Accreditation Council meets in Passau: New standards for universities!

Accreditation Council meets in Passau: New standards for universities!

The Accreditation Council held its 126th meeting at the University of Passau on September 23rd and 24th, 2023. The university president, Prof. Dr. Ulrich Bartosch, who is also deputy chairman of the council. In this context, the university and the city of Passau were introduced, which Bartosch described as an honor. The Accreditation Council acts as the central body for the accreditation of study programs in Germany and plays a crucial role in the quality assurance of almost all study programs.

A total of 185 applications were considered at this meeting. These included five applications for system accreditations. As a result, five universities were given the authority to independently accredit their degree programs for a period of eight years. The remaining 180 applications related to 423 study programs in the program accreditation, all of which had a high quality standard.

Tasks and structure of the Accreditation Council

The Accreditation Council is the central decision-making body of the Accreditation Council Foundation, which was set up by the 16 federal states. The foundation's main task is to make decisions about program and system accreditations as well as alternative procedures. Since January 8, 2019, the Accreditation Council has been operating an independent database in which accredited study programs are listed. An important criterion for listing is completed accreditation; Degree programs that are not yet accredited or whose process is pending do not appear there.

The legal framework for accreditation in Germany is regulated by the State Treaty on the Common Accreditation System, which came into force in 2018. This ensures that the equivalence of study and examination achievements is maintained. In addition, university supervision is the responsibility of the responsible science ministries of the states, which carry out regular evaluation procedures.

Quality assurance in higher education

Science is evaluated externally by regional evaluation agencies or transnational university networks. These external evaluation measures aim to improve the quality of studying and teaching and to ensure public accountability. The results flow into university budgets. The study programs must meet formal criteria for quality assurance such as study structure and module formation.

Various indicators are used in reporting on teaching and studying, including the beginner graduate rate and the examination success rate. Student criticism of events also plays a role here in order to continuously optimize the course offerings. The Accreditation Council, which consists of university lecturers, representatives of the University Rectors' Conference and foreign representatives, monitors compliance with these standards and promotes international cooperation in quality assurance.