The Freie Hochschule Stuttgart - Seminar for Waldorf Pedagogy educates teachers for Germany's 234 Waldorf schools and over 1000 Steiner Schools worldwide. Accredited academic degree programs with an Anthroposophical foundation are available in all pedagogical fields associated with Steiner Schools. This includes class and subject teacher training, as well as Upper School teaching and counseling. The Freie Hochschule Stuttgart is the first Waldorf teacher-training college that received official state accreditation as an academic institution. This recognized university degree ensures the graduates of the Freie Hochschule that their credentials will be universally accepted.
The faculty's research and teaching activities are focused on the further development of a pedagogy in which teaching is viewed as an art form. There is also a responsibility to broaden and improve the prevalent scientific orientation in traditional teacher education by adopting a more creative and artistic approach with the goal of comprehending spiritual, cognitive, and emotional processes in a more comprehensive manner. In this context, Rudolf Steiner's Anthroposophy is crucial. An interdisciplinary dialogue between Anthroposophical and anthropological approaches is viewed as a foundation for understanding and addressing pedagogical realities.
A further key aspect of the degree courses for class teachers is an extensive training in a chosen subject. Currently, studies in foreign languages, fine arts, gardening, handicrafts, crafts, physical education, and music are possible. The master’s program for Upper School teachers extends and enhances their previous qualifications through an anthropologically based approach to the didactics of their respective subjects. One of the essential aspects of the training is the extended internships in different Waldorf Schools.
Students achieve personal development through the intensive practice of a broad range of artistic subjects including speech formation, Eurythmy, music, painting, and sculpture.