoral students. The colloquium fosters a collaborative learning culture within a digital environment, where students continuously share their progress and exchange feedback. The strategic use of various digital tools, such as digital boards, audio and screencast feedback as well as online forums and video conferences, serves to enhance students’ personalized support throughout the research process.
You can find further information about her research and teaching at the TESOL website.The full press release is available here.
Launching Turning Pages: Reading from TU Chemnitz's first Creative Writing Journal
30 October 2024, 18:00
Chemnitz Open Space
Brückenstraße 10, 09111 Chemnitz
The Chair of English Literatures celebrates the 6th issue of Turning Pages, the first Creative Writing Journal of its kind at TU Chemnitz. At this event, recent and former contributors to the journal will read their creative texts in English, ranging from poems, short crime fiction, retellings of classic stories to inspiring texts about diverse topics. Additionally, they will present their art work and photographs that often complement the journal's themes.
The event is free of admission. The celebration includes snacks and drinks.
For more information, view the event poster.
First Semester Welcome 2024 on 11.10.24
October 11, 2024
The TUC English Studies department welcomes all its first-year BA and MA students and cordially invites them to attend this year's First Semester Welcome on October 11th, 2024 in Neues Hörsaalgebäude, 2/N002! The event begins at 1 pm.
Click on the poster to view the event schedule.
For more events planned during the Orientation Week, see O-Phase 2024.
FIRST SEMESTER WELCOME
for Bachelor and Master students
Friday, 11 October 2024, 13:00 - 14:30
Neues Hörsaalgebäude (2/N002)
13:00 - 13:30:
- Welcome Address by the Head of the English Department
- Presentation of the Department's Professorships and Sections:
- English and Digital Linguistics
- English Literatures
- Anglophone Area Studies
- Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) / Advanced Academic English
- English Practical Language Programme
13:00 - 13:45: Coffee Break
13:55 - 14:15:
- International Office: Information about Study Abroad
- International Office: Your Career in Germany - Critical Early Steps
- Student's Study Abroad Experiences
14:15 - 14:30:
- Student Advisor
- General Q&A
Reading Shakespeare on 3 evenings: 13 November 2024, 18 December 2024, 22 January 2025
The Chair of English Literatures invites everyone to read 3 Shakespeare plays together: King Lear, Julius Caesar and Antony and Cleopatra on 3 evenings in Reichenhainer Str. 39, room 233, starting at 17:00
- 13 November, 2024
- 18 December, 2024
- 22 January, 2025
Participants are encouraged to bring a copy of the play to the reading.
For more information, view the event poster.
08.July 2024
WordValue
Search many words at once and colour-coded them in context according to their characteristics
We are very happy to announce the official launch of our easy-to-use text/corpus analysis tool WordValue (www.wordvalue.gwi.uni-muenchen.de).
Find out with a single search how often all the words from a long list occur in a text, or use the innovative “rainbow text” function to get a fast and intuitive overview of the distribution of lemmas with similar qualities relative to each other in a text.
Upload your own files to the free web application, use the available preset texts and tables, or paste your own text into a text box to try out WordValue right away.
Several short video tutorials and detailed How-to and FAQ sections show you how to make the most of WordValue’s search and output options. The tool is easy to use, even with no prior experience in corpus linguistics, and has possible applications beyond linguistic research (e.g. in literary studies, language learning and other fields that use language).
Christina Sanchez-Stockhammer (TU Chemnitz) & Johannes Tochtermann (LMU Munich)
1 July 2024
UK General Election
Prof. Klaus Stolz published an article in the German weekly paper Der Freitag in which he discussed the Labour Party's likely win in Thursday's general election, its potential for actual political change and the re-appearance of Nigel Farage and the future of the Tory party.
Read the article here (German): Der Freitag
17.May 2024
On Thursday, May 16, 2024, our esteemed colleague and teacher Jeff Phillips passed away. This tragic event happened very quickly and completely unexpectedly for all of us. We are deeply shocked and very sad to have lost one of our kindest and most long-standing members of the Department for English and American Studies. We will never forget Jeff Phillip’s friendliness, good humour and enthusiasm, and how much he cared about teaching his students. We will miss his booming voice and his boisterous laugh.
If you would like to contribute to Jeff Phillips' memorial website and share your memories about him, you can do so at https://trauer-gedenkseite.de/jeff-phillips/.
The Liberal Arts flag does not fly any more.
Jeff Phillips came to Chemnitz with teaching experience as a “Lektor” from Hannover and Kassel.
For over 20 years, he taught generations of students at the English Department.
With his high teaching load, he contributed to the success of our students more than anyone else in the Department.
His students will remember him as a traditional strict and open teacher, who was always keen to maintain international standards, an institution within the institution.
His colleagues will remember him as the Liberal Arts man from the (US-American) South.
During his long experience at German universities, he remained a dedicated observer of political and cultural changes in the US – and always interesting to talk to.
The big bass baritone was devoted to the opera in all its forms, and he proved to be an expert and keen follower of developments in music and the arts.
We appreciated his contributions to staff meetings or “Heizhaus” conferences - he always enjoyed talking informally to students as well as international guest professors.
We will miss the stimulating discussions with him about his American heritage and family background in Georgia.
We are so sad that we will never hear from him how he managed to reintegrate into his old home after his retirement.
The English Department has lost a dear friend and colleague:
Jeff Phillips passed away on May 16th in Chemnitz - R.I.P.
Chemnitz, 17/05/24, Josef Schmied
Lange Nacht der Wissenschaft am 27. April 2024
Wie gut kennen Sie die Märchen der Brüder Grimm?
Ein Vortrag von Sasha Genevieve Coelho, M.A .
Was kann man sprachwissenschaftlich über Märchen und ihre englischen Übersetzungen forschen? Sie lernen das Projekt „TransGrimm“ kennen und können durch Ihre Teilnahme an einem Quiz zum Projekt beitragen.
Leidenschaft für die Forschung
März 5, 2024
In einem Interview mit der Zeitung abi.de erläutert Antonia Friebel ihren akademischen Werdegang sowie ihre Promotion nach dem Abschluss ihres Anglistik-Studiums.
Öffentlicher Vortrag: "Brexit als literarisches Phänomen: Zwischen Euroskepsis und gesellschaftlicher Spaltung" am 30. November 2023
October 9, 2023
In diesem Vortrag beleuchtet Dr. Mandy Beck, welchen Einfluss Brexit auf zeitgenössische Literatur hat, welche Texte und Themenschwerpunkte dabei entstanden sind und welche Entwicklungen vor dem Brexit-Referendum bereits zur sogenannten "Bexlit" beigetragen haben. Der Vortrag findet am 30. November 2023 im Veranstaltungssaal der Stadtbibliothek DAStietz um 19:00 Uhr statt.
Reading Shakespeare on 3 evenings: 18 October 2023, 29 November 2023, 17 January 2024
October 9, 2023
The Chair of English Literatures invites everyone to read 3 Shakespeare plays together: A Midsummer Night's Dream, Othello and The Merchant of Venice on 3 evenings in the Club der Kulturen, starting at 17:00:
- 18 October, 2023
- 29 November, 2023
- 17 January, 2024
For more information, view the event poster.
English and Digital Linguistics Research Colloquium WS23/24: Invitation to presentations by guest speakers
October 9, 2023
Dear students and dear colleagues,
Would you like to attend exciting presentations by invited guest speakers about varied topics in English linguistics? Then we are very happy to welcome you to the Research Colloquium in English and Digital Linguistics!
We will meet several times this semester on Tuesdays from 11:30 to 13:00 to discuss state-of-the art linguistic research at TU Chemnitz (see dates and topics below).
You can either join us in room 2/39/233 in Reichenhainer Str. 39 or participate online via Zoom (for the Zoom link please see the OPAL page for the EDL Research Colloquium or email Prof. Sanchez-Stockhammer directly.)
Feel free to pass this invitation on to anyone who might be interested in participating (but please do not post the Zoom link online).
WINTER 2023/24
07.11.: Sven Albrecht (TUC): Comparing vowel spaces across three circles: A quantitative corpus-based approach
14.11.: Markéta Mala (Prague; remote speaker): Speech presentation in fiction for children
28.11.: ONLINE ONLY: OStRin Barbara Held and the P-Seminar „Improve your English – reloaded 4.0“ (Neues Gymnasium Nuremberg; in German): User study of vocabulary learning with the VR adventure quiz app Bridge of Knowledge VR
12.12.: Josef Schmied (TUC): Cultural adaptations in the World English lexicon: The case of China
23.01.: Andreas Greiser (Augsburg): Learner’s lexicography
First Semester Welcome 2023 on 05.10.23
September 20, 2023
The TUC English Studies department welcomes all its first-year BA and MA students and cordially invites them to attend this year's First Semester Welcome on October 5th, 2023 in Neues Hörsaalgebäude, 2/N010! The event begins at 1 pm.
Click on the poster to view the event schedule.
For more events planned during the Orientation Week, see O-Phase 2023.
FIRST SEMESTER WELCOME
for Bachelor and Master students
Thursday, 5 October 2023, 13:00 - 14:30
Neues Hörsaalgebäude (2/N010)
13:00 - 13:30:
- Welcome Address by the Head of the English Department
- Presentation of the Department's Professorships and Sections:
- English and Digital Linguistics
- English Literatures
- British and American Social and Cultural Studies
- Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) / Advanced Academic English
- English Practical Language Programme
13:00 - 13:45: Coffee Break
13:55 - 14:15:
- International Office: Information about Study Abroad
- Student's Study Abroad Experiences
14:15 - 14:30:
- Student Support Group
- Student Advisor
- General Q&A
Press Release: Bridge of Knowledge VR
June 26, 2023
Prof. Dr. Christina Sanchez-Stockhammer, Chair of English and Digital Linguistics at Chemnitz University of Technology, and Elisabeth Mayer from the Leibniz Computing Centre of the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities have developed the novel VR adventure quiz app "Bridge of Knowledge VR" with their students. The modular app enables its users to experience an adventure while testing their knowledge on various topics such as general knowledge, mental arithmetic, linguistics, archaeology, English idioms or French prepositions.
Click here to read the full press release on TUCAktuell in English. (Click here for the German version).
Press release idw (English) | Pressemitteilung idw (Deutsch)
For more information on the app Bridge of Knowledge VR, please visit www.bridgevr.de
Call for applications for Erasmus+ exchange place and funding for the summer semester 2024 at the University of Tirana/Albania
June 13, 2023
News from the IUZ for those of you who'd like to visit the University of Tirana (Albania) in the course of an Erasmus+ exchange in the summer term 2024.
For further information and how to apply, please see the flyer: Flyer (English) | Flyer (Deutsch)
And if you have any further questions, feel free to ask ( katharina.scholz@…).
Inaugural Lecture of Prof. Dr. Christina Sanchez-Stockhammer on June 5, 2023
May 15, 2023
You are cordially invited to attend Prof. Dr. Christina Sanchez-Stockhammer's inaugural lecture (Antrittsvorlesung), which will take place on June 5, 2023 at 6 pm in the Zentrales Hörsaal- und Seminargebäude (Orangerie), Reichenhainer Str. 90, Room 2/N113.
Learn more about Prof. Dr. Christina Sanchez-Stockhammer and her research.
Hybrid discussion event for students and staff of English Studies: ChatGPT in academic teaching at TU Chemnitz on May 22, 2023
May 16, 2023
Monday, 22.05., 13:45-15:15
In the past few months, there have been many general debates regarding the use of artificial intelligence (and particularly ChatGPT) in different spheres.
The Research Seminar “ChatGPT and all that” invites you to a 90-minute event aimed specifically at students and teachers of English Studies at TU Chemnitz, where we will discuss your expectations and concerns regarding the impact on AI on academic education and the job market.
This event gives students and staff the opportunity to exchange their views, so as to pave the way for future regulations regarding the use of artificial intelligence in academic teaching and assessment at TU Chemnitz.
We welcome you to join us in 2/N006 (Neues Hörsaalgebäude) on Monday, the 22nd of May, from 13:45 until 15:15.
You can also attend this hybrid event online by using the access information provided in the OPAL folder for the class.
Karrieretag Geisteswissenschaften (Humanities Career Day) am 15. Juni 2023
May 15, 2023
Zum Karrieretag für Geisteswissenschaftler:innen bieten Dir zehn verschiedene Institutionen Einblick in die dort möglichen Tätigkeiten, zu den Voraussetzungen und den Erwartungen, die die jeweiligen Arbeitgeber:innen an neue Mitarbeiter:innen haben. Neben Vorträgen zu den jeweiligen Berufsfeldern gibt es außerdem die Gelegenheit, direkt vor Ort mit den jeweiligen Ansprechpartner:innen inS Gespräch zu kommen, Kontakte zu knüpfen und Fragen zu stellen.
Darüber hinaus bieten der CareerService, die Zentrale Studierendenberatung sowie die Philosophische Fakultät an diesem Tag Informationen und Beratung zu beruflichem Survival als Geisteswissenschaftler:in, Bewerbungen, zum Übergang vom Bachelor- in einen Master-Studiengang und zur Promotion an der Philosophischen Fakultät an. Ebenfalls wird es Informationen und Beratung zu Fördermöglichkeiten geben.
International Conference "Making the City: Transformative Processes in (Post)Industrial Urban Spaces" To Take Place at Chemnitz University of Technology
May 15, 2023
The international conference on “Making the City: Transformative Processes in (Post)Industrial Urban Spaces” will take place in Chemnitz from 29 June to 1 July 2023. In the words of its organisers, Prof Cecile Sandten, Chair of English Literatures and Prof. Dr. Stefan Garsztecki, Professor in Cultural and Area Studies of East Central Europe both at the Chemnitz University of Technology: “The central idea of the conference on ‘Making the City’, is to explore the cultural, economic and political factors of industrialisation from its start to its ‘finish’ from a diachronic perspective and also focus on an active engagement of citizens in urban transformation processes”.
Click here to read TUCaktuell's full article on the Making the City Conference (in English). (Click here for the German version.)
English and Digital Linguistics Research Colloquium: Invitation to presentations by guest speakers
April 17, 2023
Dear students and dear colleagues,
The Research Colloquium in English and Digital Linguistics provides a forum for the discussion of state-of-the-art linguistic research at TU Chemnitz.
We are very happy to invite you to several exciting presentations by our guest speakers in the coming weeks, the first of which will already take place on April 18. Please find the schedule below.
You are very welcome to join us in room 2/N102 at TU Chemnitz (Neues Hörsaalgebäude, Reichenhainer Str. 90) on the respective Tuesdays from 11:30 to 13:00.
There is also the option to participate online by via Zoom (the link can be found on the OPAL page for the colloquium)
Thank you for passing on this invitation to anyone who might be interested (but please do not post the link online).
SUMMER 2023
18.04.: Sven Leuckert (Dresden): Beta, crux, quickdraw, & redpoint – The global and the local in mountaineering English
25.04.: Claudia Lange (Dresden): To boldly go – Teaching and learning Xenolinguistics
09.05.: Heidrun Dorgeloh (Düsseldorf): Discourse syntax – English grammar beyond the sentence
16.05.: Alberto Vela (Zaragoza): Digital genres of crowdfunding projects in the context of science and society
23.05. (in German): Andreas Nolda (Berlin Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities): DWDSmor – Ein Programm zur morphologischen Analyse und Generierung deutscher Wörter
13.06. (online only): Christian Hoffmann (Augsburg): Data extraction, segmentation & visualization – Harnessing the transformative power of ChatGPT as a bridging device between coding tools and student researchers
Call for applications for Erasmus+ exchange place and funding WS 2023/24 at the University of Tirana/Albania
Dear students,
news from the IUZ for those of you planning to go abroad in the winter term 2023/24. The list of our partner universities has been extended - you can also apply for an exchange place to visit the University of Tirana (Albania).
For further information and how to apply, please read the following flyers: English version/German version.
And if you have any further questions, feel free to ask ( katharina.scholz@…).
First International Conference about Digital Feedback Takes Place at Chemnitz University of Technology
Jun.-Prof. Dr. Jennifer Schluer and her team from Chemnitz University of Technology want to discuss new approaches to digital feedback in teaching with international experts at a hybrid conference ("Spotlight on Language Teaching: Digital Feedback in Research and Practice" - DigiFeed Conference 2023) from June 29 to 30, 2023 - Contributions can be submitted until March 15, 2023.
Click here to read TUCaktuell's full article on the DigiFeed 2023 Conference (in English). (Click here for the German version.)
Fachinformationsveranstaltung für das Auslandssemester am 23.11.2022
Prof. Dr. Cecile Sandten, Prof. Dr. Christina Sanchez-Stockhammer und Oliver Sachs laden Sie herzlich zur Fachinformationsveranstaltung für das Auslandssemester am 23.11.2022 ein! Dies betrifft vor allem die BA 3 Studierenden. Andere Interessierte sind auch herzlich willkommen! Wir informieren umfassend zum obligatorischen Auslandssemester im 5. BA-Semester.
Liebe Studierende,
hiermit laden wir Sie herzlich zur
Fachinformationsveranstaltung für das Auslandssemester ein! Dies betrifft vor allem die BA 3 Studierenden. Andere Interessierte sind auch herzlich willkommen!
Wer:
Prof. Dr. Cecile Sandten (Geschäftsführende Direktorin des Instituts für Anglistik/Amerikanistik)
Prof. Dr. Christina Sanchez-Stockhammer und Katharina Scholz (Englische und Digitale Linguistik)
Oliver Sachs (Internationales Universitätszentrum)
Wir informieren umfassend zum obligatorischen Auslandssemester im 5. BA-Semester.
Wann: am 23.11.2022, 14-16 Uhr (hybrid)
Wo: Neues Hörsaalgebäude, N111
und via Zoom: Link zum Zoom-Raum (Meeting ID: 650 1294 5523, Kenncode: 857010)
Worum geht es:
- ERAMUS+ (europäisches Ausland – welche Uni?)
- Promos / DAAD (außereuropäisches Ausland)
- Organisatorisches (Unterkunft, Versicherung, weitere Finanzierung...)
- Erfahrungsberichte (angefragt)
- neues, vereinfachtes Bewerbungsverfahren für Auslandsstudienplätze
- Alternativen zum Auslandssemester (z.B. Auslandspraktikum)
- Q&A
Wenn Sie sich schon vorab über die Möglichkeiten des Auslandssemester beim IUZ informieren möchten, können Sie an der hybriden "International Days – Info Messe“ “ für Auslandsaufenthalte während des Studiums vom 09.11. - 10.11.2022 teilnehmen. Weitere Informationen finden Sie hier: TUC International Office.
Über Ihr Interesse und Ihre zahlreiche Teilnahme freuen wir uns sehr!
Für weitere Fragen können Sie Katharina Scholz gerne via E-Mail kontaktieren ( katharina.scholz@…).
Einschätzungen zu den Midterm-Wahlen in den USA
USA-Experte Dr. Daniel Ziesche von der Professur British and American Cultural/Social Studies der TU Chemnitz und Brent Benofsky, TU-Student und US-Amerikaner, im Interview über die Zwischenwahlen in den USA sowie Erkenntnisse über den Zustand der US-Gesellschaft.
Click here to read Dr. Ziesche's and Mr. Benofsky's full interview with TUCaktuell (in German).
„Die einstige ‚natürliche Regierungspartei‘ Großbritanniens hält aktuell nur noch der Wille zum Macht- und Privilegien-Erhalt zusammen“
Prof. Dr. Klaus Stolz, Inhaber der Professur Britische und Amerikanische Kultur- und Länderstudien der TU Chemnitz, ordnet im Interview die aktuellen Entwicklungen im Vereinigten Königreich mit Blick auf den Rücktritt von Liz Truss sowie ihre Nachfolge durch Rishi Sunak als neuem Premierminister ein.
Click here to read Prof. Dr. Stolz's full interview with TUCaktuell (in German).
