The University of Osnabrück was one of the first universities to put evaluation to use as an administrative tool. In the mid-1990s, it was the first university in the country to begin both internal and external evaluations of its central organizations and administration.
Long before federal and state laws were passed requiring them, evaluations of instruction and research were firmly established in Osnabrück. KIEL, for instance, was developed as a special communications tool used in course evaluations. KIEL’s aim is to develop a continuous process of reflection and improvement; it is available to all teachers who want to use it.
ZEvA, the central evaluation- and accreditation agency in Hanover, regularly evaluates individual programs at institutions of higher learning in Lower Saxony. Both internal and external evaluations allow for comparative judgments. In addition, new Bachelor’s and Master’s programs must be accredited by the ZEvA before the universities can finally include them among their offerings.
A scientific commission evaluates research at universities in Lower Saxony. These evaluations are set up to be both subject-related and inter-institutional. They provide the universities and the State of Lower Saxony with recommendations on how to further develop schools, departments, and areas of special emphasis.