Bonjour! Salut! Hello everyone! We have been studying central banking at the Bundesbank’s University of Applied Sciences (HDB) since April 2023. As part of our course, ten students from our year had the chance to spend two weeks in France, in Toulon on the Côte d’Azur. There, we attended lectures at the Faculty of Economics and Management at the University of Toulon and, together with French Master’s degree students, took part in a video project for the European Central Bank (ECB) and designed hypothetical social media posts for the ECB about the digital euro.

HDB actively encourages its students to gain international experience, which is why it has launched a new exchange programme with the University of Toulon. The French students visited us in April 2024 during “International Week”, and welcomed us warmly in return by hosting our study programme.

During our stay, we attended lectures by Cécile Bastidon from the University of Toulon and Stefanie Bergbauer from the ECB, for example. We were also allowed a glimpse into the banking students’ maths course. One of the most exciting aspects of the programme for us as future central bankers was the information and debate surrounding the digital euro and cash.

© Université Toulon

© Université Toulon

Apart from lectures, the programme included cultural and sporting activities. Together we went kayaking off the beach of the Mediterranean sea, rounding off the trip with a spontaneous swim. We also tried our hand at “pétanque”, a precision sport traditionally played in Provence that belongs to the category of boules sports, where two teams try to throw a certain number of balls to land as close to the target ball as possible. Our evenings were spent exploring the cuisine of the south of France, as well as getting to know and chatting with the French students. We look forward to welcoming some of them to Hachenburg Castle next April during International Week. 

Lecturers Olivier Radelet and Nicolas Huchet at the Faculty of Economics and Management, who had put together our programme and were there for us around the clock, supported us on the French side. We are most grateful for the commitment and kindness they showed us. We would also like to thank Matthias Goeken, a professor at our university, who accompanied us for the first few days of the programme.

The whole group saw our time together in Toulon as an enriching, unique experience. We are proud to look back on the projects we worked on and the new friendships we made. We would like to thank the Bundesbank’s University of Applied Sciences and the University of Toulon for this unique opportunity! À bientôt! See you soon!