Procedures for the Assessment of Qualifications Acquired Abroad in Transition

Although Germany can look back on a decades-long history of immigration, the subject of the accreditation (or ‘recognition’/in German: Anerkennung) of qualifications that have been acquired abroad has been given increasing attention only in roughly the last five years. The issue is becoming volatile because of demographic changes which will in the future only increase the shortage of skilled workers that is already noticeable in Germany and other European countries. According to the calculations of the Cologne Institute for Economic Research [German acronym: IW], in 2011 there was already a shortage of over 158,000 highly qualified workers, particularly in the industrial sector of the MINT professions.

• Introduction

  Although Germany can look back on a decades-long history of immigration, the subject of the accreditation (or ‘recognition’/in German:... Mehr lesen

• Evolution of the Accreditation Debate

  Alongside the previously cited demographic pressure, lobbying by industry and increasingly public debate on the inadequate accreditation... Mehr lesen

• The Importance of Accreditation

  In the context of the discussion on the accreditation of qualifications acquired abroad, various scholarly studies have made it clear that... Mehr lesen

• More Uniform, Transparent, Effective?

  Basic Principles Thus Far of the Accreditation of Qualifications Acquired Abroad

  Accreditation practice in Germany is marked by federalism, because as an educational topic it falls in the area of the sovereignty of the... Mehr lesen

• More Uniform, Transparent, Effective?

  Actors in the Accreditation Practice

  Responsible for carrying out the accreditation procedure are regional accrediting agencies. In Germany as a whole there are more than 600 of... Mehr lesen

• More Uniform, Transparent, Effective?

  Reasons for Establishing a New Legal Framework

  The missing legal basis up to now of accreditation procedures for qualifications acquired abroad, especially in the case of citizens of third... Mehr lesen

• The Professional Qualifications Assessment Act

  On December 12, 2011 the “Accreditation Act” was published in the German federal law gazette and on April 1, 2012 it went into effect. Mehr lesen

• What Is Being Criticized?

  “The accreditation act is a milestone in integration policy,” the Federal Minister of Education Annette Schavan emphasized when the... Mehr lesen

• The Accreditation System in Transition

  The German Chamber of Industry and Commerce (IHK) bundles together its accreditation agencies on a cross-Länder basis. Mehr lesen

• More Uniform, Transparent, Effective?

  Conclusion

  The Act for the Improvement of the Establishment and Recognition of Occupational Qualifications Acquired Abroad which took effect in April... Mehr lesen

• More Uniform, Transparent, Effective?

  References and Further Reading

  Here you can find references for the Policy Brief "Procedures for the Assessment of Qualifications Acquired Abroad in Transition" by Daria Braun. Mehr lesen