At HSD, you can have course credits earned at foreign or German universities recognised towards your chosen degree programme.
In addition to the recognition of university credits (credit points), there is also the option of transferring your credits. This type of recognition requires an assessment of the equivalence of the prior achievements in terms of content and level. This may include, for example, professional experience or further and continuing education. The transfer of credits for knowledge and skills acquired outside the higher education system enables entry into academic education, even without a traditional university entrance qualification where applicable.
In both cases, once the relevant application hasbeen submitted, an assessment or case-by-case decision is made by the programme coordinator, or approval is granted by the relevant examination board.
The recognition of university credits and the transfer of non-university achievements thus give you the opportunity to shorten your study period, thereby reducing your workload and, where applicable, saving on tuition fees!
Application
Please email your application for the recognition and transfer of non-university qualifications to the HSD Examinations Office:
Submit application
Please enclose with your application the necessary information and documents relating to the examination or the non-university qualifications you wish to have recognised as part of your current degree programme (duty to cooperate; e.g. module descriptions, coursework). If required for your degree programme, documents in foreign languages must be translated into German or English. The Examination Board or its representative may, in principle, request additional information and documents.
You can download the application for the recognition of academic achievements and the transfer of non-university credits here:
Download PDF
Legal basis
The legal basis for recognition and credit transfer can be found in Section 9 of the Brandenburg Higher Education Act (BbgHG).
In common parlance, the terms ‘recognition’ and ‘Transfer your credits’ are often used interchangeably. Both terms describe the substitution of modules from a student’s current degree programme at one higher education institution with modules already completed at another higher education institution or with qualifications from a non-higher-education institution.
In line with the usage that has developed in recent years at universities and among official institutions, e.g. the HRK and HMK, the terms are used as follows at HSD Hochschule Döpfer:
- Recognition: all processes relating to academic achievements. Important for student mobility both domestically and abroad.
- Transfer your credits: all processes relating to achievements and competences acquired outside higher education. Plays an important role in increasing permeability between education sectors and in academic continuing education.
Recognition is possible if the prior learning already acquired corresponds as closely as possible to the modules or courses of the relevant degree programme in terms of content, scope, level of qualification and requirements.
In this context, an overall assessment must be made with regard to the significance of the prior learning for achieving the programme’s objectives, the purpose of the examinations and professional competence.
In this sense, a significant difference exists if the applicant is likely to be disadvantaged in successfully completing the degree programme as a result of the recognition. It is the applicant’s responsibility to provide sufficient information for the recognition process.
Equivalence is deemed to exist if, upon review of periods of study, ECTS credits and examination results, no significant differences can be identified in the learning outcomes and/or the structure of courses or study programmes, in quality, or in the differing academic and professional qualifications. This does not involve a schematic comparison, but rather an overall assessment and evaluation by our Examination Board.
Knowledge and skills acquired outside the higher education sector (e.g. through further education and training or professional experience) may be transferred if they are equivalent in content and level to the examinations they are intended to replace, and if such transfer does not hinder you from completing your degree. You can transfer a maximum of half of the university course.
The transfer of credits depends on the type of prior learning. Whilst comparable grading systems are used for academic qualifications, allowing grades to be transferred on an equivalent basis, where grading systems are not comparable – for example, in the case of IHK further training courses – only the status ‘pass’ is transferred.
In principle, it is possible to transfer several prior learning credits; however, for any given degree programme, a maximum of 50% of the allocated credit points may be awarded through the Transfer your credits process. In some cases, it may be advisable to retake relevant modules to refresh one’s knowledge, even if one already has prior knowledge.