Open lecture hall: Growing older with brains
2025-03-24 Around 100 lectures are open to guest students at Leuphana. The new course catalog is now online and those interested can register for the “Open Lecture Hall” program until May 2. Claus Göpfert from Lüneburg has been training his gray matter at Leuphana for over ten years.
When Claus Göpfert cycles to university, the 77-year-old always has his tablet computer in his pocket: “The digital is my world,” says the retired teacher. He taught at vocational schools for 36 years and has been a guest student at Leuphana since 2013. He usually attends lectures on politics, sociology or psychology: “I go to university because I want to occupy my mind a bit more. I have to read texts here, think again about the content I've heard and consider what it means,” he says.
But it's not just the content of the guest student program that inspires him, but also the exchange on campus: “I like going to Klippo for a coffee. I always meet professors or students there with whom I can have a chat.” Meeting young people is important to the retiree: “I recently had someone explain to me how to apply for a place in a shared flat. It's exciting.” He is impressed by the openness of the students: “No one has ever made me feel like I don't belong.”
The guest lecture program is open to all citizens who wish to continue their academic education, explore new subject areas or deepen their existing interests. It promotes lifelong learning and the personal development of participants. There are no entry requirements. Regardless of which school or university degree the interested parties have, what professional background they bring with them or how young or old they are: All are welcome.
Guest students attend courses from the regular course offerings for the Bachelor's and Master's degree programs at Leuphana University of Lüneburg, which are released for guest students by the lecturers. “There is deliberately no separate program at Leuphana that is aimed exclusively at guest students. We want to offer a comprehensive learning opportunity to become part of the academic community and learn together with young people,” explains Annika Weinert-Brieger, who is responsible for the ‘Open Lecture Hall’ program at Leuphana.
Guest students therefore participate directly in academic campus life. In addition, there is an accompanying program for guest students in which they can meet like-minded people and which includes campus tours and a two-week guest student get-together.
The fee for up to four semester hours per week (SWS) is 125.00 euros per semester. Students who wish to take more than four SWS pay 185.00 euros.