Fachhochschule

A Fachhochschule(FH) (plural: Fachhochschulen) or University of Applied Sciences (UAS) is a German type of tertiary education institution, sometimes specialized in certain topical areas (e.g. technology or business). Fachhochschulen were founded in Germany and later adopted by Austria, Liechtenstein, Switzerland and Greece. An increasing number of Fachhochschulen are abbreviated as Hochschule, which is also the generic term in Germany for all institutions awarding academic degrees in higher education, or expanded as Hochschule für angewandte Wissenschaften (HAW). Due to the Bologna process, Universitäten and Fachhochschulen award legally equivalent academic Bachelor's and Master's degrees. Fachhochschulen do not award doctoral degrees themselves. This and the rule to call professors with a professional career of at least three years outside the university system remain their major difference from traditional universities.

Universities of Applied Sciences are designed with a focus on teaching professional skills. Swiss law calls Fachhochschulen and Universitäten "separate but equal". Just like more academically oriented traditional universities, the UAS are able to issue both Bachelor and Master degrees. In Switzerland, they may run doctoral programs when the degree itself is awarded by a partner institution which is allowed to, just as some German Fachhochschulen also co-run doctoral programs, with doctoral degrees being awarded by the partner university.