The administration is headed by the Presidential Board which is responsible for the various administrative offices.

The Presidential Board at the University of Osnabrück is made up of the President and three Vice Presidents. Acting upon the Academic Senate’s recommendations, the Ministerium für Wissenschaft und Kultur (MWK — ministry for academia and culture) is responsible for both naming and dismissing members of the Presidential Board. The Academic Senate organizes all search committees that prepare recommendations for the MWK.

According to the State of Lower Saxony’s laws, the Presidential Board is the sole party responsible for operating the University and all university-related groups or activities not overseen by any other governing body. It is accountable to the Academic Senate for all operative affairs within its realm of authority.
The President is the chairman of the Presidential Board as well as the public representative of the University. The Vice Presidents are in charge of study and teaching, human resources and finances, and research and student development.

The Presidential Board is legally responsible for all official groups operated by both the University and the student body. It regulates the administration of third-party funding and provides the framework for the administration of student body finances. The Presidential Board negotiates the University’s goals with the MWK, administers the budget, sets the standards for measuring the University’s achievements and tasks, and administers the formation, alteration, or dissolution of departments or schools as well as their various organizations in accordance with the suggestions of each department. In addition, the Presidential Board also makes decisions regarding the introduction, alteration, or closure of programs, as well as the approval of examination rules.
Furthermore, the Presidential Board makes the final hiring decisions regarding professorships, hires junior professors at the suggestion of school advisory committees, and can invite qualified candidates for a limited period as guest scholars in the areas of teaching, research, postgraduate education, and art.