Examinations

Instructions for sitting examinations

• Each degree programme arranges not less than six exam sessions duly spaced out between periods of teaching, at least two of them occurring immediately after the end of classes and at least one at each other lesson-free interval.
• Only if you are regularly enrolled (having paid the instalments of the annual tuition fee) and if the exam figures on your study plan may you sit it. The exam may not, in any case, be taken before the end of the course unit it refers to in relation to the year of registration.
• If attendance is compulsory, you may only sit the exam once you have proof that this has been complied with. Within seven days of finishing the prescribed tuition, teachers are expected to provide the Student Administration Office with a written list of the students who may sit the examination. Failing this, all properly enrolled students will be accorded a ‘technical’ certificate of attendance. If you are interested in completing your studies before the normal term (three years for a basic degree programme and two years for a second-cycle degree programme), according to art. 26, para. 2 of the University Teaching Regulations, you should apply to your Student Administration Office.
• The exam may consist in an oral, a written or a practical. Testing may be done individually or in groups (provided the individual’s contribution may be recognised and assessed); it may also require the student to complete a project assigned by the Professor, or to take part in research and experiments. Such activities are designed to test possession of the knowledge and skill required for the curriculum subject in question.
• Oral examinations are public; for other forms of testing the School of Engineering and Architecture shall ensure an appropriate degree of publicity.

Assessment of an exam and recording the grade

• On all degree programmes exams are marked out of 30, and the grade recorded on paper or electronically. The pass grade is 18/30. With a top grade of 30/30 the board may add cum laude. In some cases the degree programme regulations call for a verdict of idoneo (up to standard) or otherwise.
• A combined course unit (with an exam made up of several teaching subjects or modules) requires a unitary and comprehensive grade.
• Educational credits are only acquired through passing an exam or some other form of progress test. Once recorded with a pass grade, an exam or progress test may not be repeated.
• The verdict of fail does not require a grade but merely a judgment entered on the record (withdrawn, or rejected, as the case may be).This is not recorded in the curriculum and hence does not affect the average for the final grade.
• A digital grade recorded on the AlmaEsami system must also bear the digital signature of the examining board president and the names of board members present. This must be completed within five days of the test or, with a written paper, within five days of publication of the results.

Enrolment for exams

To enrol online go to the AlmaEsami service.

Exam Grading System at University of Bologna and on conversion to ECTS scale

The performance of a student will be assessed for each course in a variety of forms (written exams, oral exams, tests, etc.) in accordance with the decision of each professor, under the general rules established by the Italian law. A description of the assessment methods and criteria is presented in the description of each course.

University of Bologna uses a grading scale from 1/30 to a maximum of ‘30/30 cum laude’. The Minimum passing grade is 18/30. A “Fail” or “Withdrawn” grade may be recorded if lower scores are obtained, but such fail scores are never reported in the official transcripts.

Sometimes Italian scores are converted to the ECTS system (e.g. in transcripts to/from other European universities). The ECTS scale is a grading system designed to facilitate the transfer of academic results (grades) between different national assessment systems in the European Higher Education Area. It allows the conversion of the grades from one country into grades used in another country, following common European rules.

ALTHOUGH THE ECTS SYSTEM USES LETTERS FROM A TO F FOR SCORING, THE MEANING OF SUCH LETTER SCORING IS DIFFERENT FROM THAT USED BY U.S. AND OTHER NON-EUROPEAN UNIVERSITIES. A DIRECT CORRESPONDENCE IS NOT PRESENT.

The ECTS scale is based on the results obtained by a uniform group of students (usually all students enrolled in a Program or in a School of the University in the same year) in a given period of time (usually from the beginning of academic year to the date at which scores are calculated), according to the following rule:

• grade A corresponds to the grades obtained by the best 10% of students;
• grade B corresponds to the grades obtained by the next 25% of students;
• grade C corresponds to the grades obtained by the next 30% of students;
• grade D corresponds to the grades obtained by the next 25% of students;
• grade E corresponds to the grades obtained by the final 10% of students;
• grade F corresponds to a fail grade.

For example, the conversion table for Master Courses at the School of Engineering and Architecture of University of Bologna (Academic Year 2016-2017) is the following.

Thus, it is clear that the ETCS grade is generally different than other letter-based grading system used in non-European countries (e.g. USA). Important differences are e.g. that in ECTS scale F grade is never present in transcripts, and that in order to obtain a given grade (e.g. A) not only individual performance, but also performance of other students is considered.

As an example, a grade of 28/30 may be considered. This is a fully satisfying grade in the Italian system, given to students that show a good performance at exams and corresponding to 90-93% fulfilment of assignments or objectives. Such performance would be usually ranked as A in U.S. and non-European Universities graduation systems. However, 28/30 corresponds to a C in the ECTS system when applied to students enrolled in Master Programs. This is due to the fact that in Master Programs usually many students show such a good performance, thus 28/30 corresponds to an average student performance.

More information on the ETCS grading tables can be found at the following link.