After Freie Universität was the first university in Berlin to be successfully system-accredited in 2016, the external Accreditation Council certified for the second time in March 2024 that the quality management system of Freie Universität ensures compliance with the quality standards for degree programs and enables continuous quality improvement of the programs. With the renewed system accreditation, Freie Universität continues to have the right to award the seal of the Accreditation Council on its behalf until September 30, 2030 and to accredit its nearly 200 degree programs independently.

Why does Freie Universität Berlin have to accredit its degrees? What are the aims and objectives of the process?

In Germany, the Interstate Study Accreditation Treaty of 2018 (German) stipulates that bachelor and master’s degree programs are legally subject to quality controls and must therefore be accredited.

Section 8a of the Berlin Higher Education Act (BerlHG) also stipulates that degree programs in Berlin must be regularly evaluated for quality.

Freie Universität continually adapts its quality management system in response to changing external and internal requirements. To ensure the system can be successfully implemented, the university also invests in expanding its internal structures.

On August 29, 2016, Freie Universität as an entire institution was awarded “system accredited” status – the first university in Berlin to receive this accolade. The decision of the accreditation agency, AQAS, followed an external evaluation process. It certified that Freie Universität’s quality management system ensures that degree programs meet quality standards, and that quality is continually maintained, monitored and improved.

It entitles the university to carry out internal accreditation for its degree programs for a specified period of time, rather than relying on an external accreditation process.