1. The German Accreditation System: From programme to institutional approach Accreditation Council Foundation for the Accreditation of Study Programmes in Germany Professor Reinhold Grimm

2. Number 2 The German Accreditation System: Three Principles Accreditation of programmes and state approval Functional separation between state approval and accreditation. Accreditation is a prerequisite of approval, and therefore partly based on structural standards given by state Decentralised Accreditation System in a federal state Accreditation Council as a central body has been mandated by the 16 states to organise and rule an Accreditation System with the accreditation procedures carried out by various accreditation agencies. Stakeholder involvement Representation of students, labour market experts (and state) in the system

3. Number 3 Foundation for the Accreditation of Study Programmes in Germany Accreditation Council Foundation Council Standing Conference of the Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs of the Länder German Rectors Conference appoint Head Office appoint accredits Agency 1 Agency 2 Agency n Programmes The Accreditation System in Germany Standing Conference of the Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs of the Länder adopts Common Structural Guidelines accredit Programmes

4. Number 4 Accreditation Council: Tasks according to the Law Accreditation Foundation Law, 2005: § 2 Central Aims of the Accreditation Council (1)The Foundation serves to fulfil the following tasks: 1.Accreditation and Reaccreditation of accreditation agencies 2.Compliance of the common and specific structural guidelines of the 16 states into a set of binding guidelines for the agencies 3.Regulation of minimum requirements for accreditations 4.Monitoring of accreditations awarded by the agencies

5. Number 5 Reason for establishment of a market regulator Strong need of consistent application of rules and criteria Accreditation decisions have to be based on criteria Close link between quality assurance and state approval Agencies as non-profit organisations

6. Number 6 Compliance with international standards Participation in international associations European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education (ENQA) International Network for Quality Assurance Agencies in Higher Education (INQAAHE) Participation in international projects European Consortium for Accreditation (Code of Good Practice) Joint Quality Initiative (Dublin Descriptors) Various cooperation projects Integration of international standards in accreditation standards European Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance in Higher Education (ESG) as binding accreditation standards

7. Number 7 Why programme accreditation? Historical context led to programme approach: Implementation of Bachelor- and Master degrees Reform of state approval procedure Accreditation not only considered as quality assurance Aims Guarantee of high quality in the programmes Fostering diversity in the porogrammes and profile of the institutions Fostering student mobility Strengthening of employability Guarantee of Comparability of degrees HRK (06.07.1998) und KMK (03.12.1998)

8. Number 8 Why programme accreditation has become controversial Strengths (systemic and de facto) Number of accredited programmes Consumer protection Stakeholder involvement Coinditional accreditation nas dynamic element Driver for reform in teachiung and learning (Implementation of ECTS, modularisation, etc)

9. Number 9 Why programme accreditation has become controversial Weaknesses (systemic und de facto) Number of accredited programmes Accreditierung is not considered as part of internal quality assurance Trend to static prgrammes between accreditation decisions Poor contribution to internal quality assurance/managment of institutions Enormous burden on institutions (resources, costs), high number of peers nessecary Limited consistency of agencies decisions

10. Number 10 By 2008: Introduction of an institutional oriented accreditation approach in addition to programme accreditation (optional for HEI) Accreditation of all programmes of an institution as consequence of accreditation of its internal quality assurance system Final decisions of Minsters and Accreditation Council to be taken on 13 December 2007 and 28 February 2008 Further Development: System Accreditation

11. Number 11 Criteria Internal management and quality assurance system has to assure The development of qualification targets The development of concepts adequate to the qualification targets The application of legal/formal criteria given by ministers The provision with adequate resources (personal, material, and financial) The continuing application of comprehensive internal quality assurance processes The provision of all relevant data The documentation of outcomes of internal quaklity assurance procedures The involvement of all relevant stakeholder System Accreditation at a glance

12. Number 12 Process Expert panel including student and labor market expert 1st site visit: Review of the submitted documentation of institution and internal quality assurance system 2nd site visit: Analysis of documentation, verification in discussion with relevant groups, sample of features of programmes Sample of programmes Draft report to institution for clarification of factual errors Accreditation decision: yes/no (no conditional accreditation) Accreditation period: 6 years (8 years) System accreditation at a glance

13. Number 13 Thank you for your attention! Professor Reinhold Grimm www.akkreditierungsrat.de akr@akkreditierungsrat.de