German is an essential foundation for successful integration – for employment and self-sufficiency, for educational and development opportunities, and for independent living in Austria. With a new cooperation, the state of Upper Austria and the Austrian Integration Fund (ÖIF) are establishing common standards for publicly funded German language courses. The cooperation was presented on Friday, August 7, by Federal Minister Claudia Bauer, Upper Austrian Integration Councillor Dr. Christian Dörfel, and ÖIF Director Franz Wolf at a press conference in Linz.
High quality standards for German courses
The German courses funded by the Austrian Integration Fund (ÖIF) are the only publicly funded German courses in Austria with legally regulated quality assurance. In the future, the quality requirements for state-funded German courses in Upper Austria will also be more closely aligned with the established standards of the ÖIF. This includes uniform requirements for teachers, course content, and ongoing quality assurance. This will create comparable standards and ensure that public funds are used according to clear quality guidelines.
Standardized language proficiency assessment
The Upper Austrian Integration Centre of the Austrian Integration Fund (ÖIF) also conducts digital language proficiency assessments for participants in state-funded German courses. Using a standardized tool across Austria, German language skills are objectively determined, and participants are assigned to the appropriate course based on their actual language level. This prevents misplacements and ensures that course places are allocated effectively.
Data exchange promotes transparency
The Austrian Integration Fund (ÖIF) has been documenting its subsidized German courses daily in the federal government's integration portal since 2018. In the future, Upper Austria will be the first federal state to also fully report all data from its state-subsidized German courses to the portal. This will make course progress transparent across different funding systems, prevent duplication and multiple funding, and ensure more targeted use of public funds.
This cooperation marks the first time that key processes for German language course funding at the federal and state levels are fully integrated. Upper Austria is assuming a pioneering role nationwide in terms of quality, tailored course allocation, and transparency of publicly funded German language courses.