Accreditation
Accreditation is a hallmark of student groups that adhere to a variety of important criteria. As a result of accreditation, groups have access to a wide range of benefits.
Benefits of Accreditation
These benefits are available to groups once they are accredited:
- Support getting the word out
- usage of the “Accredited at TUM” label (however, no usage rights to the TUM logo are granted)
- publicity via the Student Representation’s website
- in coordination with the Student Representation’s PR department: Publicity via our social media channels
- ad space on Infoscreens (de) and Cafeteria screens (de) (availability permitting)
- Support with your work
- option to receive mail via the Student Representation's office (you'll be notified of mail via e-mail. Your mail must be picked up soon after it arrives!)
- in coordination with the MPIC student council’s computer unit: storage space and mail services
- according to availability: support of projects
- Ability to apply to special room usage privileges and funds
- according to availability: seminars at the Akademiezentrum Raitenhaslach (de) (subsidized via central tuition substitution funds)
- ability to apply for the StudiTUM group status
- ability to apply for project-based funding via the Freunde der TUM e. V. (Contact person: Dr. Julia von Mendel)
Non-Benefits of Accreditation
The following benefits are not a result of accreditation.
- Financial support
- Possibility to book rooms at TUM
- Rooms can be rented. Please use the form “self-declaration” provided by the TUM Center for Study and Teaching if you’d like to request a rent waiver. Incidental expenses (heating, cleaning, electricity) must be paid nonetheless.
- Acreditation can improve your chances for a rent waiver, but isn’t a strict condition.
- Possibility to book rooms at StudiTUMs
- You’ll need to receive this privilege via the StudiTUM grant process.
Prerequisites for Accreditation
This description is translated and abridged for readability. Please refer to the Resolution (de, 29.11.2016) and the Amendment (de, 08.07.2021).
Content Guidelines
To be eligible for accreditation, student groups should:
- work for the common good (provide aid to the needy, etc.),
- improve quality of student life on or off campus, and/or
- provide students with topics related to study programs at TUM.
Formal Requirements
- Applications must be sufficiently detailed to allow for substantial discussion.
- Groups must have at least five members who are enrolled at TUM.
- Groups must have a non-profit character.
- Groups must actively present themselves to TUM students and pursue public relations: it is not enough to work within the group. In particular, groups should engage in at least one event per semester—whether as organizers or in another capacity with public visibility (for example, information booths, concerts, parties, …).
Groups must not:
- proselytize or explicitly promote ideologies
- proselytize or explicitly promote religions
- discriminate against individuals or groups or their beliefs
- support extremist positions
- be influenced by extremist organizations
- be influenced by organizations with questionable loyalty to federal basic law
Further notes
- There is no obligation for groups to divulge all financial information.
- There is no recommended form of organization. Many groups are organized as nonprofit organizations (e. V.), while others operate completely informally. Various steps in between are possible, too: there are accredited local committees of larger organizations and accredited project groups within nonprofit organizations.
Accreditation Process
Accreditation is decided on be the TUM Council of Student Representatives (de) (FSR). All TUM Students can submit an Application for Accreditation via the wiki page. The deadline is 8 days before any given FSR meeting (see meeting dates here (de)). After submitting the form, you’ll be contacted with next steps. In case any questions arise, please reach out to the appointees for student groups.
Groups are expected to present themselves at a FSR meeting to be accepted to accreditation. A short presentation (ca. 5–10 min) can be useful hilfreich sein.
The FSR can reject applications without providing justification. An accreditation can be revoked at any time by the FSR. Additionally, the FSR Chair can preliminarily revoke accreditation until the next meeting.
Duties of Accredited Groups
Accredited groups must continue to adhere to the prerequisites for accreditation. Compliance is verified at least once yearly: at a unified deadline (30 September), all groups must submit an annual report. When case this deadline is missed, accreditation is generally revoked.
Student groups must ensure the Student Representation has up-to-date contact information (email address, group name, name of a responsible person). Changes to this data should be sent to the appointees proactively.
Additionally, student groups must communicate changes to the group's legal status (registration of a society, changes to statutes, dissolution, …) to the appointees.
