Many subject-related questions come with taking a degree program. This page contains all the information you need about the structure of the program, including details about the course sequence, modules offered, and detailed module descriptions The necessary forms for your project or bachelor’s thesis applications have also been compiled here. Do you have further questions and looking for individual advice? Are you familiar with our student advisory service? In the service section of this page you will find your responsible advising person.

Model curricula are recommendations. You are not obliged to adhere to all parts of the model curricula of your degree programs. Formally binding are the participation requirements for modules as formulated in the corresponding module catalog of your degree program. This results in the respective model course structures as a plausible course of study. For the first two semesters in particular, we strongly recommend that you stick exactly to your model in order to find your way around the degree program. If you have any questions or in exceptional cases, you are welcome to contact the academic advisory office.

Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz offers teacher education degree students in the faculties of Geography, History, and Politics the opportunity to complete additional training for bilingual teaching in English or French.

Bilingual teaching is subject teaching in a foreign language. It is intended to deepen and expand intercultural and foreign language communication skills and competencies. In Rhineland-Palatinate, the social science subjects of Geography, History and Social Studies form the core area of bilingual education. As a rule, schools employ teachers in bilingual lessons who are trained as Gymnasium teachers both in the foreign language and in the respective subject and who have completed training for bilingual teaching. The teacher training for bilingual teaching is prepared by additional training at the Johannes Gutenberg University. The training is completed at a seminary school with a bilingual orientation.

Additional bilingual training is organized by the Teacher Education Center (ZfL); the courses are organized in the participating subjects.
One photo shows an enthusiastic teacher in a classroom explaining a school task to an interested student on her laptop. Other stdents are concentrating on their written assignment.

The module catalog contains information on the duration, credit points, examination types, prerequisites, learning outcome, workload, learning forms, content, and module coordinators of the modules and courses within a degree program. It also defines the admission requirements for individual modules.

You can find out about the internships to be completed in the teacher education-related bachelor’s and master’s degree programs on the education server of the Rhineland-Palatinate Ministry of Education.

Active participation is compulsory in all Bachelor of Education History courses. The teaching staff will usually explain in more detail at the start of the semester what this means for the respective course.

In some courses, attendance is also compulsory. The examination regulations define compulsory attendance as follows: “Attendance at a course must still be confirmed if the student has missed up to two individual courses, but no more than four course hours in the semester. Exceptions may be admitted in justified individual cases.”

If you miss more than the two allowed sessions, for example due to health restrictions, please contact Dr. Andreas Frings

Compulsory attendance applies to the following courses in the B.Ed. History:

  • Seminars: Ancient History, Medieval History, Early Modern History, Modern History
  • Seminar and practice class in the basic module History Didactics

Didactic considerations

In academic papers, the focus is on evaluating the written tradition. Therefore, in addition to a good command of German, the interpretation of historical sources requires foreign language skills that enable a precise and in-depth understanding of the text.

Two foreign languages are required for the Bachelor of Education History: English and Latin. Latin can be substituted by a modern language. In this case, however, proof of the completed state supplementary examination in Latin must be provided by the time of enrollment in the Master of Education History.

Legal basis

Curricular standards for the subject of History (Rhineland-Palatinate) [curricularly binding for teacher training and superordinate to the examination regulations]:

“Sufficient knowledge of two foreign languages is a prerequisite for admission to the program of study.In the master’s degree program for future Gymnasium teachers, sufficient Latin language skills (Latinum or state supplementary examination) are required. It is the students’ responsibility to acquire the necessary language skills via preliminary courses, courses that take place alongside the regular course load, or private or university tutoring.”

Subject-specific appendix History in the examination regulations for the teaching-related bachelor’s program at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, a) subject-specific admission requirements, 1) proof of subject-specific language proficiency according to section 2 subsection 2 2:

“Sufficient knowledge of two foreign languages is required: English and Latin or (instead of Latin) a modern language. Proficiency in modern foreign languages is verified by presenting the Abitur certificate, proof of active participation in corresponding language courses, or other equivalent proof. In the master’s degree program for future Gymnasium teachers, sufficient Latin language skills (Latinum or state supplementary examination) are required. It is the students’ responsibility to acquire the necessary language skills via preliminary courses, courses that take place alongside the regular course load, or private or university tutoring.”

Proof of language proficiency

English language proficiency is tested as part of an English source reading exercise in the introductory module.

Knowledge of the modern language (or, alternatively, knowledge of Latin) must be proven during the course of the bachelor’s degree program by submitting the relevant diplomas. Please contact Dr.Andreas Linsenmann for this purpose.

If you would like to submit the qualifying examination in Latin (Latinum), you can also submit the original diploma or a certified copy to Ms. Shahla in the History examination office.

Language requirements for the Master of Education

Enrollment in the Master’s of Education degree program requires proof of the qualifying examination in Latin (Latinum) or the state supplementary examination. . If this proof cannot be provided at the time of application, it must be presented at the time of enrollment. If you have not yet received your Latin certificate, a provisional confirmation from the office that conducted the examination (at JGU Mainz: Classical Philology) will suffice. In this case, you should discuss with the Student Service Center whether enrollment can be delayed long enough for you to present the certificate.

General specifications

The. final thesis (bachelor’s thesis) concludes the Bachelor of Education program of study. It should show “that the candidate can independently solve a limited task from their program of study within a given period of time” (examination regulations for the Bachelor of Education, section 15 subsection 1). The examination regulations also state: “As a rule, registration for the bachelor’s thesis takes place during the fifth semester.” It is important to note that if you write the Bachelor of Education thesis in History, you will have to write the Bachelor of Education thesis in the other subject – and vice versa. However, it is also possible to write a final thesis in the subject of Educational Sciences as part of the Bachelor of Education degree program.

Administration

Your bachelor’s thesis (even if you are writing it in History!) will not be registered and administered by the History examination office, but by the university examination office for teacher education (HPL). You will need to clarify more detailed questions regarding the registration and administration of your bachelor’s thesis there. The legal basis for the bachelor’s thesis can be found in section 15 of the relevant examination regulations (regulations for the examination in the teaching-related bachelor’s program). Further instructions, in particular on the procedure, can be found on the HPL homepage:

The HPL is responsible for the entire administration surrounding the bachelor’s theses in the teacher training areas; you can therefore expect reliable information there much sooner than in the History student advising office. If you have specific questions about bachelor’s theses in History, however, you may contact us or the academic advisory office for teacher education History.

The examination regulations for the Bachelor of Education set the time frame for the bachelor’s thesis at eight weeks. This is also likely to be the valid regulation for most currently enrolled Bachelor of Education students (if you are unsure about the time frame in which you are allowed to write, you can obtain binding information from the university examination office for teacher education (HPL)).

The Department of History has agreed on approximately 25 pages as a framework for the written bachelor’s thesis in the Bachelor of Education History. This corresponds to a maximum of 90,000 characters including spaces.

According to the examination regulations, this should demonstrate “that the candidate can independently solve a limited task from their program of study within a given period of time” (section 15 subsection 1 BEDPO). For their part, the supervisors of the thesis have “the duty to instruct the candidate in the preparation of the bachelor’s thesis and to inform themselves regularly about the progress of the thesis”.

Formatting requirements:

  • The margin should not be less than 4 cm on the left and top and 2 cm on the right and bottom.
  • The text must be formatted in 12 pt. font with 1½ line spacing and justified.
  • The citation rules of the Department of History apply to all academic papers.
  • You can discuss all other formalities directly with the HPL.

The Department of History has made the following decisions regarding the supervision of bachelor’s theses and expectations:

Topic /
Expectations:

According to the examination regulations, the bachelor’s thesis should demonstrate “that the candidate is able to work on a problem from the subject area of the major subject using the required methods within the specified period of time”. Differences between Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Education theses may come into play in terms of the topic in so far as Bachelor of Education students have not attended any main or regular graduate seminars and the processing time for Bachelor of Education theses is slightly shorter. However, as the Department of History regards the Bachelor of Education degree program as an academic teacher education program, the expectations for Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Education theses are basically the same: students should demonstrate their ability to produce guided but otherwise independent academic papers in a manageable field of research. These expectations should be clearly communicated to the students. In this context, it may also be helpful to refer to the assessment criteria of the Department of History for advanced seminar and final theses, which apply equally to Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Education theses.

Supervision:

According to the examination regulations (B.A.), the supervisor of the thesis has “the duty to instruct the candidate in the preparation of the bachelor’s thesis and to regularly monitor the progress of the thesis”. The Department of History is committed to the principle of close and intensive supervision. However, ultimately, it is in the students’ responsibility how they make use of the advising and support services.

A key aspect in the supervision of bachelor’s theses is the instruction of students in finding and narrowing down the topic. It can be useful to require students to submit a research proposal, a list of sources and/or a bibliography. However, the aim of all these measures is not to relieve students of the task of finding a topic and formulating a suitable central question. During the writing phase, intensive supervision should be warranted through mandatory consultation appointments or a clearly accentuated willingness to talk on the part of the supervisor. Candidates should be encouraged to ask specific questions if necessary. In order to be able to assess the progress of work on a bachelor’s thesis, it can also be helpful to have individual parts (e.g. introduction) submitted during work in progress.

Please remember to approach your desired examiners at an early stage and agree with them on both the topic and the time period for the thesis. Please also bear in mind that not all examiners are able to examine all conceivable topics, let alone advise you in an advisory capacity; it makes sense to make prior arrangements!

The History student advising office administers the bachelor’s and master’s degree programs at the Department of History. It is available to students and teaching staff as a contact for program-specific questions or for questions about Jogustine. You can reach the student advising office either in person or by telephone or email at the shared email address studienbuero-geschichte@uni-mainz.de. Please use this address if you are not sure who to address your inquiry to; please do not send parallel emails to several employees.

  • Responsible for the organization and coordination of the history degree programs
  • Ensuring the proper admission of students to courses in accordance with examination law
  • Quality assurance
  • Further development of current degree programs
  • Registration and deregistration of students for courses in the system
  • Semester planning
  • Advising students and teaching staff on examination issues
  • Planning examination dates and examination corridors in coordination with the examiners and other responsible bodies
  • Administration of exam registrations and exam data in Campusnet/JoguStine
  • Registration and deregistration of students for examinations

E-mail: shahla@uni-mainz.de
Phone: (49)-6131-39-20195
Fax: (49)-6131-39-20324

Office: Philosophicum, Room 01-543

Sprechzeiten:
Nach Vereinbarung per Mail
  • Semester planning and administration of courses in Campusnet/JoguStine
  • Spatial planning
  • Participation in the course-related work of the study management team
  • Administration of teaching contracts

The “link” between the administrative tasks of the academic offices and the actual “academic area” of the teaching staff is a degree program officer for each degree program. This person belongs to the group of university teaching staff. The program representatives work closely with the study management and bear the ultimate responsibility for the proper implementation of the examination regulations and module catalogs. In addition, they should be particularly active in cases of conflict between the study offices and the academic teaching staff.

We offer a wide range of academic advising on all questions relating to studying history at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz and are also happy to support you in the transition phases between school, program of study and transition to a profession. We have organized our advisory services thematically in the menu tree on the left so that you can find the right person to answer your questions. Please take a moment to think about which topic your questions can be assigned to.

Please contact the relevant academic advisory offices and make use of the consultation hours. Some questions will certainly be resolved if you follow our first aid links or use the university’s interdisciplinary information services. If you are unsure who to address your query to, use this address: studienberatung@geschichte.uni-mainz.de. Please do not send emails with the same request to several academic advisory offices and employees of the Office of Student Affairs at the same time.

The academic advisory office specializes in specific subject areas:

  • Where can I find support if I have difficulties with event or exam registration?
  • What deadlines do I have to meet?
  • Why doesn’t “the Jogustine” do what I tell her?
  • How can I plan my program of study sensibly?
  • What proof of language proficiency do I have to provide when studying history?
  • How can I organize my academic papers better?
  • What can I do if I am unsure whether I have made the right study choice?
  • How do I prepare for examinations?
  • What do I have to consider when I want to log in my bachelor’s thesis?
  • Does a master’s degree program make sense for me, and what requirements does it have?
  • …

Information events

The History Examination Office is part of the Central Examination Office in Faculty 07: History and Cultural Studies. Ms. Shahla, who supervises examination matters in the History degree programs, has been delegated by the faculty to the History seminar for these tasks. Instructions on examination law on the website of the Central Examination Office in Faculty 07: History and Cultural Studies therefore generally also apply to the History Seminar.

  • Advising students and teaching staff on examination issues
  • Planning examination dates and examination corridors in coordination with the examiners and other responsible bodies
  • Administration of exam registrations and exam data in Campusnet/JoguStine
  • Registration and deregistration of students for examinations

E-mail: shahla@uni-mainz.de
Phone: (49)-6131-39-20195
Fax: (49)-6131-39-20324

Office: Philosophicum, Room 01-543

Office hours:
Currently only by appointment by e-mail; later again Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday 09:30-11:30 a.m.
  • I have been threatened as a person or as a member of a group (because of my appearance, my gender, my sexual orientation, my nationality, my religion, etc.).
  • I have been approached by people or groups that I would classify as radical, racist, misogynistic or anti-healthcare.
  • I have come across statements or activities in my university environment that I would classify as such an environment, but I am unsure whether I am perhaps wrong.

JGU offers its members, especially its students, a specialized advising and support service as a component of its diversity strategy: For example, as part of the implementation of a diversity-sensitive university culture, a further step towards an equal opportunity and low-discrimination university was taken with the institution of an Anti-Discrimination Officer position in the Equality and Diversity Office. Ms. Gonca Sariaydin is the anti-discrimination officer. She has already headed several anti-discrimination projects for various ministries and most recently an anti-discrimination office at a higher education institution in Hesse. The office’s task is to offer affected students and members of the university a contact point and to develop prevention and awareness-raising offers.

  • Where can I find the right contact points and contact persons?
  • What are the advantages of studying history in Mainz?
  • Which degree program is right for me: B.A. or B.Ed.
  • Is studying history the right thing for me?
  • What requirements do I need for admission to the History degree program?
  • Where can I get a placement in the appropriate academic semester if I want to transfer to Mainz?
  • Which credits from my home university will be recognized if I transfer to Mainz?
  • Which credits will be recognized if I want to change degree programs or start studying for two degrees?
  • Can I already complete courses for the Master’s degree during my Bachelor’s degree? How can they be recognized?
  • …

Studying with children / Studying with physical and mental impairments (“disadvantage compensation”) / Studying under the conditions of caring for relatives, etc.

Many students are restricted in their program of study by factors that do not stem from their studies themselves. These include, for example, physical or psychological impairments. Studying with a child can also cause difficulties due to limited childcare hours. According to legal requirements, we are obliged to provide appropriate support in these cases and are happy to do so. You are welcome to contact us about this. Everything you talk about is, of course, confidential.

  • Where can I find advice if I have problems with the organization of my studies in particular life situations?
  • Who can support me in applying for disadvantage compensation?
  • I often have bouts of illness and/or absences during examinations – what options are there to help me study successfully despite this?
  • My children are only supervised in the mornings before 12 noon – how do I organize the program of study around these childcare hours?

There is another parent-child workroom in the departmental library in the Georg Forster building. This is located in the basement of the departmental library (room no. -1.423). This room is primarily intended for parents with children. If the study room is used by students without children, you can ask them to leave the space to you.

A third parent-child room is located in the Kreuzbau. In addition to a nappy-changing and breastfeeding corner, there are also computer workstations and the option to prepare or heat up food.

Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz supports students with disabilities so that they can complete their program of study on campus as independently and unhindered as possible. The point of contact for students with disabilities and for on-site supervision in Mainz is JGU’s Service for Students with Disabilities. The employees have extensive experience and will be happy to work with you to develop a customized solution for any problems that arise in connection with your program of study at JGU. The service for students with disabilities and chronic illnesses at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz provides information about accessibility on campus. On the website(http://www.barrierefrei.uni-mainz.de) you will find a large number of useful links on all kinds of topics, as well as a detailed photo gallery and collection of accessible buildings and lecture halls.

Further offers for disabled and chronically ill students from the Service for Students with Disabilities are:

  • social law issues
  • Organization and financing of assistance in the program of study and everyday life
  • Dealing with authorities and institutions
  • overcoming personal problems and crisis situations
  • psychosocial issues
  • applying for technical aids and personal assistance

We have aids for the visually impaired and blind available for you. Currently:

  • Workstation for the blind with 80r Braille display and voice output
  • Visually impaired workstation with large print and voice input and output
  • Laptop with large print and voice output
  • Rental equipment
  • Reader and expansion of the pool of aids

Other aids, hardware or software products can be organized and purchased on request. Further information can be found on our website: http://www.barrierefrei.uni-mainz.de/unseren-hilfsmittelpool/.

  • Help with scanning documents
  • Printout in braille
  • Support with research, e.g. in libraries and/or on the Internet
  • Reading aloud service or organization of personal assistance
  • Commissioning of sign language interpreters
  • on site, i.e. on the JGU campus in Mainz and Germersheim, supervision and support
  • Assistance with exams and term papers and their preparation
  • Who will issue me with Bafög certificates (pink form) and which services do I need for the course certificate?
  • What options are there for financing the program of study?
  • Where can I find information on student loans or fellowships?
  • Who can I turn to in a financial emergency?
  • …

If you need a course certificate for the Federal Training Assistance Office, you should have it issued on the form provided by the academic advisory office if possible. You can find the form “Leistungsbescheinigung nach § 48 BAföG” here: https://www.bafög.de/bafoeg/de/antrag-stellen/alle-antragsformulare/alle-antragsformulare_node.html, general information on course certificates at https://www.bafoeg-aktuell.de/bafoeg/leistungsnachweise.html. The aforementioned form can also be submitted instead of the reporting document introduced at JGU Mainz.

You will find current instructions on Bafög regulations on the following pages. Important: Do not hesitate to submit proposals if your financial situation or that of your parents deteriorates!

Ausführliche Informationen zum Thema BAföG können Sie auf den Seiten des Bundesministeriums für Bildung und Forschung abrufen.

The student loan is a temporary, low-interest loan to support students and pupils in advanced phases of their education. It is available alongside or in addition to BAföG. There are also special student loans. At Mainz University, student loans from the Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW) are granted via the Studierendenwerk Mainz.

Further instructions on financing options can be found here:

The Historical Seminar cannot advise you on BAFöG itself; this is the responsibility of the Office for Educational Support.

However, we can help you to compile the documents required for BAföG, i.e. the information to be provided in the subject. These are in particular course certificates for BAföG matters. In order to obtain the relevant confirmation, you must go to the academic advisory office with the Federal Training Assistance Office’s form (pink certificate of “usual achievements”) to have the confirmation issued there. This conversation is often very productive and an important support; please make use of it!

  • How do I find my personal answer to the question of what you can do with a history degree?
  • Where can I find information on appointments for historians?
  • How can I plan my transition to a profession during my program of study?
  • Which internships are suitable for me?
  • Where can I find out about further training opportunities and academic job vacancies?
  • …

Please also use the blog“History and Appointments” for orientation. Certificates for the “compulsory internship” can be obtained from Dr. Freia Anders.

  • What are the didactic requirements of the history teacher education program?
  • How do I prepare for the M.Ed. thesis?
  • What do I have to consider when I log in for the state examination or the extension examination?
  • Where can I find information about the third-subject extension examination certificate course?
  • What requirements should I meet for a successful program of study abroad?
  • How do I apply for a program of study abroad?
  • What do I need to bear in mind when preparing my stay abroad?
  • How can I fit a stay abroad into my degree plan?
  • Which of my achievements abroad can be recognized?
  • What are the strengths of the Integrated German-French Study Program Mainz/Dijon?

Each semester, we offer events on various counseling topics:

Montag 12. Januar 2026, 14-16 Uhr im Besprechungsraum im Erdgeschoss des Philosophicum-II (Flur des Zentrums für Lehrerbildung) (Verena von Wiczlinski, Andreas Frings)

Wir informieren Sie über die Modalitäten der Bachelorprüfung sowie Fragen des Zugangs zum Masterstudium: 5. November 2025 (Mittwoch), 12-13 Uhr, Microsoft Teams-Besprechung, 

Jetzt an der Besprechung teilnehmen

Besprechungs-ID: 399 070 849 687 1, Passcode: eM9DZ2gE

Wir bieten Ihnen ein Bewerbungstraining zum Berufseinstieg für Historiker*innen an: gemeinsam mit Kommiliton*innen können Sie üben, ihre Profile mit Stellenangeboten oder den Anforderungen potentieller Praktikumsgeber abzugleichen: 21. Januar 2026 (Mittwoch), 16-19 Uhr, Voranmeldung unter Vorlage von (fiktiven oder tatsächlichen Bewerbungsunterlagen) bis 10. Januar 2025: anders@uni-mainz.de.

Besuch des Geschichtsorts Adlerwerke – Fabrik, Zwangsarbeit, Konzentrationslager – in Frankfurt am Main, Führung durch die Ausstellung und Workshop zur Gedenkstättenarbeit mit biographischen Quellen: 18. November 2025, 10-13 Uhr, vor Ort, Voranmeldung bis 9.11.: anders@uni-mainz.de.

Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz has a wide range of information and counseling services. On this page you will find a list of the most important links.