Quality-assured Studies and CPD

Quality management measures at Leuphana Professional School

In order to guarantee high quality CPD and study programmes, the Professional School continuously performs several quality management tasks. In this way, for example, all the courses of study are accredited by external accrediting agencies, thus ensuring compliance in shaping and further developing the programmes. Furthermore, in the course of quality assurance, evaluations and surveys are carried out and quality circles are organized, which give the possibility for feedback and constant improvement of the courses.

Internal Quality Management and Assurance: What we do

  • Evaluations of the taught course components
  • Survey carried out during the course of study
  • Quality Circle

External Quality Assurance: Accreditation

  • What does Accreditation mean?
  • What is Programme accreditation?
  • What does the accreditation procedure of a programme of study look like?
  • Is Leuphana System Accredited?

Internal Quality Management and Assurance: What we do

Evaluations of the taught course components

Since 2010, every class of the CPD programme has been evaluated. This means that all participating students have given and still give their opinion on a questionnaire and assess each taught component. They can also evaluate the class and express critic or suggestions for improvement, thus ensuring high quality in the individual courses offered.

Survey carried out during the course of study

Since 2013, the Professional School has carried out various surveys. They are made at the moment of starting the studies, in the middle of the course; and at completion when the alumni also fill in a survey. This also gives them the opportunity to reflect on their studies at the professional school and to bring in suggestions for improvement.

Quality Circle

Quality Circles are held regularly and offer the opportunity to express ideas and suggestions for improvement not only to the leadership and coordination section of a course, but also to teaching staff and students, thus supporting the continuous further development of their own course of studies.

External Quality Assurance: Accreditation

Within the framework of the external quality assurance, all CPD Bachelor’s and Master’s programmes are assessed and accredited by external accrediting agencies, such as the FIBAA or the AHPGS. For special course offers, such as for example courses leading to certificates, such assessment procedures are being developed at this moment in time.

What does Accreditation mean?

The term “accreditation” describes various external quality assurance procedures for courses of study and teaching components in the world of higher education. Next to the institutional accreditation (verification of proper formation of private institutions of higher education) and the system accreditation (verification of the quality management of such an institution of higher education), the programme accreditation (quality assurance of individual course offers), is the most important procedure in this field.

What is Programme accreditation?

Programme accreditation means that external appraisers decide if a certain programme of studies fulfils the requirements of the Accreditation Council of the Conference of the Ministers of Education, as well as the quality regulations laid down by law.

The tasks of the programme accreditation are:

  • to ensure the standards in the design of programmes of study are respected
  • to enable an objective, transparent and valid procedure to the institutions of higher education to guarantee national and international recognition of higher education degrees

The accreditation agencies active in Germany work exclusively for the “Foundation for the Accreditation of Courses of Study” (Stiftung zur Akkreditierung von Studiengängen), in short “the Accreditation Council”.

What does the accreditation procedure of a programme of study look like?

First, an accreditation agency (for example ACQUIN, FIBAA, AHPGS) is charged with the implementation of the accreditation programme. Then the agency sets up a commission comprised of around four to six referees, matching the theme of the programme. As a rule, it is constituted of teaching academics (from other universities), students and external stakeholders (related to practice / profession, potential employers, for example).

First, the applying university submits documentation about itself, i.e. documentation on the degree programme, to the Agency. Then the agency and the advisory committee scrutinize the documents, marking in particular certain aspects in the light of the relevant quality criteria.

This is followed by the inspection, which provides the opportunity for discussion of these issues. Usually, the inspection consists in a two-day visit of the Advisory Committee on site. There, the members of the Commission have the opportunity to speak with the program leaders, lecturers and students and to obtain detailed information on the implementation of the study programme.

Based on the self-report and the inspection on site, as well as further requested documents, the Advisory Committee finally makes a recommendation on the programme accreditation. This is then confirmed by the agency – after the University has received the opportunity to comment – thus becoming binding. Very often, conditions are imposed, a thing which is very common in programme accreditation procedures. These may include, for example, that individual modules be restructured or that specific provisions for certain cases be included in the applicable Examination Regulations. Thus, programme accreditation contributes to the further development of the study programmes.

Is Leuphana System Accredited?

Leuphana University of Lüneburg received a system accreditation by the ACQUIN agency in 2014. The accreditation of the management system of their programmes of study has been guaranteed.

Contact & Advising

Annika Melles
Universitätsallee 1, C40.121
21335 Lüneburg
Fon +49.4131.677-2942
annika.melles@leuphana.de