Accreditation
Bavarian universities are obliged to regularly accredit their degree programs. Accreditation is an important quality assurance procedure.
As a system-accredited university, OTH Regensburg is entitled to accredit its degree programs itself.
Below you will find a general introduction to the German accreditation system in general and to system accreditation in particular.
The German accreditation system
History
The decision of the Federal Constitutional Court of 17.02.2016 led to a fundamental reorganization of the German accreditation system. This legal restructuring took place on 01.01.2018.
The Interstate Study Accreditation Treaty now forms the legal basis together with the associated model ordinance. In Bavaria, the latter was introduced in the form of the Bavarian Study Accreditation Ordinance. You can find the most important legal sources on our website Legal requirements.
Types of accreditation
The German accreditation system distinguishes between three types of accreditation.
- In the case of program accreditation , one or more study programs are the subject of the assessment.
- In the case of system accreditation, the university's internal quality management system is accredited.
- In an alternative procedure, a procedure developed internally by the university can also be assessed.
Accreditation procedure
The accreditation procedure is divided into two phases. These are independent of the type of accreditation.
In the first phase, the university commissions an external agency to assess the object of accreditation. The agency puts together a group of experts. They assess the object of accreditation on the basis of self-reports and discussions with those involved. The result of the assessment is an accreditation report with a recommendation for the accreditation decision.
In the second phase, the higher education institution submits an application for accreditation to the Accreditation Council. This decides on the basis of the accreditation report. Deviations from the experts' recommendation are possible.
More detailed information on the German accreditation system can be found on the website of the Accreditation Council.
System accreditation
System accreditation in general
The subject of system accreditation is the university's internal quality management system. The latter must be able to independently assure the quality of the university's study programs. All legal requirements for accreditation must be met.
Successful system accreditation gives the university the right to accredit its own degree programs internally. This also applies to study programs in cooperation with other universities.
System accreditation at OTH Regensburg
OTH Regensburg has been system-accredited since September 2017. The system accreditation was carried out by the accreditation agency AQAS e. V. It is valid until September 2023. OTH Regensburg is currently undergoing the system accreditation procedure. The agency ZEvA was commissioned for this procedure.
The basis for the university's internal accreditation of study programs is the so-called iSA process (internal process for awarding the seal of the Accreditation Council for study programs).