Future studies (AQA GCSE German): Revision Notes
Future studies
When discussing your future plans and educational aspirations in German, you'll need specific vocabulary and grammar structures to express your hopes, dreams, and intentions effectively. This topic focuses on education, training, and career planning vocabulary, along with key grammatical constructions for talking about future expectations.
Essential vocabulary
Understanding vocabulary related to education and future planning is crucial for discussing your aspirations in German. Building a strong foundation with these terms will help you express complex ideas about your educational journey and career goals.
Learning vocabulary in context makes it easier to remember and use correctly. Try to create personal sentences using each new term to reinforce your understanding.
Here are the key terms you'll encounter:
Education and training terms:
- die Weiterbildung - continuing education or professional development
- die Ausbildung - training, apprenticeship, or vocational education
- die Bildung - education in general
- das Studium - university studies
- die Universität (Uni) - university
Future planning vocabulary:
- die Zukunft - future
- die Zukunftspläne - future plans
- die Gelegenheit - opportunity or chance
- die Kosten - costs
- der Student/die Studentin - student
The verb studieren means "to study at university level", which is more specific than general studying.
Grammar focus: sich freuen auf + accusative
One of the most important constructions for discussing future plans is sich freuen auf, which means "to look forwards to". This reflexive verb always takes the accusative case.
Critical Grammar Rule: The construction sich freuen auf ALWAYS requires the accusative case, never the dative. This is a common mistake that German learners make, so pay special attention to this rule.
Basic structure:
- Ich freue mich auf meine Zukunft. (I'm looking forwards to my future.)
- Ich freue mich auf die Uni zu gehen. (I'm looking forwards to going to university.)
- Ich freue mich nicht auf den Druck. (I'm not looking forwards to the pressure.)
Essential Grammar Rule: When you want to use sich freuen auf followed by a zu clause (to express "looking forwards to doing something"), you must add dar- to the beginning of auf, creating darauf.
Worked Example: Using darauf with zu clauses
Incorrect: Ich freue mich auf, auf die Uni zu gehen. Correct: Ich freue mich darauf, auf die Uni zu gehen. (I'm looking forwards to going to university.)
The darauf acts as a connecting element between the main verb and the infinitive clause.
Expressing wishes and desires
To talk about what you want or don't want to do regarding your future, use these constructions:
Ich habe Lust - "I feel like" or "I want to" Ich habe keine Lust - "I don't feel like" or "I don't want to"
These phrases are particularly useful when discussing preferences about future activities or career choices. They're more casual than using "möchten" and express personal desire rather than polite wishes.
Example sentences with translations
Worked Examples: Future Studies Vocabulary in Context
Present tense examples:
- Es ist wichtig, eine gute Ausbildung zu haben. (It's important to have good training.)
- Ich möchte in der Zukunft an der Geschichte studieren. (I would like to study history in the future.)
- Ein Nachteil ist, dass die Kosten eines Studiums so hoch sind. (A disadvantage is that the costs of studying are so high.)
Future planning expressions:
- Ich denke, das Studentenleben wird viel Spaß machen. (I think student life will be lots of fun.)
- Mit einem Abschluss kann man einen besseren Job bekommen. (With a qualification, one can get a better job.)
Grammar and pronunciation tips
Pronunciation Guidance:
- Weiterbildung - pronounce "wei-ter-bil-dung" with emphasis on the first syllable
- Zukunft - "tsu-kunft" with a short, sharp 'u' sound
- studieren - "shtu-dee-ren" with the 'st' pronounced as 'sht'
Grammar Reminders:
- Remember that sich freuen auf requires the accusative case
- studieren specifically refers to university-level study, not general learning
- When using darauf + zu + infinitive, the infinitive goes to the end of the clause
Useful phrases for discussion
When discussing future plans, these flexible expressions will help you sound more natural and confident in your German conversations.
Es wird eine tolle Erfahrung sein. (It will be a great experience.)
This phrase is perfect for showing enthusiasm about future opportunities and can be adapted to various contexts.
Translation practice
Translation Exercise: Future Studies
German to English:
- Ich freue mich darauf, an der Universität zu studieren.
- Die Weiterbildung ist sehr wichtig für meine Zukunft.
English to German:
- I'm looking forwards to my future.
- The costs of education are very high.
Answers:
- I'm looking forwards to studying at university.
- Continuing education is very important for my future.
- Ich freue mich auf meine Zukunft.
- Die Kosten der Bildung sind sehr hoch.
Remember!
Key Points to Remember:
- sich freuen auf always takes the accusative case and means "to look forwards to"
- Use darauf when following sich freuen auf with a zu + infinitive clause
- studieren specifically refers to university study, not general learning
- Ich habe Lust/keine Lust expresses personal wishes about future activities
- Practice using future-related vocabulary in context to discuss your own educational and career aspirations