Teaching
In terms of teaching, the University of Bayreuth offers BA and MA courses that have a continuous reference to Africa and are aimed at students who want to build up or deepen their expertise in a field of African studies. On the other hand, there are courses that enable a focus on Africa-related topics and address students who want to acquire additional African-related specialist knowledge.
The new international master’s course EIMAS (European Interdisciplinary Master African Studies) also offers an opportunity to specialize in interdisciplinary African studies. It is carried out in cooperation with the Université Bordeaux Montaigne in France and the Universidade do Porto in Portugal.
The Institute of African Studies provides information on Africa-related bachelor’s and master’s courses. You can find information about further academic qualifications as part of the BIGSAS graduate school here. Even advanced students in the bachelor's and master's degree benefit from the extensive international alumni network (afriBIAN) and our close cooperation with scientific institutions worldwide. The numerous guests of the IAS offer a wide range of additional offers for students and doctoral candidates.
All Africa-related courses currently available at the university are listed below. You will be taken to the respective course page, where you will find comprehensive information.
B.A. programmes with a focus on Africa
African Verbal and Visual Arts: Languages, Literatures, Media and Art (B.A.) (Faculty of Languages & Literatures)
Interdisciplinary African Studies (B.A.) (Faculty of Humanities & Social Sciences)
Geographies of International Development, Focus on Africa (B.A.) (Faculty of Biology, Chemistry & Earth Sciences)
International Economics & Development (B.A.) (Faculty of Law, Business & Economics)
B.A. minors
Africa in the World: History and Religions (Faculty of Humanities & Social Sciences)
African Culture & Society (Faculty of Humanities & Social Sciences)
African Development Studies in Geography (Faculty of Biology, Chemistry and Geosciences)
Law in Africa (Faculty of Law, Business & Economics)
Languages (Sprachenzentrum)
M.A. programmes with a focus on Africa
African Verbal & Visual Arts: Languages, Literatures, Media & Art (M.A.) (Faculty of Languages & Literatures)
African Culture & Society (M.A.) (Faculty of Humanities & Social Sciences)
EIMAS, European Interdisciplinary Master African Studies (M.A.)
Development Studies (M.A.)* (Kulturwissenschafliche Fakultät, Fakultät für Biologie, Chemie und Geowissenschaften sowie Fakultät für Sprach- und Literaturwissenschaften)
Global History (M.A.)* (Kulturwissenschafliche Fakultät)
Social & Cultural Anthropology (M.A.)* (Kulturwissenschafliche Fakultät)
TGCL, the Tanzanian-German specialist center for law at the University of Dar es Salaam School of Law in Tanzania, offers a master’s (LL.M.) and doctoral programme in cooperation with the University of Bayreuth
M.A. and M.Sc. courses that have a strong (selectable) reference to Africa
Environmental Geography (M.Sc.)
Études Francophones (M.A.)
Intercultural Anglophone Studies (M.A.)
Language - Interaction - Culture (M.A.)
Religious Studies (M.A.)
Certificate programmes
afriZert (interdisciplinary)
Intersectionality Studies & Diversity Competencies* (interdisciplinary)
Interculturality Research & Intercultural Practice* (interdisciplinary)
afriZert is a supplementary programme that is unique in Germany and provides students with a certain level of Africa-related knowledge, regardless of their primary study objective. The programme is funded by the Bavarian State Ministry of Science and the Arts (StMWK). It commenced in the summer semester of 2021 and targets all students who are enrolled at a Bavarian university of higher education institution. afriZert aims to enable participating students to perceive and get to know the African continent in all its diversity: as a multifaceted discourse space, as a place of diverse living and working environments, and in the context of global political, social, and economic interdependencies.
In five modules totalling 40 ECTS credits over the course of three semesters, both basic knowledge and subject-specific knowledge are taught. Particular emphasis is placed on interpersonal and intercultural exchange, which is anchored in the curriculum through a compulsory stay abroad. Link to the homepage of afriZert
In cooperation with the IAS and the African Legal Studies research group at the University of Bayreuth, the Tanzanian-German Center for Eastern African Legal Studies (TGCL) has been offering a Master of Laws (LLM) and doctoral programme in law at the University of Dar es Salaam in Tanzania since 2008 for students from the partner countries of the East African Community (Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan) to help them to become future leaders for their region. The Centre is a think tank for research and teaching in the field of East African Community law. The focus of the Centre is on comparative law of regional integration. Since its establishment, over 150 graduates have earned a master's degree or a doctoral degree from the Centre. Link to the homepage of TGCL
European Interdisciplinary Master African Studies (EIMAS) is an interdisciplinary Master's degree programme in African Studies, which has been funded by the European Union as part of the Erasmus Mundus Joint Master Degree Programme since 2019 and is run jointly at three European universities. Students spend the first semester at the University of Porto, the second semester at the University of Bayreuth and the third semester at Bordeaux Montaigne University. In the fourth semester, the programme concludes with a research or internship period abroad (in Africa) and the writing of the Master's thesis at one of the three universities in the consortium, which students are free to choose. Each year, EIMAS offers around 15 outstanding international students with an EMJMD scholarship as well as self-financed students a unique environment in which to expand their knowledge of Global Africa. Link to the homepage of EIMAS
The Africa-Bayreuth International Alumni Network (afriBIAN), together with five African partner universities, organizes activities with alumni who completed their doctorate in Bayreuth. Link to the homepage of afriBIAN
The Bayreuth International Graduate School of African Studies (BIGSAS) was founded in 2007 and has been part of the Africa Multiple Cluster of Excellence since 2019. It is funded by the German Research Foundation in the framework of the Excellence Strategy of the German Federal and State Governments. In the focus of this unique structure of multi- and interdisciplinary, creative, and innovative training are around 90 doctoral candidates, the Junior Fellows, from more than 25 African, American, Asian, and European countries. Link to the homepage of BIGSAS