University of Siegen hosts the nationwide HRK network meeting for studying and teaching
Above (from left to right): Prof. Dr. Pablo Pirnay-Dummer (Halle), Prof. Dr. Alexander Goesmann (Gießen), Prof. Dr. Jürgen Sander (Hildesheim), Dr. Olaf Bartz (Bonn), Henning Schäfer (Hanover), Tobias Auberger (Siegen), Dr. Britta van Kempen (Potsdam), Dr. Peter Zervakis (Bonn), Dr. Alexander Rudolph (Bayreuth), Prof. Dr. Oliver Bartosch (Passau), Prof. Dr. Nikolaus Korber (Regensburg), Prof. Dr. Hans Pongratz (Dortmund), Prof. Dr. Andreas Hartinger (Augsburg)
Mitte: Prof. Dr.-Maren Petersen (Bremen), Prof. Dr. Marion Schmicke (Hanover), Gina Wommelsdorf (Siegen), Prof. Dr. Beate Flath (Paderborn), Dr. Verena Kloeters (Cologne), Prof. Dr. Dario Anselmetti (Bielefeld), Prof. Dr. Bettina Noltenius (Passau), Prof. Dr. Stefan Rumann (Duisburg-Essen), Prof. Dr. Stephan Jolie (Mainz), Prof. Dr. Viera Pirker (Frankfurt), Prof. Dr. Yvonne Zimmermann (Marburg), Oliver Janoschka (Berlin)
Below: Antje Zoller (Siegen), Prof. Dr. Brigitte Latzko (Leipzig), Prof. Dr. Hans Merzendorfer (Siegen), Dr. Barbara Müller-Naendrup (Siegen), Prof. Dr. Swanhild Bernstein (Freiberg), Prof. Dr. Michael Mäs (Karlsruhe), Prof. Dr. Isa Jahnke (Nuremberg), Prof. Dr. Axel Görlitz (Düsseldorf), Doris Paul (Siegen), Prof. Dr. Mandy Schiefner-Rohs (Kaiserslautern)
Representatives of university management, the Accreditation Council, accreditation agencies and the European Commission came together at the University of Siegen for the spring meeting of the nationwide HRK network of Vice Presidents and Prorectors for Teaching at German universities. A total of 53 people took part online and in person.
The network meeting takes place annually in the spring at different university locations and also in a digital format in the fall. This year's face-to-face event was hosted by the University of Siegen. The event was organized and conducted by Prof. Dr. Hans Merzendorfer, Prorector for Studies, Teaching and Quality Management at the University of Siegen and current spokesperson for the network, and Dr. Barbara Müller-Naendrup (Prorector for Teacher Training, Further Education and Sustainability). They were supported by the two speakers Antje Zoller and Swaantje Brill as well as other members of staff from the university.
The discussions focused on current challenges for quality assurance in studies and teaching, particularly against the backdrop of the increasing Europeanization of the accreditation system. The participants exchanged views on how European developments affect national quality assurance structures, what new requirements arise for universities and how quality assurance processes can be designed in the future to enable innovation in teaching and learning.
Dr. Susanne Conze, Head of Unit for Higher Education at the European Commission, contributed a European perspective on these developments to the discussion. In her contribution, she addressed current initiatives and prospects for European higher education policy and explained the role that European quality labels for higher education qualifications play in the further development of the European Higher Education Area.
The subsequent panel discussion, moderated by Tobias Auberger (Head of the Quality Center Siegen), addressed these questions from different perspectives. The panel included Prof. Dr. Ulrich Bartosch, Vice President of the Accreditation Council Foundation. Together with representatives of the three accreditation agencies and universities with experience in different accreditation procedures, the further development of quality assurance in the German higher education system and the possible effects of greater European coordination in the accreditation system were discussed.
In addition to the substantive items on the agenda, the meeting also provided an opportunity for an informal exchange on current topics relating to study organization and university teaching.
With the spring meeting, the network continued its tradition of promoting an ongoing exchange on central issues of higher education and developing joint perspectives for the future design of studies and teaching.
