Coronavirus: Effects on examinations

• Students can withdraw from an examination by not attending.
• A failure to attend will generally be counted as excused.
• As a rule, the result of any examination taken will count.
• If an examination is failed, the results will be annulled. The examination attempt is not counted towards the permitted number of attempts stipulated in the examination regulations.
• Sitting the examination again as an attempt to improve grades is not permitted.

Due to the relaxed rules mentioned above, we strongly advise students to sit the examinations offered so as to prevent any delays to their academic progress.

These special rules apply to all examinations that have taken place since 12 March 2020 and to those that are due to be held during summer semester 2020, irrespective of whether a candidate is taking these examinations for the first time or as a resit.

If the withdrawal/failure to attend/failure of an examination concerns the first attempt, registration for this examination shall cease to be valid and the candidate must re-register to take the examination at the next examination date.

If the withdrawal/failure to attend/failure of an examination concerns a resit examination, compulsory registration shall apply for the examination and the examination must be taken again at the next examination date.

Notification must be given for holding university examinations where attendance is required in person or for holding appointments for inspecting examination records. Please use our online form.

Remote examinations are allowed as an alternative to oral examinations requiring attendance in person. You must submit a declaration of your intention to take the examination online to the examiner before taking the examination. The necessary form is available here: Declaration of voluntary participation in remote digital examination for summer semester 2020 (German) / (English); Declaration of voluntary participation in remote digital examination for winter semester 2020/2021 (German) / (English)

Oral examinations for doctoral degrees may be held as of 27 April 2020 provided the minimum distance of 1.5 metres is observed and the FAU hygiene guidelines are complied with.

The deadlines for all Bachelor’s and Master’s theses and project work have been extended by the time the University Library was closed. The Examination Office (L6) has sent an e-mail to the affected students, and students and supervising examiners can check the new deadlines in mein campus.

Any project work, and Bachelor’s and Master’s theses that have not yet been registered can now be registered. The deadline extensions above apply accordingly to all newly-registered projects.

Deadlines for written assignments can also be extended. Please discuss the details with your supervisor. Once you have come to an agreement, your supervisor can then enter the new submission date in mein campus.

Study deadlines

until the end of winter semester 2020/21

Study deadlines, i.e. deadlines for completing the GOP or Bachelor’s/Master’s degree programmes, will not be checked before the end of winter semester 2020/2021, meaning that there will be no consequences for exceeding the originally stipulated deadlines, no matter how many semesters have already been studied in the subject. There is no need to file a specific request. Please note that other rules may apply to State Examination degree programmes!

As of summer semester 2021

The Examinations Office will check study deadlines again from summer semester 2021. For these purposes, summer semester 2020 will not count as a study semester (Fachsemester) in accordance with the amendment to the Bavarian Higher Education Act (BayHSchG). The deadlines by which the GOP or the Bachelor’s or Master’s degree programme must finally be completed are therefore extended by one semester for all students who are enrolled in summer semester 2020.

Examples:

• In summer semester 2020, student X is in the 4th study semester of a Master’s degree programme lasting four semesters. The applicable examination regulations state that this deadline can be exceeded by one semester without having to state reasons. At the same time, summer semester 2020 does not count when calculating the expiry date of the deadline.As a result, student X now has a total of six (instead of five) semesters in which to complete the Master’s degree. He must therefore complete his degree by the end of summer semester 2021 at the latest.
• In summer semester 2020, student Y is in the second semester of a Bachelor’s degree programme lasting six semesters. The GOP has to be completed after two semesters. This deadline may be exceeded by one semester. The Bachelor’s degree must be completed after six semesters. This deadline may be exceeded by two semesters.As summer semester 2020 does not count when calculating the number of semesters studied, the GOP now has to be completed by the end of the fourth (instead of the third) semester (= end of summer semester 2021). The deadline for completing the Bachelor’s degree programme is also extended by one semester, meaning that this now must be completed at the latest after the ninth (instead of the eighth) semester.

The standard durations of study themselves do not change in either of the cases detailed above, and the relevant certificates (such as the certificate of enrolment) are not changed.

Further information and regulations concerning study deadlines

• The Federal Ministry of Education and Research has promised that there will be no disadvantages for BAföG recipients.
• Students who have already de-registered with effect from the end of the winter semester 2019/2020, but whose examination will now take place during summer semester 2020 due to the postponements, will not have to re-enrol to take the examination. They can sit the examination and their result will count.
• In order to let them access the teaching materials they need to prepare for the examination which are available in the library and on StudOn, as well as all administrative functions in mein campus, these students will be allowed to continue using student services until 30 June 2020. All services affected are listed in the overview of services available in their IdM account.

Extension of deadlines for examination achievements for admission to a Master’s degree programme

• The deadline for examination achievements which are a prerequisite for admission to a Master’s degree programme which should have been completed by 31 March 2020 will be extended by one semester. The new deadline will be 30 September 2020. L5 will organise the change, there is no need to file a specific request.
• The deadline for examination achievements which are a prerequisite for admission to a Master’s degree programme which should have been completed by 30 September 2020 will also be extended by one semester. The new deadline will be 31 March 2021. The extension to 31 March 2021 will only apply to those Master’s students who are obliged to meet the requirements for admission by 30 September 2020 pursuant to their admissions letter.
• Master’s students who have already been granted an extension of one semester for meeting admission requirements, or an extension from 31 March 2020 to 30 September 2020, will not be granted a further extension. L5 will organise the change, there is no need to file a specific request.

If the relevant examination regulations specify that students must be enrolled in the relevant degree programme in order to complete their final examination achievements, this requirement shall come into force again for students completing their final examination achievements from winter semester 2020/2021 onwards.

Anyone entering Germany from a non-European country currently has to prove that they have a good reason. Students who are registered for examinations who are entering Germany from outside Europe can use the ‘Confirmation of registration for examinations’ to prove their need to travel. You can download this directly from mein campus under ‘angemeldete Prüfungen (registered examinations)’.

All students who were enrolled on a degree programme at a state or state-recognised institute of higher education in summer semester 2020, who were not on leave and who had not exceeded the longest permissible funding period in summer semester 2020, will have their standard duration of study extended by one semester (Section 99 (2) BayHSchG).

As the extension is not granted automatically, students must contact the Amt für Ausbildungsförderung.

Further information is available on the website of Student Services Erlangen-Nürnberg (www.werkswelt.de/bafoeg). It contains some up to date FAQs on the coronavirus (including an extension to the deadline for submitting proof of having obtained all necessary achievements pursuant to Section 48 BAföG).

You must inform us in advance of your intention to hold a block seminar. Please use our online form.

Examinations

The examinations for the State Examination in teaching which were cancelled in spring 2020 have since been held. Please refer to the website of the examinations office in the Ministry of Education for the latest updates.

Written assignment

An extension to deadlines for written assignments (Zulassungsarbeiten) in teaching degree programmes may be arranged in consultation with supervisors. Please note: The assessment (evaluation) must be submitted to the Examinations Office by the supervisor at least two working days before the student sits their first individual examination, as otherwise the student cannot be admitted to the State Examination. Please make sure that supervisors are aware of this when setting new deadlines in order to ensure that they have still enough time to correct the assignment and send the evaluation after the assignment has been submitted and before the examination is held.

Placements

The decision to close all schools in Bavaria from Monday 16 March 2020 also affects students completing their general or subject-related teaching placements at Grundschulen (primary schools) and Mittelschulen (lower secondary schools). The teachers supervising the students during their placement will keep them up to date with how to proceed.

At present, the examinations for the State Examination in autumn 2020 are expected to go ahead as planned. The Examinations Office will post written notification to all students who have registered for the examinations.

Please note:  

The Coronavirus Regulations published by FAU concerning Deviations from Degree Programme and Examination Regulations and the Doctoral Degree and Habilitation Regulations only apply to university examinations, they do not apply to examinations for State Examinations. The results of the examinations for the State Examinations are assessed in accordance with the valid Licensing Regulations for Physicians (Approbationsordnung), any failed examinations will not be nullified.

You can only withdraw from the examination after receiving the invitation for an important reason. If you fail to attend an examination, you must inform the Examinations Office immediately of an important reason (for example by submitting a doctor’s certificate), otherwise you will be considered to have failed the examination. As a rule, fear of running the risk of infection is considered an important reason for withdrawing from an examination pursuant to Sections 18 and 19 ÄAPPO provided the country is still considered to be in the throes of a national epidemic as determined by the Federal government. Written notification of this must be submitted to the Examinations Office in good time before the examination.

The examinations in dentistry scheduled for spring 2020 have since been held. All State Examinations for summer semester 2020 are currently scheduled to take place pursuant to the valid Licensing Regulations for Dentists.

Please note:  

The Coronavirus Regulations published by FAU concerning Deviations from Degree Programme and Examination Regulations and the Doctoral Degree and Habilitation Regulations only apply to university examinations, they do not apply to examinations for State Examinations. The results of the examinations for the State Examinations are assessed in accordance with the valid Licensing Regulations for Physicians or Dentists (Approbationsordnung), any failed examinations will not be nullified.

The examinations in the second part of the State Examination in Pharmacy have been cancelled and will not be held (update 20 March 2020 – 11:40 am).

With respect to the seminar papers which law students have to submit as part of their degree: all students are allowed to choose whether to return the topic they have been given or to complete the paper within the set deadline.

For conducting the JUP (Mündliche Juristische Universitätsprüfung – university part of the oral State Examination in Law) on examination date 2020/I, that are taking place in parallel to the oral examinations of the First State Examination in Law from 2 July until 22 July, the chairperson of the Examinations Committee has announced that in accordance with Section 6 (6) of the Examination Regulations for JUP, candidates can no longer withdraw after they have been admitted to the oral examination. Failure to attend without a valid excuse will lead to the examination being recorded as ‘ungenügend’ (0 points), see Section 5 (1) (5) JAPO (examination regulations). Candidates can withdraw from the oral examination without any consequences before being admitted to the examination. Candidates who have registered for the JUP, but do not feel they are able to take the oral JUP examination, should withdraw from the examination before they receive notification of admission to the examination. These notifications will be sent after 10 June 2020.

A minimum distance of 1.5 metres must be kept between each person present at the examination and the FAU hygiene guidelines must be observed. More detailed information about how the examination will be held will be announced before the examination.