Students are encouraged to study abroad, usually in their Junior Year, choosing from a broad selection of programs approved by the College's Office of Off-Campus Study.

In recent years, students have also spent a semester or year in Berlin, Freiburg and Vienna with the IES programs and at the American Junior Year in Heidelberg Program. During the summer, many German majors and minors choose to enroll in credit-bearing programs (such as the IES and FUBIS programs in Berlin) or attend non-credit-bearing language immersion courses at Goethe Institutes throughout Germany. The department's Peter and Irene Seadle Award and the Sophomore Summer Travel Award can be used to support summer study in Europe. Study in Germany and Austria has enabled many students to participate in work internships abroad in interdisciplinary settings.