“On Reading the Application” is a recurring series that goes behind the scenes in the Admissions Office at Bard College Berlin. When applying to colleges, it’s easy to forget there are human beings on the other side of the application portal. Not all college admissions offices are alike, and Bard College Berlin’s approach to college
CategoryStudent Academic Life
LESC 2018: So (now) What?
One of the privileges and pains of a Liberal Education is that it both encourages and necessitates continual inquiry into its nature and value. Rooted in a rich historical tradition of confusing origins and seemingly contradictory intentions, making sense of a so-called “Liberal Education” is a daunting task that no student should undertake alone… and,
Dispatches from a Dead Language
When I started to learn Latin, I saw it everywhere. Location played a big role in this — Latin seems woven into the regional character of Italy, where I undertook a summer course in the language in a three-week intensive program at the University of Bologna. Bologna was sweltering, the streets in the center of
“The best thing journalists can do today is listen more” – Alumna Aya Ibrahim on BCB, Deutsche Welle, Journalism and More
I had met Aya Ibrahim (2015 BA alumna) before but was only properly introduced to her work earlier this year when she sat down with a group of current students to talk about transitioning from our liberal arts Pankow campus to the sometimes turbulent world of broadcast journalism. Confident, well articulated and clear-headed, she sat
“I think, therefore… God exists?” — Thoughts of a Liberal Arts student trying to make sense of Descartes
As long as I can remember, I have struggled to understand how some people can be convinced of something as complex as the existence of God without any actual proof. Although one might argue that the fact that we exist and the occurrence of supposed miracles, etc., suffice as proof, people who need to have
A Girl with a Baby Face: Where Sexism and Ageism Collide
About two months ago, on one of those perfect days that alluded to the upcoming Berlin summer, I was craving falafel. I stopped at one of the many Dönerbuden that line the streets of this city (near Eberswalder Straße, if anyone’s curious) to give into my cravings. After encountering the chirpy vendor and ordering my
Open Questions
When I began teaching sculpture at BCB in the spring semester of 2015, The Factory was an incredibly raw, open space, with a vibe perhaps closer to a squat’s than to that of a private college arts facility. There was random graffiti covering the walls, the bathrooms had no mirrors or even paper towel dispensers,
A Reflection on “The Personal is Even More Political”
In the class The Personal is Even More Political, we have engaged with literary texts and different types of visual material; we have had discussions with artists and performed in-class social experiments like watching each other relax for about fifteen minutes or walking around a shopping mall in silence.