Alumni Profile: Amy Voss, B.A. German and International Studies '09

Being 100 percent German, it was no surprise that Amy Voss fell in love with the German language and culture. Amy started taking German in high school to do something different. "Most of my friends were taking Spanish or no language at all," she said. It was a challenge for her to learn a new language, but she was definitely up for it.  

What Amy enjoys most about the German culture is the contact between the people she's met. "The people are so welcoming, and that's my favorite part about Germans, is their "Gastfreundlichkeit," or hospitality. The exchange between two cultures is something that I've enjoyed being a part of."

Becoming a teacher has always been a thought of Amy's since she was a little girl, but when she started at UAA, she wanted nothing to do with teaching. "German was definitely a language that I loved to speak and had fun learning, but I wasn't positive what I could do with it after graduation," Amy said. As a freshman at UAA, her first major was accounting but she quickly switched to Hospitality/Restaurant Management (HRM). This major helped Amy win her first scholarship to Germany in 2006-2007, the Congress-Bundestag Youth Exchange for Young Professionals. Once she returned to UAA, she realized that HRM wasn't where her heart was; but rather, that she wanted to continue immersing herself as much as possible in the German language and culture.  

Amy switched majors once again and graduated with a double major in German and International Studies in 2009, as well as a double minor in History and Business Administration.

In addition to winning the Congress-Bundestag Scholarship, Amy received the Fulbright Scholarship for 2010-2011. This scholarship has given Amy the opportunity to study and become an English teaching assistant in Germany. The Fulbright Program is an international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to 'increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.' Amy was also the recipient of the 2010 UAA Discovery Award and the 2010 UAA Diversity Award.  

Throughout the years, UAA provided Amy with opportunities to perfect her German and learn how to teach it to others. She tutored German in UAA's Learning Resources Center, served as president of the German Culture Club at UAA and volunteered at the German immersion school, The Rilke Schule German School of Arts and Sciences. "Through the encouragement of my professors and the opportunities the University offered, I realized how much I love to teach German to others, and it has become increasingly important for me to spread my enthusiasm for learning other languages, becoming acquainted with different cultures and visiting other countries."

Amy currently lives in a small town in Germany called Laage. She is an English teaching assistant at an elementary school where she is responsible for helping with a first-grade English immersion program. "It is very exciting to see how quickly the students pick up the language." Amy also coordinates an after-school club for fourth-graders.

"Truthfully, I wouldn't have gotten so far at UAA if it hadn't been for my awesome German professor Dr. Natasa Masanovic. She really challenged me to go further with the German language and offered me so many different opportunities to improve my language skills and even study in Germany," Amy said. "One of my best memories is having the support of some of the most amazing professors at UAA and knowing that I could always count on them to be there when I needed them most."

Amy keeps in contact with her German professor and the current president of UAA's German Culture Club. "I got a lot out of UAA. I definitely want to give back and help out however I can to make other students' experiences at UAA as enriching as mine was!"