European Credit Transfer System

1. What is ECTS?

ECTS, The European Community Credit Transfer System, was developed by the Commission of the European Communities in order to provide common procedures to guarantee academic recognition of studies abroad. It provides a way of measuring and comparing learning achievements, and transferring them from one institution to another.
The ECTS system is based on the principle of mutual trust and confidence between the participating higher education institutions. The few rules of ECTS, concerning Information (on courses available), the Agreement (between the home and host institutions) and the Use of Credit Points (to indicate workload) are set out to reinforce this mutual trust and confidence. Each ECTS department will describe the courses it offers not only in terms of content but also by stating the number of credits for each course.

2. ECTS Credits

ECTS credits are value allocated to course units to describe the student workload required to complete them. They reflect the quantity of work each course requires in relation to the total amount of work required to complete a full year of academic study at the institution, including lectures, practical work, seminars, private study -in the library or at home- and examinations or other assessment activities. Thus ECTS credits express a relative value.
In ECTS, 60 credits represent the workload of one year of study; normally 30 credits are given for a semester. No special courses are set up for ECTS purposes, all ECTS courses are mainstream courses of the participating institutions, as followed by home students under normal regulations.
It is up to the participating institutions to subdivide the credits for the different courses. ECTS credits should be allocated to all the courses units available -compulsory or elective courses. Credits can also be allocated to project work, thesis and practical placements where these are a normal part of the study programme. Credits are awarded only when the course has been completed and all stipulated examinations have been successfully taken.

3. German Grading System

At Brandenburg University, we use the German grading system, which you can see below.

4. ECTS Credit Transfer

The students studying abroad will receive full credit for all academic work successfully carried out at any ECTS partner institution and they will be able to transfer these academic credits from one participating institution to another on the basis of the prior learning agreement on the content of a study programme abroad between the student and the institutions involved.
Most students participating in ECTS will go to one single host institution in one single E.U. Member State, study there for a limited period and then return to their home institution. Some may decide to stay at the host institution, possibly to gain a degree. Some may also decide to proceed to a third institution to continue their studies.
In each of these three cases, students will be required to comply with the legal and institutional requirements of the country and institution where they take their degree.
When the student has successfully completed the study programme previously agreed between the home and host institutions and returns to the home institution, credit transfer will take place, and the student will continue his/her studies at the home institution without any loss of time or credit. If, on the other hand, the student decides to stay at the host institutions and to take degree there, he or she may have to adapt the study course due to the legal, institutional and departmental rules in the host country, institution and departement.

All exchange students studying at Brandenburg University of Applied Sciences will receive a transcript of records at the end of their exchange. In case of an failed exam you have to option to take part in the re-sit exam.