Glossary

Degree Request

Students have to request their diploma. The degree request has to be done in myStudies and is possible as soon as the required number of credits has been achieved or as long as there are still credits missing in specified categories (usually bachelor's or master's thesis). For the definitive diploma all credits have to be reached.

Department offering the course [Anbieter-Departement]

Department which is responsible for and in charge of a course unit.

Diploma Supplement

Students who graduate with a Bachelor's or Master's receive, in addition to their diploma and academic record, diploma supplement.

The diploma supplement is a document that describes the Swiss education system, ETH Zurich in general, the degree programme and the course units listed on the academic record (see also course content).

ECTS Credits

The credit system of ETH Zurich is based on the European Credit Transfer Systems (ECTS). Accounting units which are gained in the university education system through performance certificates and which should facilitate changing from one university to another, also cross-border. ETH Zurich awards credits for course units or examination blocks which students have successfully completed. 

Enrolment [Fach belegen]

Students register for individual courses or course units via myStudies. Only once registration has been completed will the relevant students be visible to lecturers in eDoz.

ETH Credits

ETH credits exist in only a few non-graded diploma courses and the PhD programs. The majority of non-graded study courses at the ETH Zurich have no credit system. Please note that these Credit Units may not have to follow the rules defined by the Bologna Process and may be different from one program to another.

Examination Block

An examination block comprises several examinations which must be taken and passed within the same examination session. The result of an examination block is always calculated as a weighted average of the grades of the individual examinations.
If the average grade is not sufficient, the entire examination block must be repeated.

Examination Session

The ETH Zurich defines two examination periods each lasting several weeks per year of studies. They take place during lecture-free periods. The dates and deadlines are set by the Rector.
Examinations which take place during this time are session examinations and are organised centrally by the examination office.

Examination Schedules

The examination office of the academic services draws up the plan for session examinations. This plan specifies the students to be examined, the examiners, the examination subjects and the mode, duration, date, time and location of the examinations, and the permitted aids. Semester examinations are not organised centrally; here, planning and organisation are the responsibility of the lecturers.

Forms of Performance Assessment [LK-Form]

Forms of performance assessments:

• Session Examination: A performance assessment during the official examination session. Organised centrally by the examination office, the result is always in the form of a grade. Students are obliged to register centrally.
  
• End-of-Semester Examination: An examination at the end of the semester, normally in the last week of the semester. Organised by the examiners themselves, the result is always graded. Students are obliged to register centrally.
  
• Graded or Ungraded Semester Performance: The results, for example, of a piece of work done or talk given during the semester. May be graded or ungraded, but this will be identical for all students following the same course. Students cannot register for the examination but have to enrol to the course.
  
• No Performance Assessment: If no performance assessment takes place, no results can be set and no credits are awarded.

See also the following page for more details about the performance assessments.

General Rules on Performance Assessment at the ETH Zurich [Allgemeine Verordnung über Leistungskontrollen an der ETH Zürich (AVL)]

Establishes the principles for conducting all performance assessments in the degree programmes.

Supersedes the General Examination Provisions (GEP) of the ETH Zurich. Can be found at www.rechtssammlung.ethz.ch.

Oral Session Examination: Definitions

• Duration per person: the duration of the oral session examination per person, also as a member of a group. The duration per group is calculated from the oral duration per person x the size of the group.
• Group size: Number of people who are examined together in a session examination.
• Minimum duration per group in the case of 1 person: the duration of the oral session examination when in the case of an incomplete group only one person is examined.
• Oral before written: an indication of whether, in the case of both an oral and a written session examination being carried out, the oral examination may be carried out before the written.

Performance Assessment Information [LK-Info]

Information on performance assessment. This information must be known by the start of the semester. It must be checked by the main examiners before the start of the semester.

Performance Assessment, Performance Examination

The concept of performance assessment includes all procedures by means of which the performance of students is measured and assessed. For example, examinations, reports, presentations etc are forms of performance assessments. Where performance is satisfactory, the corresponding credits are set out by the Study Administration Office in the form of an (interim) academic record. Performances are assessed with a grade (graded) or with passed/not passed (ungraded).

Programme Regulation

Describes all provisions relating to the respective degree programme: to the programme regulations

Release (of the schedule)

The schedule is usually published in the course catalogue in the penultimate week of the previous semester. Please note the important dates for lecturers in the scheduling dates.

Repetition of an examination requires re-enrolment

This means that a performance assessment can only be repeated if the course unit is attended a second time. In such cases, it is not possible to register for an examination repetition in the same semester (relevant especially for End-of-Semester exams).

Room allocation (place and time) [Raumbelegung]

Place, date and time of a course. Must be reviewed by the lecturers during the course scheduling phases or amended by the schedule coordinator.
After the release of the schedule, amendments to room allocations can only be reported via the room scheduling office. 

Room Reservation

Room information can be used to check room equipment, among other things.

During the planning phase of the upcoming semester, rooms are booked directly through schedule coordination. Lecturers submit their requests in good time via  or through Room Request.