Find German friends at StudiVZ
The internet offers lots of information about Germany. And, of course, it's very practical to know where the nearest baker, supermarket or bus stop is. However, personal contacts are much more important in your university town. A friend who helps if you have any questions, or who can show you the town, or who is simply there when needed.
As the German Academic Exchange Service, our prime aim is to promote the international exchange of students. At the same time, we also want to bring German and foreign students together – and we're also doing this on studiVZ now, a social networking platform for students. The name comes from Studentenverzeichnis and means student directory.
The DAAD-Edelprofil account at studiVZ
To ensure that you get to know some nice students in Germany while still in your home country, the DAAD is cooperating with Germany's largest social network: studiVZ. As from November 2010, we are represented with a so-called "Edelprofil" account.
Our Edelprofil (Premier Profile) addresses all students worldwide. Germans get the latest news on studying abroad and vice versa. We will also list the dates for all the latest fairs and events in our worldwide network, as well as the latest articles from the DAAD Magazin plus news for alumni. And, of course, we can't do without our virtual advisers. While Luzie looks after the German students, Dany is responsible for you and will answer your questions in English.
Finding friends
With more than six million registered users, you will easily find some nice people studying at the same uni or in the same town as you. Generally, you will also find regional groups for your town, where you can also meet people who can certainly answer your questions about life and living in Munich, Berlin or Cologne.
After the semester has started, many degree programmes also form their own groups where they plan the next project, the next lecture or even the next uni party.
Three tips on safe surfing:
- Think long and hard about what details and photos you really want to publish on the internet.
- When you set up your profile at studiVZ, you can use the "Privatsphäre" (Privacy Settings) option to choose who may see your full profile, your photos and groups. We recommend that you only allow your friends to see everything
- Never give your login details to anybody else.
