These guidelines specify the terms and conditions of institutional accreditation under s. 30 LEHE and program accreditation under s. 31 LEHE. They define:

A.

The conditions for admission to the accreditation procedure;

B.

The conditions for institutional accreditation and accreditation of programs and the effects of institutional accreditation;

C.

Rules of procedure;

D.

The quality standards to be applied in the procedures.

The following are considered curricula under these guidelines:

A.

Bachelor's degree programs comprising 180 ECTS credits ¹ ;

B.

Master's degree programs comprising 90 to 120 ECTS credits;

C.

Continuing education curricula with at least 60 ECTS credits;

D.

Educational programs whose accreditation under the EHE is provided for in a special law.

¹ The Swiss Accreditation and Quality Assurance Agency, as well as other Swiss and foreign agencies recognised by the Swiss Council on Accreditation (Council), are considered accreditation agencies according to these guidelines. Certification).

² Accreditation agencies conduct accreditation procedures under s. 32 LEHE.

³ The conditions and procedure for the recognition of other Swiss or foreign accreditation bodies are defined by the Council of Accreditation in a specific directive.

¹ A high school or other institution in the field of high schools is admitted to institutional accreditation where:

A.

It respects the principle of freedom and unity of education and research;

B.

It is one of the following high school types:

1.

High school,

2.

High school or high school;

C.

It rules, if applicable, admission to the first cycle of studies according to art. 23 to 25 and 73 LEHE, and in the case of a specialized high school, it also complies with the provisions on the nature of the studies referred to in s. 26 LEHE;

D.

Has a quality assurance system (s. 30, para. 1, let. A, LEHE);

E.

It is compatible with the European Higher Education Area;

F.

It has in Switzerland an infrastructure and teaching, research and service provision staff adapted to its type and profile;

G.

A cohort of students has completed a study program;

H.

It has the resources to sustain its activities in the long term (art. 30, para. 1, let. C, LEHE) and has taken steps to allow students to complete a program of studies initiated;

I.

Is a legal person in Switzerland.

² A high school or other institution in the field of high schools shall be admitted to the institutional accreditation procedure without verification of the conditions referred to in para. 1 if it meets one of the following conditions:

A.

It is already benefiting from institutional accreditation according to the LEHE;

B.

It was created by federal law before the entry into force of the HE;

C.

Was recognized as eligible for grants under the Federal Act of October 8, 1999 on University Assistance (UFA) ¹ Federal Law of 6 October 1995 on Higher Special Schools (LHES) ² (art. 75, para. 2, LEHE);

D.

Before the entry into force of the LEHE, it was already a high school of public law according to the cantonal law.

¹ A program of studies is admitted to program accreditation if the following conditions are met:

A.

The high school or other institution in the field of the high schools responsible for the curriculum is for the benefit of an institutional accreditation under the LEHE;

B.

A cohort of students has completed the curriculum.

² Joint study programmes are governed by the same rules and standards as other curricula. They shall be admitted to the accreditation of programmes if the high schools or other institutions in the field of the high schools file the application:

A.

Award the title; and

B.

Are responsible for the quality of the curriculum.

A high school or other institution in the field of high schools is accredited when it meets the quality standards set out in Art. 22.

High school curricula or other institutions in the field of high schools accredited according to the LEHE are accredited when they complete:

A.

The quality standards set out in Art. 23; and

B.

Where applicable, other standards set out in special laws.

¹ The high school or other institution in the field of high schools is accredited in accordance with its request as a university, university institute, high school, high school specialized high school or high school.

² It shall receive the right to the appellation in accordance with Art. 29 LEHE.

³ In the case of a high school integrated in a specialized high school, the specialized high school receives the right to the designation for the high school teaching in the framework of the institutional accreditation of the high school Specialized.

¹ The accreditation procedure relates to the high school quality assurance system or the other institution in the field of high schools.

² High schools or other institutions in the field of high schools shall, taking into account their organisational characteristics, incorporate in the accreditation procedure all representative groups, in particular the student bodies, Intermediary and faculty and administrative and technical staff.

³ The results of external quality reviews may be taken into account as long as they are not more than three years old.

⁴ A bachelor's degree program may be accredited in the same procedure with the corresponding master's degree program.

⁵ The LEHE accreditation procedures may be conducted at the same time as the procedures of other accreditation agencies or organisations provided that all the quality standards of these Directives are taken into account.

⁶ The high school or the other institution in the field of high schools chooses the accreditation agency which will lead the procedure of institutional accreditation or accreditation of programme among the accreditation agencies recognised by the council Certification.

¹ For institutional accreditation, the high school or other institution in the field of high schools shall file with the accreditation board a reasoned request. If the conditions under s. 4 are fulfilled, the accreditation board decides on the entry and forwards the documents to the accreditation agency for examination. If the conditions are not met, the accreditation board shall decide on the non-entry.

² For the accreditation of programmes, the high school or the other institution in the field of high schools shall file with the accreditation agency a reasoned request. If the conditions under s. 5 are completed, the accreditation agency enters into the application. If the conditions are not met, it decides the non-entry. It shall inform the Council of Accreditation in both cases.

³ For accreditation and renewal of accreditation, the application must be filed in time for the decision to take place before the expiry of the accreditation or the transitional period (Art. 75 LEHE).

¹ A self-assessment is carried out by the high school or the other institution in the field of high schools, which summarises the results in a written report (self-assessment report).

² It submits the self-assessment report to the accreditation agency.

¹ A group of experts checks, on the basis of the self-assessment report and on a site visit, that the high school or other institution in the field of high schools or the programme of studies meets the quality standards.

² On the occasion of the on-site visit, he shall conduct interviews with all the representative groups concerned by the procedure.

³ It draws up a report which contains:

A.

An evaluation of the high school quality assurance system or the other institution in the field of high schools on the basis of quality standards;

B.

Where necessary, proposals for recommendations and conditions for the development of the quality assurance system;

C.

A proposal for accreditation to the accreditation agency.

¹ The accreditation agency shall make up a group of experts for external evaluation.

² It shall compose it in such a way that it has the national and international experience and the knowledge necessary to evaluate the application for accreditation. The type, profile, size and other specificities of the high school or other institution in the field of high schools must be taken into account.

³ The composition of the expert group takes into account gender, age and provenance. The experts must be independent and be able to judge impartially.

⁴ For the composition of the expert group, the following rules apply to the surplus:

A.

For institutional accreditation, the group of experts shall consist of at least five persons. The group generally has current and international experience in the direction or piloting of a high school or other institution in the field of high schools, in the internal quality assurance of a high school or of a high school. Other institution in the field of high schools and in teaching and research, as well as, according to the high school or other institution in the field of high schools, experience in professional practice or perspective Extra-academic;

B.

If the high school to be accredited has an integrated high school education school, the relevant skills must be represented in the expert group;

C.

For the accreditation of programmes, the group of experts is composed of at least three persons, who adequately represent the field of study and professional practice. For regulated professions, additional requirements of special laws must be taken into account;

D.

For institutional accreditation and accreditation of curricula for basic curricula (bachelor and master), a member of the group of experts must be drawn from the circle of students.

⁵ The accreditation agency hears the high school or other institution in the field of high schools about the composition and profile of the group of experts before constituting it.

⁶ The rules under s. 10 of the Federal Act of 20 December 1968 on administrative procedure ¹ Concerning the grounds for objection shall apply to the members of the expert group.

¹ The accreditation agency shall form on the basis of the documents relating to the procedure, in particular the self-assessment report and the expert report, a proposal for accreditation to the accreditation board.

² The high school or other institution in the field of high schools takes a position on the experts' report and on the accreditation proposal of the accreditation agency.

³ The accreditation agency shall submit for decision to the accreditation board its proposal for accreditation with the self-assessment report, the report of experts and the position of the high school or other institution in the field of higher education Schools.

⁴ The Accreditation Board shall consider whether the proposal is suitable as a basis for decision; if so, it shall refer the proposal back to the accreditation agency.

¹ The accreditation board shall decide on the institutional accreditation or accreditation of programmes on the basis of the proposal of the accreditation agency, the report of the self-assessment, the report of the experts and the position of the High school or other institution in the field of high schools.

² The Accreditation Board may:

A.

Declare accreditation without conditions;

B.

Declare accreditation with conditions;

C.

Refuse accreditation.

³ It shall determine, within the framework of the accreditation decision, the time limit and the procedures for monitoring the fulfilment of the conditions.

⁴ It informs the high school or other institution in the field of high schools and the accreditation agency of its decision.

⁵ The decisions of the Accreditation Board on accreditation are not subject to appeal under s. 65, para. 2, HE. The high school or other institution in the field of high schools may file a request for reconsideration with the accreditation board.

¹ The high school or other institution in the field of high schools may withdraw the application for accreditation at any time.

² If the high school or other institution in the high schools domain withdraws its application, it may file a new application after 24 months at the earliest.

The high school or other institution in the field of high schools shall immediately notify the Council of Accreditation of any changes resulting in non-compliance with the requirements of s. 6 or art. 7.

If the conditions for accreditation are no longer fulfilled or if the conditions laid down in the accreditation decision are not fulfilled within the prescribed period, the accreditation board shall take measures in accordance with Art. 64 LEHE.

The accreditation is valid for seven years from the accreditation decision.

The Accreditation Board shall publish a list of the high schools and other institutions in the field of accredited high schools which have obtained the right of designation and accredited curricula. The list also lists the high schools in the schools.

¹ The high school or other institution in the high schools area is responsible for the implementation and maintenance of a quality assurance system.

² The quality assurance system supports the mission and objectives of the high school or the other institution in the field of high schools in the respect of its specificities. The means for the quality assurance system are proportionate to the aims pursued.

³ The quality assurance system provides for the evaluation of its effects and the implementation of corrective measures.

¹ The quality standards for institutional accreditation include the standards, grouped into five areas, which are included in Annex 1. The standards specify the conditions laid down in Art. 30 LEHE.

² The examination of the quality standards takes into account the instructions of the High School Board on the typological characteristics of the high schools.

Standards for the accreditation of curricula include the standards, grouped into four areas, which are set out in Annex 2.

High schools or other institutions in the field of high schools that were recognized as eligible for grants under the UFA ¹ Or LHES ² May have until 31 December 2022 to accredit the educational programmes whose accreditation according to the EHE is provided for in the Medical Professions Act of 23 June 2006 ³ , and the high schools specialising in the field of health studies, without fulfilling the requirements referred to in Art. 5, para. 1, let. A.

These Directives come into force on 1 ^Er July 2015.