Cecilia Sebastian, DAAD Grant, 2013–2015

“I spent my third year of undergraduate studies in the philosophy and literature departments at the Freie Universität in Berlin – an exchange made possible by Hopkins’ participation as a partner school in the Berlin Consortium of German Studies. My year in Berlin was formative in the way that all abroad experiences are formative: I learned to navigate a world – a culture – that was very different from the one I had grown up in. I simultaneously fell in love with the academic environment of the German university for the palpable intellectual curiosity of its student body and seemingly infinite progression of events – be they seminars, lectures, workshops or conferences – on every topic imaginable.

Upon returning to Hopkins the following year, I opted – with the help and support of the fellowship office – to apply for a DAAD to pursue a Masters degree in German Literature at a German university. I chose Frankfurt for the range and depth of study represented by faculty members in its German and philosophy departments, and two years later I cannot imagine having made a different, or better, choice. I have had a truly wonderful time studying here and the most incredible support from faculty and friends, both in my independent research and coursework as well as my decision to pursue a career in academia. My Masters thesis, which examines the aesthetics of nature in Nietzsche’s correspondence, is likewise a topic that I hope to continue to come back to in my further studies. As I get ready to leave Frankfurt to continue a PhD in the States, I am happy to know that I will continue to cross paths with the friends and colleagues I have made here, both professionally and personally.

I am immensely grateful to the DAAD and the German taxpayers as well as Hopkins and its fellowship office for having made my studies here in Frankfurt possible.”