How European Quality Assurance Agencies Accredit Degree Programs

Who checks degree program quality in Europe

Each country runs its own national quality assurance agency, responsible for reviewing universities and programs against a common set of European standards. Examples include Germany's AQAS, Italy's ANVUR, Spain's ANECA, the Netherlands and Flanders' NVAO, and the UK's QAA.

These agencies review institutions and programs on a recurring cycle set by each agency's own procedures, checking teaching quality, staff qualifications, student support and learning outcomes against a published set of criteria. A program that passes review earns accreditation for a fixed period stated in the decision, after which the agency reassesses it.

These agencies do not operate in isolation. The European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education (ENQA) brings agencies together as members once they demonstrate compliance with the Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance in the European Higher Education Area, known as the ESG.

Step 1: Check whether the agency is EQAR-registered

The European Quality Assurance Register for Higher Education (EQAR) lists agencies that have proven substantial compliance with the ESG. ENQA, together with the European Students' Union, the European University Association and EURASHE, the four organizations known as the E4 Group, launched EQAR in 2008 specifically to give students and universities a single trustworthy list.

A program reviewed by an EQAR-registered agency carries weight across all 48 countries of the European Higher Education Area, not only the country where the agency is based. Search the EQAR register by agency name or country before trusting an accreditation claim you read on a university website.

Step 2: Look up the actual review in DEQAR

EQAR also runs DEQAR, the Database of External Quality Assurance Results, where you find the review reports and decisions agencies publish about specific institutions and programs. Search DEQAR for the program name or institution to see the actual report and decision date, instead of relying on a university's own claim about its accreditation status.

DEQAR entries usually state the review type, the decision outcome and the period the accreditation covers, which matters because accreditation is granted for a fixed number of years and needs renewal.

Institutional accreditation versus program accreditation

An institution can hold general accreditation as a university while individual programs still fail their own separate review, particularly in countries where new degree programs need specific approval before enrolling students. Check the program-level record, not only the institution-level one, since a well-established university sometimes runs a newly launched program that has not yet completed its own accreditation cycle.

This distinction matters most for new joint degrees, double degrees run across two countries, and English-taught programs added to a university's catalogue faster than its usual review cycle. Ask the admissions office directly which agency accredited the specific program, and search that agency's own register to confirm the answer.

Step 3: Confirm the qualification itself is recognized

Accreditation and formal recognition answer different questions. Accreditation tells you a program meets quality standards at the point of review. Recognition tells you whether the resulting qualification counts for further study or work once you hold it.

Use the ENIC-NARIC network to check how a foreign qualification is recognized in your home country, since each national center publishes country-specific equivalence guidance under the Lisbon Recognition Convention rather than a single European-wide rulebook.

Why accreditation status affects funding and jobs

Many national student loan and grant schemes only cover programs delivered by an accredited institution operating under an EQAR-listed system. Employers and licensing bodies in regulated professions, including medicine, law and engineering, also check accreditation before accepting a degree as valid for registration.

An unaccredited program, even one that looks legitimate online, can leave you without access to public funding, without the right to practice in a regulated field, and without a straightforward path into a master's or PhD program elsewhere in Europe.

What to do if you cannot find a program in any register

A program missing from EQAR, DEQAR and the national agency's own register is not automatically fraudulent. New programs sometimes launch before their first review completes, and some agencies publish results with a delay after a decision. Contact the national quality assurance agency directly by email and ask for the current accreditation status and the date of the last review, rather than treating an absence from an online register as a final answer.

Treat a program that refuses to name its accrediting agency, or that names an agency you cannot find on EQAR at all, with more caution than one that is simply slow to appear in a public database. A legitimate agency has a public website, a member listing, and a clear procedure you can read before you apply.

Quick checklist before you apply

• Search the university and program name in the EQAR register

• Pull the underlying report from DEQAR if one exists for that program

• Check the national quality assurance agency's own public register for the specific program, not only the institution

• Confirm recognition status through your home country's ENIC-NARIC center if you plan to use the degree abroad after graduation