Educational institutions and study programmes
German educational institutions and study programmes
Below, we explain what types of German educational institutions and study programmes there are, and how we check whether they are recognised and/or accredited. We check the and to make sure that the quality is sufficient. We give the necessary information for each type of education.
Recognition
The government of a country grants an official status to an educational institution and/or study programme. Usually, if the government recognises an educational institution, all its study programmes are also recognised. However recognition may also be arranged at the programme level. This means that the government must recognise not only the educational institution, but also its study programmes. We only evaluate diplomas from recognised institutions and recognised study programmes. Read more about recognition in the EAR manual.
Accreditation
An organisation checks and assesses the quality of education. Usually the accreditation is valid for a certain period. In some countries, accreditation is compulsory, in others it is voluntary. The government of a country often appoints one or more organisations responsible for accrediting institutions and/or study programmes. In addition, there are also private accreditation organisations. We only mention and (in the case of diploma evaluations) consult accreditation organisations appointed by the government of that country. Read more about accreditation in the EAR manual.
Secondary education | diplomas
With regard to secondary education programmes, you have to pay special attention to the fact that a student has a recognised diploma. These are the recognised upper secondary education diplomas:
- Fachhochschulreife
- Schulischen Teil der Fachhochschulreife
- Zeugnis der Allgemeinen Hochschulreife
- Zeugnis der Fachgebundenen Hochschulreife
See Secondary education documents for a short explanation of the documents that students receive.
Higher education | educational institutions
In Germany, there are separate educational institutions for research-oriented higher education and higher professional education.
Institutions for research-oriented higher education
Students can follow research-oriented higher education at various Universitäten and specialised Hochschulen:
- Universitäten
- Technische Universitäten
- Technische Hochschulen
- Wissenschaftliche Hochschulen, zoals:
- Pädagogische Hochschulen
- Erziehungswissenschaftliche Hochschulen
- Medizinische Hochschulen
- Philosophisch-Theologische Hochschulen
- Kunst- en Musikhochschulen
Kunst- en Musikhochschulen
In German higher education, Kunst- en Musikhochschulen form a separate category. The admission requirements and diplomas of these institutions are often the same as those of the research-oriented Universitäten en Hochschulen. However, the goal of the programme is often more similar to that of Dutch universities of applied sciences ( ). Per study programme, we determine if we can compare the diploma to a Dutch HBO or diploma.
Institutions for higher professional education
Fachhochschulen offer higher professional education. In English, these institutions are called: university of applied sciences.
HBO
Higher professional education (hoger beroepsonderwijs, HBO). Dutch higher education distinguishes between research-oriented higher education (wetenschappelijk onderwijs, WO) and higher professional education (hoger beroepsonderwijs, HBO). HBO is more oriented towards professions in specific areas than WO, and has traditionally been offered at universities of applied sciences (hogescholen).
WO
Research-oriented higher education (wetenschappelijk onderwijs, WO). Dutch higher education distinguishes between research-oriented higher education (wetenschappelijk onderwijs, WO) and higher professional education (hoger beroepsonderwijs, HBO). WO is oriented more towards theory and research than HBO, and has traditionally been offered at research universities (universiteiten).
Checking the recognition of higher education institutions
You can find a search tool for all recognised German higher education institutions on the Hochschulkompass website (in German only).
- Open the Hochschulkompass search tool.
- At the section ‘Suchen Sie hier nach Hochschulen’, enter the name of the German higher education institution and click on ‘Treffer anzeigen’.
- No result? The higher education institution is probably not recognised.
Higher education | study programmes
In Germany, higher education programmes must be accredited. Below, we explain how to check if a study programme is accredited.
Checking accreditation of bachelor's and master's degree programmes
Follow the steps below to check whether an undergraduate or graduate programme is accredited:
- Go to the Akkreditierungsrat database.
- Type in the name of the study programme at ‘Studiengang’ and the name of the educational institution at ‘Name der Hochschule’. Then click on ‘Treffer anzeigen’.
- Check if the educational institution's study programme is listed in the search results.
- Is it not listed? Then the study programme is probably not accredited.
- Is the study programme listed in the search results? Then click on it.
- Does ‘Ja’ appear under ‘Akkreditiert’? Then the study programme is accredited.
- Does ‘Nein’ appear under ‘Akkreditiert’? Then the study programme used to be accredited, but is no longer.
- To check if and when a study programme was accredited previously, look at the following:
- Under ‘Erstakkreditierung’ it is stated when the study programme was first accredited. In other words, the study programme was not accredited before that time.
- Under ‘Reakkreditierungen und Fristverlängerungen” it is mentioned when the accreditation was first renewed and it states all renewals since then. So here you can see if a study programme was accredited in a particular year.
Checking accreditation of Diplom courses
Follow the steps below to check whether a Diplom course is accredited:
- Search for the educational institution via the Hochschulkompass website. Above, under Checking the recognition of higher education institutions, we describe how to do that.
- Is the educational institution listed in the search results? Then it is currently recognised. This means that the study programmes offered by this institution are currently accredited as well.
- Is the educational institution not listed in the search results? Then the educational institution is probably not recognised at the moment. This means that this educational institute's programmes are currently not accredited either.