Legal framework, definitions
Inclusion does not occur without laws. Like many other social issues, this topic appears in a variety of laws and agreements. This legal framework provides information on the conditions and rights that make inclusion possible. Some of them are included in the overview below.
Studying with disabilities—does this apply to me?
“Most students with non-visible impairments do not consider themselves ‘disabled,’ even though they are disabled based on the legal definition. That has consequences. Many are unaware that they are entitled to accessibility accommodations and do not feel that the available counseling services are aimed at them. Others do not want to come out as having an impairment, special needs or a ‘disability,’ particularly in an environment where capability and elitism play an important role. They prefer to ignore their rights, often to their own disadvantage.”
The Deutsches Studentenwerk wrote this about non-visible disabilities. More information is available on its website.
Definition of “disability”
The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which has also been ratified by Germany, further developed the definition of disability and placed greater attention on social barriers based on the concept of “we are not disabled, we are being disabled.”
UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)
Topic-specific legal bases
See, in particular, § 1, para. 1 of the Equal Opportunities for People with Disabilities Act
Equal Opportunities for People with Disabilities Act (Behindertengleichstellungsgesetz)
See § 2, para. 4, sentence 2 and § 16, sentence 4 of the Framework Act for Higher Education
The Framework Act for Higher Education requires state and state-recognized universities to ensure that students with disabilities have an equal opportunity to participate. The right to modified study and examination conditions is also explicitly included.
Framework Act for Higher Education (Hochschulrahmengesetz, HRG)
The provisions of the Framework Act for Higher Education for the interests of students with disabilities and chronic illnesses were included in the state higher education acts, often with identical wording. Many states formulated the participation rights more precisely in the interests of students with disabilities.
The UN CRPD specifies human rights in detail for the life situation of people with disabilities with the aim of enabling them to participate on an equal basis in social life. Important keywords include: accessibility, equal opportunity and non-discrimination. Article 24 is concerned with inclusive education (> see, in particular, paragraph 5).
UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)
The “higher education for all” (Eine Hochschule für alle) recommendation by the German Rectors’ Conference at its April 21, 2009 meeting committed higher education institutions to developing “higher education for all” to ensure that all students have an equal opportunity to participate.
“Higher education for all” recommendation of the German Rectors’ Conference
Accreditation is required for government approval of bachelor’s and master’s degree programs. The guidelines take the interests of students with disabilities into account.
- The degree program must be possible to complete and must take the interests of students with disabilities into account.
- Students with disabilities must be able to obtain accessibility accommodations for time and formal requirements and for all final or in-semester course assessments.
- Accessibility accommodations must also be provided for enrollment conditions and selection procedures.
Accreditation guidelines for degree programs + system accreditation
The Federal Participation Act (Bundesteilhabegesetz, BTHG) revolutionizes disability law and is intended to help people with disabilities increase their participation and individual self-determination. Most of the changes already entered into effect in 2017, 2018 and 2020. Full implementation is expected to be completed by 2023.
Further information is available on the website of the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs (BMAS).
See, in particular, § 75 ff and § 112 ff—services for participation in education
Facts and figures
For data protection reasons, the provisions of the Higher Education Act and Enrollment Regulations only allow a limited amount of information to be collected from students. Information on disabilities or the like is not included. It is therefore generally very difficult to contact students with disabilities or develop and expand needs-based services for them. The main findings are therefore based on the following data:
The Deutsches Studentenwerk surveys students regularly (most recently in 2021) about their economic and social situation.
In addition, after 2016, the German Centre for Higher Education Research and Science Studies (DZHW) collected data nationwide on students with disabilities or chronic illnesses at more than 150 universities concerning their study situation for the second time in its best2 (studying with disabilities) survey in winter semester 2021/22. The main focus of the survey was on the difficulties and barriers that students with health impairments face during their studies and in order to gain admission to a degree program.
