Competencies, Responcibilities for Teaching and Learning
Supervisory Bodies of the Foundation
Besides their other duties, the supervisory bodies of the Foundation (Foundation Council, University Foundation Committee and University Medical Centre Foundation Committee) are responsible for approving all specialised admission regulations as well as the specialised admission rules for postgraduate degree programmes. Examples are created to offer the faculties guidance on contents and legal aspects.
Presidential Board
The Presidential Boardcurrently consists of the president, two full-time, and three part-time vice presidents, one of whom represents the Department of Academic Affairs.
The Presidential Board bears responsibility for all University matters unless they have been allocated to another body. Therefore, the Presidential Board is responsible for strategic planning of the development of the University, which involves it making proposals for the development of the University and agreeing them in consultation with the Senate. It also decides whether to establish, abolish or (re-)structure faculties as well as whether to introduce and close degree programmes. The Presidential Board concludes study programme target agreements with the responsible ministry, setting out firstly any essential changes to the study programme and secondly measures to implement the German Higher Education Pact 2020.
It also approves all the faculty regulations, in particular the degree programme exam regulations; where approvals and resolutions concern degree programmes, Student and Academic Services of Central Administration plays a leading part in preparation.
The Vice-President for Academic Affairs holds regular meetings with amongst others the management of Student and Academic Services, the Confidential Advisor for Students and with representatives of the student body, as well as maintaining an ongoing exchange of information and coordination with various quality assurance stakeholders in her role as Head of the Council of Academic Deans and Chair of the Central Committee for Teaching and Learning.
Senate, Central Committee for Teaching and Learning
As the supreme elected body of the University, the Senate gives its opinion on the Presidential Board’s decisions on amongst other things the introduction, significant alteration and closure of degree programmes as well as about the exam regulations of the faculties and passes resolutions on interfaculty exam regulations, e.g. the General Exam Regulations (APO), the examination and study regulations of two-subject Bachelor degree programmes and the exam regulations for the study programmes of the Centre for Languages and Key Competencies (ZESS).
The Central Committee for Teaching and Learning prepares the decisions or opinions of the Senate in the area of Student and Academic Services. In particular, it deals with the closure or significant amendment of courses, degree-related regulations and aspects of quality assurance. Meetings of the Committee frequently and intensively discuss questions of modularisation, award of credits, feasibility of studies and arrangements for subject-specific access and admission with the responsible representatives of the faculties when new regulations are being introduced or existing ones amended. Occasionally, a specific regulation is referred back to the faculty for re- consideration, together with a recommendation regarding the amendment that the Committee believes necessary.
Furthermore the Committee discusses the results obtained using the quality assurance tools, in particular the course evaluation and the sur- vey of graduates, and looks at general issues regarding quality assurance in teaching. Thus, in 2010 there was an intensive consultation with the student representatives to achieve a consensus on the interpretation of the Common Structural Guidelines of the Conference of Ministers of Education which had then been updated. The resultant recommendations for university standards have since served as an evaluation basis when providing advice on degree programmes and regulations.
The Senate Committee for Equal Opportunities and Diversity (KfGD) supports and advises the Senate. It hereby undertakes cross-departmental tasks in fundamental matters that directly concern questions of resaerch, teaching and learning, and knowledge transfer. It accompanies the preparation and implementation of the equality plans of the faculties and central institutions.
Study Quality Committee
The Presidential Board decides on the implementation of central measures from Study Quality Funds (SQM) in agreement with the Study Quality Committee (SQK) following advice from the Senate.
Faculty Committees: Faculty Council, Faculty Study Committees, Examination Board
The faculties are responsible for the degree programmes. Therefore they have a special responsibility with regard to ensuring the professional standards of teaching. The Faculty Councils decide on especially important faculty matters in relation to research and teaching and determine the regulations of the faculties that have to be approved by the Presidential Board, including the examination and study regulations and the module registers; they give their opinion on the introduction, significant alteration and closure of degree programmes and/or propose these measures to the Presidential Board and the Senate.
The faculty study committees, which are half made up of students, receive a hearing on all matters relating to teaching and studying before the Faculty Council takes a decision, and also have the right to act on their own initiative. Usually, an employee of the relevant Examination Office is an advisory member of the study committee and contributes their expertise to the consultations.
Where Study Quality Funds are allocated across the board to faculties (decentralised study quality funds), the Study Quality Committee is replaced by the Faculty Study Committee. The Presidential Board decides analogously on the implementation of decentralised measures from Study Quality Funds in agreement with the study committee following advice from the Faculty Council.
The University’s Constitution gives special recognition to the position of students on the faculty committees in matters of teaching and learning, because if a faculty committee decision on a matter of teaching and learning is passed contrary to the votes of the student group and contrary to or without a vote by the faculty study committee, the matter must on request be reconsidered (suspensive right of veto).
The Examination Boards assist the Deans of Studies to comply with the exam regulations, and also report to each faculty engaged in the degree programme on the development of examination results, time taken to write final theses, and the distribution of grades by subject and overall. In addition they carry out tasks relating to the organisation of degree programmes, e.g. appointing examiners, decisions on allocation of credits.
Deans of Studies, Representatives from the Offices of the Deans of Studies, Degree Programme Supervisors, Module Supervisors
The Deans of Studies have special responsibility for quality assurance in teaching and learning at faculty level and therefore also for the ongoing improvement of the quality of study programmes, and for ensuring the teaching programmes and feasibility of studies as well as the examination process. They are nominated by the study committee from the ranks of professors or academic employees, and elected by the Faculty Council for a term of three years. Besides the Deans of Studies of the thirteen faculties, there is also a Dean of Studies for Teacher Training at the University of Göttingen.
The Deans of Studies are assisted in undertaking their duties by representatives from the Offices of the Deans of Studies, who in turn work closely with central stakeholders and whose expertise is retained beyond the term of each Dean of Studies.
The Office of the Dean of Studies is augmented by the group of degree programme supervisors, whose role is enshrined in the General Exam Regulations of the University. As an expert representative of the subjects or degree programmes, a member of the full-time teaching staff of the faculty undertakes the task of planning changes to content and their specialised implementation. This also includes handling the results of the quality assurance tools, in particular the course evaluation.
Furthermore, the General Exam Regulations of the University of Göttingen stipulate that each module is appointed a module supervisor, and based on the examination or study regulations he or she is responsible for matters relating to the content and organisation of studies of the module, and may also serve the students as a contact. This takes account of the fact that the module supervisor is usually appointed in person, in order to avoid any confusion when appointing an abstract role or institution.
Deans of Studies Council
The Deans of Studies meet once a month during term time in the Deans of Studies Council under the leadership of the Vice-President for Academic Affairs in order to share information about current developments, provide useful experiences from various areas in the field of teaching and learning to other faculties and to coordinate work on relevant issues and problems. The agenda is primarily proposed by the Vice-President for Teaching, Learning and Equal Opportunities, the department of Student and Academic Services, the networks of representatives from the Offices of the Deans of Studies and study advisors as well as the Deans of Studies themselves.
Student Representatives
The University of Göttingen places great weight on the involvement of the student body in all processes to do with teaching and learning. As well as making up 50% of the study committee, student representatives were also involved in the steering committee for the Göttingen Campus QPLUS project, the selection panel for the Ideas Competition and the Board of the Centre for Languages and Key Competencies.