Quality Improving Fonds (Law of the Quality of Study)
The universities of the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) have been able to charge course and tuition fees up to an amount of 500 euros per semester for students that are matriculating at a university for the first time, beginning in the winter semester 2006/2007. Since summer semester 2007 this affects all other students as well. Most of the universities in NRW made use of this authorization.
The possibility of charging tuition fees was abandoned in winter semester 2011/2012 by the “Gesetz zur Verbesserung von Chancengleichheit beim Hochschulzugang in Nordrhein-Westfalen” (law for the improvement of equal opportunities of university admissions in North Rhine-Westphalia). The law was passed at the federal state parliament in Düsseldorf on February 24, 2011.
It contains three components:
- The abolition of tuition fees starting with the winter semester 2011/2012 (caused by an amendment of the law of tuition fees and university charges).
- The introduction of a payment – bound to the improvement of teaching and study requirements – from the federal state in the amount of at least 249 million euros to the universities as a replacement for the dropped tuition fees (caused by the introduction of a new law of improvements in the quality of teaching and study).
- The agreement that public capital which is provided for the improvement of teaching and the requirements of study is not to lead to an increase in the admission capacity of the universities (caused by an amendment of the law of university admission).
The total amount of the hitherto existing tuition fees amounting to at least 249 million euros a year is guaranteed to the universities by the law of improvements in the quality of teaching and study as capital for improvements in the quality of teaching. This capital has to be used to improve the teaching and the requirements of study by the universities.
The sum of at least 249 million euros a year is equal to the amount of tuition fees in 2009. The sum is distributed according to the convention “money follows the students” – the university with the most students gains the most capital. The number of students who need at most one and a half times the default number of semesters to complete their course is used as benchmark for the distribution. Thus, there are no incentives to keep long-term students at the university and at the same time there is not too much time pressure for the students.
The universities will establish committees that will grant more influence to the students on the distribution of tuition fees than has been the case to date. The law of improvements in the quality of teaching and study clearly says that those committees have to be comprised of more than 50% students. The students could and should be involved actively in the discussions and decisions about the usage of the capital for the improvement of the quality in teaching and study. The law states that the administration of the university and the persons responsible in the departments are to consider the proposals of the commissions.
The quality improving funds (German Language) are earmarked to be used for the improvement of teaching and the requirements of study. Above all, the capital is to be used to improve the ratio of supervision between full-time teachers and students to reduce the dropout rate and to increase the number of graduates.
