Benefits English Study!

• According to research, studying German contributes more to the mastery of English than studying any other foreign language.

Higher SAT Scores!

• Among students who study a foreign language, those who study German score highest on the verbal portion of the SAT, followed by those who take French, Latin, and Spanish.

Heritage!

• More Americans can trace their roots back to Germany than to any other country. 

• Many persons of German descent helped shape American culture - among them Babe Ruth, Albert Einstein, Oscar Hammerstein and Levi Strauss.

Similar Vocabulary!

• You will be surprised to find out how closely English and German are related - many words are similar or identical.

• For instance, look at these German words: Arm, Auto, Ball, Finger, Hammer, Hand, Klasse, Lampe, Musik, Name, Radio, Ring, Telefon and Winter.

• Many famous composers are German: Beethoven, Bach, Mozart, Schubert and Brahms.

Famous People!

• In science and technology you will come across the work of these Germans: Bunsen, Benz, Heisenberg, Gauß, Koch, Planck, Siemens, Wankel, Roentgen and von Braun.

• Well-known contemporary Germans include the model Claudia Schiffer, the music groups the Scorpions and the Real McCoys, film directors Wolfgang Petersen and Roland Emmerich, and sports figures Boris Becker, Steffi Graf and Michael Stich.

Prevalence!

• Throughout Europe, more people speak German than either French, English or Spanish. Did you know that (according to a Harris Poll) only 20% of the world's population speaks English?

• Over 1200 American companies have branches in Germany, among them Kodak, GM (Opel), Ford, IBM, Disney, and McDonald's. 

Economic Ties

• Germany's economy is larger than that of all the Spanish-speaking countries combined.

• Direct investment by Germany in the United States is over ten billion dollars.