Accreditation serves to ensure the quality of new or existing degree programmes. In the case of system accreditation, the university's internal quality assurance systems are subject to an accreditation procedure. In the case of programme accreditation, individual Bachelor's and Master's degree programmes are subject to an accreditation procedure. All Paderborn University degree programmes are programme accredited. This is a multi-stage procedure. In the first stage, an assessment procedure is carried out by an accreditation agency; in the second stage, the Accreditation Council makes the accreditation decision. Accreditation is valid for eight years and can be granted with or without conditions. Conditions must be notified by the university within a specified period of time.

The accreditation procedure is preceded by an internal university process. This begins approximately two and a half years before the expiry of the existing accreditation or the institution of a new degree programme. The procedures are fully monitored by Subject Area 6.1.