FAQs on Continuing Professional Development Studies leading to a Certificate

What is a Certificate programme and what makes it different from a CPD Bachelor's or Master’s degree? What admission requirements apply for higher education Certificates and do I have to take exams in the Certificate programme? You will find the answers to many questions about the Certificate studies in CPD mode at Leuphana Professional School of the University of Lüneburg.

Certificate as a form of study

  • What is a Certificate programme?
  • What are the advantages of a higher education Certificate?
  • What’s so special about a higher education Certificate?
  • Certificate of attendance or university certificate: What is the difference?

Organisation of study

  • What does it mean to complete a Certificate at Leuphana?
  • Where are the attendance phases of the Certificate studies held?
  • Can I acquire a university certificate by distance learning?

Entry Requirements

  • What are the entry requirements for the Certificate studies?

Time spent on the studies

  • How much time do I have to spend on studying for a Certificate?
  • Which examinations will I have to take during the studies?

Tuition fees and funding

  • Why are Tuition Fees charged for the Certificate studies?
  • How can I fund the CPD Studies?

Further Questions

  • To whom can I turn if I have queries regarding the Certificate studies?

Certificate as a form of study

What is a Certificate programme?

Certificate studies at the University give you the opportunity to acquire academic-based expertise in a subject area, without having to go through longer-lasting studies. Higher education Certificates are designed for professionals wishing to acquire new skills to add to their job by continuing education.

Certificate courses at the Professional School are generally offered on the basis of Bachelor and Masters programmes – in other words, the modules are part of a degree programme. Alongside practical continuing education, courses therefore also provide a taste of certain degree programmes. Completed assessments and fees can be counted towards the relevant programme if you later decide to study for a degree.

In addition, there is the option of an individual certificate programme: at the Professional School, you have the opportunity to freely combine open modules from a variety of our part-time degree programmes and thus put together your own personal continuing education programme.

What are the advantages of a higher education Certificate?

A Certificate programme usually lasts from only a few months up to one year, the time required is thus significantly lower compared with a bachelor's or master's programme. The higher education Certificate can serve as proof of your qualifications towards employers and demonstrate your interest and motivation for CPD training.

Parts of modules or entire modules can be counted towards the corresponding Bachelor or Masters in future. This means you do not need to repeat the modules and can reduce your workload. Fees previously paid for the certificate course are also counted towards your degree costs.

What’s so special about a higher education Certificate?

Unlike various other continuing education providers, universities are authorised to award credit points. If you complete a university certificate course and have passed the relevant assessments, you therefore obtain CP that you can later have counted towards a degree. On some certificate courses at the Professional School, you can opt out of assessments and choose not to work towards a university certificate. In this case, you will simply receive a certificate of attendance for completing the course.

The difference between a certificate of attendance and a university certificate lies in its value: You receive a certificate of attendance, for example, for attendance without examination results. It confirms that you have taken part in continuing education. For a university certificate, you must take and pass the examinations provided for in the continuing education programme. In this case, you will also receive credit points, which you can have credited to universities if the content fits, for example, towards a later degree programme. Since the credit points are awarded according to the European Credit Transfer System (ECTS), they can also be credited to foreign universities.

Organisation of study

What does it mean to complete a Certificate at Leuphana?

The courses at the Professional School are closely oriented on the needs of students in active employment. The contents of the programmes are aligned with the requirements of practice and the organisation of studies is adapted to your individual work and life rhythms.

To study in CPD mode means that the Professional School organizes all attendance phases and classes at weekends (usually Friday to Sunday) and prepare and follow up the content of taught material between the attendance phases through preparation and follow-up work of learning materials and e-learning means. Some attendance phases are organized in the form of educational leave. So you can perfectly combine work and study.

Where are the attendance phases of the Certificate studies held?

As a rule, attendance phases of the Certificate studies are held at Leuphana’s premises in Lüneburg. Lüneburg is situated in Northern Germany, around 50 kilometers south-east of Hamburg in the Eastern part of Lower Saxony. The town can easily be accessed by train as well as by car, using the nearby motorways A1, A7 and A39. From Lüneburg, there’s only a short distance to the holiday regions of the Lüneburg Heath, as well as to the North and Baltic seas.

Can I acquire a university certificate by distance learning?

A certificate programme can be acquired by distance learning, depending on the certificate chosen. At the Professional School, for example, the English-language certificate programmes are designed as distance learning offerings, which means they require little or no attendance time at the university and are predominantly based on online study.

Entry Requirements

What are the entry requirements for the Certificate studies?

The entry requirements vary from programme to programme. Relevant information can be found on each one of the internet pages of the Certificate programme.

Time spent on the studies

How much time do I have to spend on studying for a Certificate?

Depending on the Certificate programme, studies at the Professional School involves between 15 and 35 credit points. Statistically, 25 to 30 hours of study must be spent per credit point obtained. Thus, for 35 credit points, each credit point being worth 30 hours of study, you must reckon with spending 1050 hours’ workload studying; mathematically speaking, which corresponds to about 20 hours a week during two semesters of studies.

The real time spent is highly dependent on the individual learning circumstances and your learning speed. Experience shows that you should never invest all of your free time in a CPD course of studies. The relevant Coordinator will be glad to provide more detailed information on the time requirements for each Certificate.

Which examinations will I have to take during the studies?

The Certificate studies in CPD-mode are comprised of several modules, each treating a precise subject matter. An examination completes each of the modules. Depending on the content of the module it can be an essay, written examinations, portfolios, presentations or seminar paper. Exams usually take place in conjunction with attendance phases, so you do not have to travel separately.

You can choose not to take the assessments on some certificate courses at the Professional School to reduce your workload. If you opt out of the assessments, you will simply be awarded a certificate of attendance at the end of the course. You must take and pass the assessments to obtain a university certificate.

Tuition fees and funding

Why are Tuition Fees charged for the Certificate studies?

All CPD Certificate programmes at the Professional School are offers, which must fully self-support. Unlike undergraduate offers, all services, such as the production of study materials, the management as well as students’ support must be financed from tuition fees. Therefore, tuition and semester fees must be paid for on our certificate courses.

The tuition fees include all taught components attended in person, including meals on those days, all teaching materials, the use of the e-learning platform, as well as the support provided by the study programme coordinator and the team of the Professional School. All Students also receive a student card, which entitles them, for example to various discounts and special conditions in cultural institutions or the conclusion of contracts.

How can I fund the CPD Studies?

The expenses incurred through studying can deducted for tax purposes in accordance with the current legal provisions. This also applies to other costs associated with the study (travel and accommodation expenses, study material etc.). In addition, various other sources of funding such as loans or scholarships are available. All relevant information can be found here.

Further Questions

To whom can I turn if I have queries regarding the Certificate studies?

At the Professional School, there are several contact persons at your disposal, especially for questions about the certificate programmes. All contacts can be found here.