Virtuelle Welten & Games, Vol. 3: Fulbright Scholars of the Media Department at Offenburg University

Abstract

Internationalization is one of the strategic core responsibilities of universities. Each semester, Offenburg University welcomes many dozens of exchange students and international first-year students. In total, approximately 14% of the university’s 3,700 students belong to the group of international students; the majority of them are enrolled in one of the nine international degree programs. In 2026, there were more than 100 incoming and 100 outgoing students who, thanks to various funding programs such as Erasmus+, the Baden-Württemberg-STIPENDIUM, DAAD Promos, DAAD KOSPIE, DAAD STIBET I, or other scholarships, were able to travel to Germany or to a country of their choice. Through Fulbright scholarships alone, 26 members of Offenburg University have already been able to complete study and research stays in the United States since 1987. In keeping with the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, which is considered the actual founding date of the United States, a visiting scholar from the U.S. came to Offenburg: Matt Knutson, Assistant Professor of Esports at the University of North Dakota, stayed at the Media Department from May 20 to June 23, 2026, and supported my degree program “Virtual Worlds & Game Technologies.” In Chapter 5 of this volume, he summarized his experiences in a brief report. Matt Knutson is not the first internationally renowned guest at Offenburg University. One such guest is Jim Metzner, a pioneer of natural sound recording, radio producer, sound engineer, and creator of the program “Pulse of the Planet.” In Chapter 4, he writes about his stay in Offenburg, Salzburg, and Weimar in 2017. Conversely, Katharina Stelzl, who began her studies in Offenburg, reports in Chapter 3 on her time at UCSB, the University of California, Santa Barbara. All chapters in this volume are available in both English and German.