Excerpt from the Examination Regulations for the Master’s Program in Economics at the University of Mannheim docx

Structure of exams, deadlines To complete the master’s program students have to take the following exams:  In the field of study „Economics“: exam for each course, completion of at lea

Excerpt from the Examination Regulations for the Master’s Program in Economics

at the University of Mannheim

Please note:

This English translation is based on the German version of the Examination Regulations for the Master’s Program in Economics The German original is the only legally binding version Any liability for mistakes arising from the translation of the original shall be excluded

Contents

General Regulations 2

Academic Degree 2

Duration of the program 2

Program structure 2

Language of instruction 2

Course volume 2

Structure of exams, deadlines 2

Maternity protection and parental leaves 3

Flexible deadlines 3

Recognition of study periods and credits 4

Assessment of exams 5

Admission to the field of study „Economic Research“ 7

Examination Procedure 7

Registration and admission to exams 7

Scope and structure of examinations 7

Re-takes 8

Master’s thesis 8

Passing the program and transcript of records 10

Closing provisions 11

Invalidity of the master’s examination 11

Post-exam review 11

Attachment 1 12

Attachment 2 14

General Regulations

Academic Degree

Upon successful completion of the master’s curriculum the University of Mannheim awards the academic degree „Master of Science” (M.Sc.)

Duration of the program

The prescribed period of study is four semesters The program has been designed in such a way

as to enable students to finish their studies within this period

The curriculum has to be completed by the end of the seventh semester Otherwise, the student has forfeited his right to earn the degree, unless he was not responsible for failing to observe the deadline Upon request, the deadline can be extended by the chairman of the examination board

Program structure

The master’s program in economics is structured into a one semester introductory phase, a two semester specialization phase and a one semester research phase The detailed program structure depends on the field of study (“Economics” or “Economic Research”) and is shown in the

attachments to this document

Language of instruction

The language of instruction is English In singular cases the examination board can, in

consultation with the examiner, allow for other languages of instruction All examinations are conducted in the language of instruction Examiners can decide to optionally allow German as language of examination in case of oral exams The master’s thesis has to be written in English

In exceptional and justified cases the master’s thesis can be written in German The decision remains with the supervisor of the thesis

Course volume

The complete program covers a minimum of 120 ECTS credits One ECTS credit equals a

workload of 30 hours

Structure of exams, deadlines

To complete the master’s program students have to take the following exams:

 In the field of study „Economics“: exam for each course, completion of at least two

 In the field of study “Economic Research”: exam for each course and a master’s thesis Exams for courses offered by the Department of Economics are usually conducted in the form of written tests at the end of the course These tests can be replaced (for all students likewise) completely or in parts by one or several assignments and/or one or several presentations and/or one or several interim tests and/or an oral exam at the end of the course The pass criteria and weighting of each partial performance should be communicated in advance The decision about the examination type and weighting of each performance lies with the examiner Exams for courses offered by other schools or departments are conducted according to their own

examination regulations

Students have the right to earn their course credits in other forms than the designated exam type

in case they provide medical evidence that they are not able to take the exam partly or

completely in the designated form due to a long-lasting or permanent physical disability A request has to be filed on the date of registration for the exam The decision of the examination board has to be put on record

Maternity protection and parental leaves

Students have the right to take a leave in accordance with maternity protection and parental leave laws A written request to the examination board is necessary

During a maternity protection period all deadlines of these examination rules are suspended For students on parental leave the examination board defines new deadlines The master’s thesis cannot be adjourned for the time of a parental leave If the deadline is exceeded in such a case, the assigned topic will be withdrawn and a new topic is assigned after the parental leave

Flexible deadlines

Upon request, flexible deadlines can be granted if students face family obligations This applies especially to students with children under 3 years old Deadlines for re-takes can be extended by

a maximum of 2 semesters As soon as the prerequisites for granting an extension no longer apply, the extension expires

In cases of long-lasting illness or disability which makes it impossible to regularly participate in the courses, students can be granted extensions of deadlines Deadlines for re-takes can be extended by a maximum of 2 semesters

Students who have been elected into the student body council for at least one year can be

granted an extension of deadlines for a maximum of 2 semesters

Recognition of study periods and credits

Academic credits received at an accredited university or higher education institution in Germany

or abroad or at a university of cooperative education of the Federal Republic of Germany will be transferred if the competences acquired are not essentially different from the academic

requirements that will be replaced

For the transfer of credits from foreign institutions agreements between the Federal Republic of Germany and other countries concerning the equivalency of higher education and agreements in the context of university partnerships and double degree programs (cooperation agreements) have to be taken into account In case of doubt about the equivalency, the Central Office for Foreign Education can be consulted

For knowledge and skills acquired outside of the system of higher education academic credits are granted if

a) the requirements for university admission are fulfilled at that time of receiving credit; b) the content and level of the knowledge and skills are equivalent to the academic credits that are to be replaced;

c) the criteria for receiving credit have been reviewed in the context of an accreditation process

To receive academic credit for documented competences acquired outside of the system of higher education, the applicant has to prove their equivalency - in kind and breadth - with the academic requirements that are to be replaced

Knowledge and skills acquired outside of the system of higher education can replace a maximum

of 50% of the credits in a degree program The regulations about the transfer of credits from universities of cooperative education remain unaffected

The examination board decides about the transfer of credits upon request It rests upon the student to submit all required documents regarding his/her achievements for which he requests

to receive academic credits to the examination board

If credits are transferred and the grading systems are comparable, the grades are carried over according to these examination regulations and will be included into the calculation of the cumulative grade point average (GPA) For the conversion of foreign grades, the examination board can define conversion rules in accordance with statutory provisions If the grading systems are not comparable or a conversion is not possible, the credits will be transferred as “passed” and will not be included into the calculation of the cumulative GPA Transferred credits are labeled as such in the transcript of records

If a student participates in an exam within a degree program at the University of Mannheim, although he/she already acquired the relevant competences elsewhere, he/she renounces the transfer of credits for these achievements

Absence, withdrawal, cheating, and breach of regulations

If a student does not show up for an exam for which he registered or withdraws from an exam without a valid reason, he will receive the failing grade 5.0 The same applies if an assignment is not handed in on time

If a candidate has a valid reason for withdrawing from or missing an exam, he must present the examination board with certified documentation in writing in a due time In case of sickness a doctor’s certificate has to be provided In case of doubt the university can ask for a certificate from a doctor named by them If the reasons are accepted as valid, the exam has to be taken at the next possible date Existing partial results are taken into account

If a student tries to influence his exam grade by cheating or by using prohibited materials or resources, he will receive the failing grade 5.0 A student who disturbs the exam can be excluded from the exam by the examiner or supervisor In this case, the student receives the failing grade 5.0 Within two weeks after the exam, the student can request a review of the decision by the examination board The student has to be informed promptly about incriminating decisions in writing An instruction on the right to appeal has to be included

In severe cases students can be excluded from all future exams by the examination board

Assessment of exams

Grades for exams and the master’s thesis are determined by the examiner or master’s thesis supervisor The following grades are used:

 1.0 (very good)

 2.0 (good)

 3.0 (satisfactory)

 4.0 (fair)

 5.0 (failed)

For further differentiation of the assessment the value 0.3 can be added or distracted from the grade However, the grades 0.7, 4.3, 4.7 and 5.3 are impossible

The minimum pass grade is 4.0 ECTS credits are only earned for passed exams

If an assessment is based on more than a single performance, a rounded mean of all

performances is calculated The grade is then determined as the grade (from those defined above) which comes closest to this rounded mean In case of doubt the better grade has to be assigned Academic credits which are not graded are assessed as follows:

 P (pass)

 F (fail)

The grades for written exams should be announced within 4 weeks of the exam date and at least

3 weeks before the date of the re- exam

The final grade for the master’s program is the ECTS weighted mean of all grades received within the curriculum (according to the regulations in attachment 1 and 2)

The final grade is:

 Very good: for a mean value up to 1.5

 Good: for a mean value between 1.6 and 2.5

 Satisfactory: for a mean value between 2.6 and 3.5

 Fair: for a mean value between 3.6 and 4.0

When determining the final grade only the first decimal place is considered; all further decimal places are cut off without rounding

In addition to the final grade a relative grade according to the ECTS scale can be reported in the Diploma Supplement:

A = for the top 10 %

B = for the next 25 %

C = for the next 30 %

D = for the next 25 %

E = for the bottom 10 %

The calculation is usually based on the three previous graduating classes of the master’s program

in economics

Once a student has earned at least 30 ECTS credits, a provisional GPA can be reported on the transcript of record upon request

Admission to the field of study „Economic Research“

Admission to the field of study “Economic Research” is granted after the first semester

Requirements are:

 an application by the student;

 the completion of all courses in the introductory phase and a mean grade of at least 2.5;

 a positive evaluation by the examination board

The examination board takes the decision after consulting the lecturers of the introductory phase and, if necessary, an interview with the applicant

The admission to the field of study “Economic Research” will be changed into an admission to the field of study “Economics” in case the student

 requests it, or

 does not pass at least 5 core courses of the specialization phase or does not achieve a mean grade of at least 2.5 in these courses

The chairman of the examination board issues an official notification about the decision of admission which contains an instruction on the right to appeal

Exams taken in core courses of the field of study “Economic Research” are recognized in the field

of study “Economics” in case of a change of the field of study

Examination Procedure

Registration and admission to exams

To participate in exams students have to register for them within a deadline appointed by the Student Service Center The withdrawal of a registration is only possible within the same

deadline

No registration is necessary for the core courses in the first semester These exams are compulsory and all students are registered automatically

Scope and structure of examinations

To earn the master’s degree in economics students have to successfully complete

1 the core courses in the introductory phase;

2 the elective courses in the specialization phase

3 the master’s thesis

The core courses and regulations concerning the elective courses can be found in the

attachments

In the specialization phase students can choose from different lectures, sometimes with a related exercise, and two to four seminars in the field of study “Economics” In cases of doubt the

examination board decides about identity of content

The duration of exams in the core courses offered by the Department of Economics is at least 30 minutes and at maximum 90 minutes per contact hour and at least 90 minutes in total Details about the duration of exams can be found in the attachments The first exams should always take place in the last week of the lecture period or at the beginning of the following lecture-free period The re-take should take place before the following semester starts and are part of the semester in which the first exam took place

The duration of exams in core courses offered by other departments are defined in the

attachments The duration of exams in elective courses offered by other departments and the regulations about re-takes in these courses are subject to regulations that are in place at these departments

Re-takes

Each failed exam from the introductory phase has to be re-taken at the next possible date If the exam was an interim test with a weight of less than 50% of the course grade, the examiner decides if a re-take will take place Missed re-takes count as failed and will be graded as such (5.0) unless the student was not responsible for missing it

A second take is only possible for one single exam of the introductory phase If this second re-take is not passed, the student has failed the master’s program and has forfeited his/her

admission

A re-take of a passed exam is only allowed for one single exam of the introductory phase For the GPA and provisional PA the better grade will be used Additional re-takes of passed exams are not allowed

In the specialization phase no re-takes are possible If a student fails an exam, he/she has to take

a course with different content instead

Master’s thesis

The master’s thesis can be written in any of the following subjects:

 Economics

 Statistics and econometrics

 Economic history

 Economic geography

The master’s thesis cannot be started before the fourth semester In addition the candidate has to complete at least one seminar in the field of study “Economics” Furthermore at least 45 ECTS credits have to be earned in the specialization phase

The candidate is assigned a topic according to the subject chosen from the examiner The

candidate may also suggest a topic The issuance of a topic, supervision, and assessment of the master’s thesis can only be administered by professors, junior professors, and affiliated professors

A assigned topic can be returned once within the first four weeks of the processing time; in this case the master’s thesis is treated as if it has not started yet

The processing time depends on the field of study and is given in the corresponding specific attachment The supervisor makes sure that topic, problem and scope can be dealt with in the scheduled processing time The finalized master’s thesis has to be submitted in duplicate to the supervisor The deadline can also be complied with by submitting the master’s thesis as a

registered letter The date of issuance and submission has to be put on record The examination board may require an electronic copy

In exceptional and justified cases the examination board may grant a deadline extension to candidates who have applied for postponement of submission of their master’s thesis The

maximum extension is four weeks In addition, the application for a deadline extension has to be submitted one week prior to the end of the processing period at the latest The candidate must have the approval of his/her supervisor

The candidate has to attach an appendix containing all sources used Additionally, a written assurance has to be included stating that:

 The work has been done independently and without the use of other sources except for those listed in the appendix

 All passages which are directly or indirectly taken from external sources are labeled as such

 The work has not been presented in this or any similar form to any examination authority before

The master’s thesis is assessed by the examiner who has issued the topic The assessment is made according to the “assessment of exams” part In case of failure (5.0) a second assessor has to be designated by the examination board If the two assessments differ, the final grade is calculated

as the arithmetic mean of the two individual grades (and rounded to the nearest available grade

of the grading system) In case of doubt the better grade has to be assigned Submitting late automatically leads to “failed” (5.0) without consulting a second assessor

The candidate should be informed about the grade he/she received for the master’s thesis no later than two month after submission

The minimum grade for passing the master’s thesis is 4.0 If passed, the candidate earns the amount of ECTS credits assigned to the master’s thesis (see respective attachment)

A failed master’s thesis can only be re-taken once When re-taking the master’s thesis a new topic

is issued A passed master thesis cannot be re-taken

The supervisor can require the candidate to attend an accompanying master’s colloquium

Passing the program and transcript of records

The program is passed if at least 120 ECTS credits have been obtained The binding regulations regarding the composition of these credits can be found in the attachments 1 and 2

The program is ultimately failed if any re-take is failed at the latest possible date

Every candidate who passed the program is awarded a transcript of records both in English and German The transcript of records contains:

1 All examinations including the master’s thesis with all ECTS credits and grades (both in text and numerical);

2 The topic of the master’s thesis as well as the name of the examiner;

3 The cumulative grade point average (GPA) (both in text and numerical);

4 A final grade as outlined in the section “Assessment of exams”, line (3)

The transcript of records will be date stamped with the date of the last examination In case this date is not determinable, the last lecture day of the semester is regarded to be the final date Every transcript of records has to be signed by the chairman and his/her deputy of the

examination board

Together with the transcript of records every candidate is given a certificate (both in English and German) which awards the Master of Science (M.Sc.) degree and contains the final grade The certificates are date stamped with the same date as the transcripts of records They will be signed

by the dean and his deputy and sealed with the seal of the University of Manheim

The academic title must not be born before receiving these certificates

Outstanding performances (up to a final grade of 1.2) will be acknowledged with the assessment

“graduated with honors” on the transcript of records and the certificates