Academic Credit System

The credit value of each course from a study programme is expressed in terms of the corresponding number of ECTS credits in accordance with the European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System (ECTS), whereas the workload of a programme represents the sum total of ECTS credits. A total of 60 ECTS credits corresponds to an average of 40 hours of work per student during the workweek in an academic year.

Undergraduate academic (BA) studies have 180 ECTS credits.

Master academic studies have from 60 to 120 ECTS credits:

1) at least 60 ECTS credits, if a total of 240 ECTS credits were earned during prior BA studies;

2) at least 120 ECTS credits, if a total of 180 ECTS credits were earned during prior BA academic studies.

The credits awarded for a thesis at BA and MA studies are expressed as ECTS credits.

ECTS credits may be transferred between different study programmes within the same cycle and type of studies. The criteria and conditions for the transfer of ECTS credits are prescribed in the general act of an independent higher education institution or in an agreement reached between higher education institutions.

During a full academic year a student can earn at least 60 ECTS credits which corresponds to an average of 40 hours of work per student during a workweek. A single ECTS credit corresponds to 25 to 30 hours of work. Minimum of 60 ECTS credits awarded implies that a student’s workload ranges between 1,500 and 1,800 hours of work in an academic year for completing all learning activities as well as all forms of individual study so as to achieve the learning outcomes.

The overall activities of a student include regular learning activities (lectures, tutorials, practical work, seminars, etc.), independent work, preliminary exams, exams, writing of a thesis/a dissertation, work placements, voluntary work in a local community and other forms of involvement. The total number of contact hours in regular classes may not be lower than 600 hours per academic year.

Courses are taught over a period of 30 weeks, the implication being that a student must have a minimum of 20 contact hours per week in regular classes. This number of contact hours in regular classes is the minimum number of contact hours that teaching staff should provide to students as part of a study programme.

The number of ECTS credits to be allocated to an individual course is determined on the basis of a student’s overall workload: the total number of contact hours in regular classes and the total number of hours related to a student’s active individual work. (For instance, a course carrying 6 ECTS credits covers a total of 180 hours of work and can include 6 contact hours in regular classes (3+3 per week) and 90 hours spent by a student on individual work, preliminary exams, exams… On the other hand, a course can carry 6 ECTS credits if it includes 4 contact hours in regular classes (2+2 or 4+0, …) and 120 hours spent by a student on all other forms of work. Therefore, the total number of ECTS credits allocated to a course does not necessarily correspond to the number of contact hours).