GUIDES TO THE UNIVERSITY

Assessment methods such as exams and other types of tests are designed to evaluate whether students have reached the required level of preparation in order to be awarded the relative credit points for the various educational activities.

Exams are scheduled for the following educational activities included in the degree program requirements(*):

• compulsory courses;
• elective courses;
• foreign languages (in this last case, as an alternative to the Bocconi exam, students can opt for an international certificate from among those recognized by the University).

(*) with regard to internships or similar activities and supplementary educational activities included in the degree program requirements, student evaluation and credit achievement are based on the positive final evaluation issued by the Master of Science Program Director or his/her delegate.

Exams, like lessons, are based on the topics described in the course program which is available in 2 versions: the course profile and the course syllabus.

The course profile includes the main topics dealt with in the course and is divided into 4 distinct sections: Course Objectives, Course Content Summary, Textbooks and Detailed Description of Assessment Methods. Students can access the course profiles on the Bocconi Internet site at http://www.unibocconi.it/courses where students can read, print or save the profiles on file by following the indications given on the site. To help students in choosing courses on the basis of the course contents, the course profiles are published on the site well before the start of lessons. Substantial variations to the course profiles are not envisaged during the year, except for some minor changes to the textbooks that may be made as a consequence of new publications or updated material that were not available when the profile was finalized.

The course syllabus is prepared by the Course Director in conjunction with the views of the Master of Science Program Director. The syllabus is generally distributed during lessons and is also available from the secretary's office of the Institute responsible for the course. The purpose of the course syllabus, unlike the course profile, is to explain in more detail the topics covered. For every learning session, if possible, the reference materials necessary for an in-depth appreciation and consolidation of the concepts dealt with or referred to in lessons and assessment methods are specified.

The assessment methods are indicated in a summarized form in the course profiles and are explained in further detail in the course syllabuses. In addition, they are also explained by the teachers during lessons and indicated in the notices issued by the secretary's office of the Institute  responsible for the course.

The assessment methods may be different for attending and non-attending students. Furthermore, some exams can only be taken by attending students.

Students are considered "attending" if they fulfil the course attendance requirements established by the teacher.

Generally exams must be taken straight after the lessons have finished. This is due to the fact that the overall mark may be determined by a combination of the following:

• active class participation;
• quality of individual assignments completed during the semester;
• quality of group assignments;
• result(s) of exam(s), written and/or oral scheduled by the Course Director, that may take place during the course (partial exams) and/or at the end.

Furthermore, the education model adopted by the Master of Science programs is characterized by teaching activities which aim to encourage interaction between students and teachers.
In addition to traditional lessons, teaching also includes discussions of case studies, practical exercises for which students are asked to prepare beforehand and active class participation. Teachers can also assign individual and/or group assignments.

Generally the exam assessment methods include partial exams (one or more) and/or a single general exam.

The results of partial exams are taken into account to pass the complete exam and to be awarded the relative credit points; passing 2 partial exams can, if the assessment methods allow, be equivalent to passing the general exam.

This assessment process is made up of different elements therefore the traditional written and/or oral exam merely represents the final element.

For courses with multi-class groups belonging to the same MSc program, the exams are organized in the same way. For MSc programs taught in Italian and English, written exams are presented both in Italian and English so that students can choose the version which corresponds to the class group they attended.

It is important to always check how exam marks are registered either with the teacher or with the secretary's office of the Institute (whether or not it is necessary to register for other exams to complete the requirement, etc) and to check the expiration date of the mark of those written exams that are followed by an oral exam.

The Course Director will decide on the availability of past exam papers, together with the correct answers. If a Course Director decides to distribute past exam papers, a copy is placed in either the University bookshop or in the secretary's office of the Institute.
Students can photocopy this material on presentation of their Bocconi ID card (which must be left as a deposit while they make copies).
Past exam papers which are released are available for 12 months, unless otherwise stipulated by the Course Director.

Exam sequence indicates the sequence that must be followed in terms of time and prerequisites in preparing exams and obliges students to pass some exams before sitting for others.

There is no pre-ordered sequence in sitting the exams of programs. However, students are advised to sit exams following the sequence of the teaching activities for the current year and semester.

Ministerial requirements

Students in the 1st year of MSc in Giurisprudenza [Law] who hold a degree from other universities can be admitted with educational debits. Educational debits are divided into 2 categories:

• Ministerial requirements and;
• Bocconi requirements.

Information regarding the above is published on the site at http://www.unibocconi.it/educational debits.

Making up educational debits

"Ministerial requirements" up to or more than 3 credits can be made up in any exam session before graduating (MSc programs).

"Bocconi requirements" can be made up by taking the exams during the MSc course:

• by the September 2007 session for students enrolled in the 1st year in 2006-2007 a.y.;
• by the September 2008 session for students enrolled in the 1st year 2007-2008 a.y.

Starting from the first session following the above mentioned expiration dates, and at the end of each exam period, checks will be carried out to make sure the rules have not been breached. Therefore the student can - in the same exam period - make up "Bocconi requirements" and take the MSc program's exams.

If checks show that the rules have been infringed, the MSc course exams will be annulled.

The exam timetable is organized in periods that do not coincide with the periods when lessons are held.
All courses have 3 exam sessions, with the exception of foreign languages that have 5.
Exam distribution includes 2 sessions held at the end of the teaching semester; the third session (the last one) is considered a supplementary session.
Lessons are suspended at mid-semester in both the first and second semester for 1st  partial exams. 2nd  partial exams are held at the end of the semester of lessons (1st  semester course exams are held after the Christmas holidays).
The dates of partial exams may or may not coincide with the dates fixed for general exams.
Students can take exams in all sessions once the semester lessons included in their study plan have finished.

For students enrolled in Master of Science programs related to Economics and Management the exam periods are organized as follows in the table below.

Note

• "Session" refers to both exams of the current year and the previous years;
• the third session for second semester courses will be held in the  October - November 2008 period;
• the sessions for foreign languages will be held in: January, February, April, June, September 2008;
• in addition, prior to the January-February session 2008, there is an early session scheduled during the 10-21 December 2007 period , organized for those students who:
  • are participating in Exchange, Master CEMS, and Free-Mover Programs in the second semester of the 2007-2008 a.y.;
  • are participating in the Campus Abroad Program (winter edition);
  • are incoming (exchange and single courses for visiting students) students in the first semester;
  • are carrying out internships in Italy or abroad over the January - February 2008 period.
  • Please note that for the early session students CANNOT sit exams for previous year's courses.
    
    

There is NO overlapping between compulsory course exam sessions of the same Master of  Science degree program; therefore no two exams on the same day are scheduled.

As far as electives are concerned, they may be present in more than one major. Therefore, the avoidance of timetable clashes is only guaranteed for compulsory courses.

The exam timetable for the October 2007 - September 2008 period are published in the second half of September 2007 on the University Internet site.

During the year the timetable of an exam session may be changed (only to a later date or time), in which case students do not need to re-register for the exam since their registration is automatically transferred to the new timetable.
Exam dates are updated daily on the Internet site, so that if the date or time is changed, the new timetable is displayed and students may check the original timetable of the exam session by clicking on the exam icons.

Changes to the exam timetable are displayed on the "Exam timetable changes" bulletin board located on the ground floor of the University building in via Sarfatti 25.

Personalized exam timetables can be printed out at any Punto Blu terminal and also from the yoU@B student diary, which can be accessed from the Bocconi homepage. Via yoU@B students can integrate their personalized exam timetable with the deadlines of other educational activities and/or personal interest activities, and organize and print all the information recorded in their diary for the desired period (daily, weekly, monthly, etc).

The different types of exams are identified in the exam timetable by the following letters:

• PI Partial exam
• S Written exam
• O Oral exam 

The exam timetable is organized in periods that do not coincide with the periods when lessons are held.
All compulsory courses have 4 exam sessions; elective courses that are the same as Master of Science programs related to Economics and Management have 3 sessions.

Foreign languages have 5 sessions.

Lessons are suspended at mid-semester in both the first and second semester for 1st  partial exams. 2nd  partial exams are held at the end of the semester (1st  semester course exams are held after the Christmas holidays).
The dates of partial exams may or may not coincide with the dates fixed for general exams.
Students can take exams in all sessions once the semester of the courses included in their study plan has finished.

For students enrolled in Master of Science in Law the exam periods are organized as follows in the table below:

Note

•  "Session" refers to both exams of the current year and the previous years;
• the fourth session for second semester courses will be held in the February 2009 period.
• the sessions for foreign languages will be held in: January, February, April, June, September 2008;
• in addition, prior to the January-February 2008 session, there is an early session scheduled during the 10-21 December 2007 period,organized for those students who:
  • are participating in Exchange, Themis, and Free-Mover Programs in the second semester of the 2007-2008 a.y.;
  • are participating in the Campus Abroad Program (winter edition);
  • are incoming (exchange and visiting) students in the first semester;
  • are carrying out internships in Italy or abroad over the January - February 2008 period.
  • Please note that for the early session students CANNOT sit exams for previous year's courses.
    
    

There is NO overlapping between compulsory course exam sessions of the Master of Science, therefore no two exams on the same day are scheduled.

The overlapping rule refers only to courses of the year in which the student is enrolled and do not refer to previous years' exams which have not been passed yet.

The exam timetable for the October 2007 - September 2008 period is published in the second half of September 2007 on the University Internet at http://www.unibocconi.it/examtimetable.

During the year the timetable of an exam session may be changed (only to a later date or time), in which case students do not need to re-register for the exam since their registration is automatically transferred to the new timetable.
Exam dates are updated daily on the Internet site, so that if the date or time is changed, the new date/time is displayed and students may check the original date/time of the exam session by clicking on the  exam icons.

Changes to the exam timetable are displayed on the "Exam timetable changes" bulletin board located on the ground floor of the University building in via Sarfatti 25.

Personalized exam timetables can be printed out at any Punto Blu terminal and also from the yoU@B student diary, which can be accessed from the Bocconi homepage. Via yoU@B students can integrate their personalized exam timetable with the deadlines of other educational activities or personal interest activities, and organize and print all the information recorded in their diary for the desired period (daily, weekly, monthly, etc).
Changes to the exam timetable are displayed on the "Exam timetable changes" bulletin board located on the ground floor of the University building in via Sarfatti 25.

The different types of exams are identified in the exam timetable by the following letters:

• PI Partial exam
• S Written exam
• O Oral exam

Students can check the classroom assigned for their exam via yoU@B student diary as a general guide in the afternoon of the working day prior to the exam date.

If the exam is held in more than one classroom, students are allocated following criteria set by the Institute the course refers to.

In any case the classroom published on the yoU@B student diary is the one the student has to go to.

The list of classrooms assigned for exams is also published on the website (following the same timelines explained above) at http://www.unibocconi.it/classrooms.

It is also posted daily:

• on the ground floor of the University building in via Sarfatti 25 on the "Today's exams and activities" bulletin board;
• on the ground floor of the University building in piazza Sraffa 13, on the monitors and on the bulletin boards.

Classrooms and student allocation are displayed on the bulletin boards Exams breakdown of students, located on the ground floor of the University buildings in via Sarfatti 25 and Piazza Sraffa 13.

Students can also check exam dates and classroom allocations by mobile phone using the SMS Bocconi service.

Registration for exams can be carried out at any of the Punto Blu terminals or via Virtual Punto Blu up to the fourth last working day before the exam itself. Students can also register for exams by mobile phone using the SMS Bocconi service.

The following days and periods are classified as non-working days and therefore are not included:

• Saturdays and Sundays;
• Holidays and periods when the University is closed, as indicated below:
  
  - for 2007: 1 and 2 November, 7 December and from 24 to 31 December 2007;
  - for 2008 (up to the September period): 1 January, 24 March and 2 June.

To register for exams students must have paid the university fees and taxes and have no academic penalties.
To register, select IP exam registration: a list of the un-passed courses included in the study plan appears. Students should select the type of exam they want to register for (O = oral; S = written, I = partial exam); it is possible to register and cancel.
If the exam timetable for a specific course has different types of exams scheduled on the same day at the same time, then students must select which exam they want to take.
However, if the exam timetable shows both a date for the written exam and a date for the oral exam, students must register for both of them (even if they are on the same day). If students do not register for both of them, they cannot sit the exam.
In some cases when registering for an exam students will be asked to make a specific choice from among a group of alternatives (for example, "attending students"). After selecting the type and date of exam for which they want to register/cancel, a window will automatically appear giving students the possibility of selecting the group they want to register for. The registration/cancellation operation is carried out only if all confirmations asked for by the system are given. If confirmation is not given, registration for the specific activity will NOT take place.

It is possible to display and print the operations carried out for all active exams (that is for next exam scheduled at the transaction date) at any of the Punto Blu terminals. In addition, students can display all the operations carried out over the last 90 days, including information regarding exams that have already been held.
If the system does not allow you to register for or cancel from an exam, it may be as a result of one of the following:

• the registration deadline has passed;
• the course is not included in the study plan;
• the student has already passed the exam;
• the student is suspended for non-payment of university fees and taxes;
• the student does not have the right to sit the exam because the exam is scheduled before the lessons finish (end of semester); this does not apply to partial exams.

When the registration to the session has closed, the above criteria will be checked again. If the criteria has not been met the student cannot sit the exam. Students who are suspended after registering for one or more exams and/or partial exams are sent a message on their yoU@B student diary and via SMS informing them that they cannot sit the exam. Students who clear up their position before registration closes have the right to sit the exam. Once students clear up their position they will receive a message via the above channels.

Exams are marked out of thirty.
Assessments are always individual.

A mark of between 0 and 17 out of thirty is considered unsatisfactory.
A mark of between 18 and 30 out of thirty is considered satisfactory and allows students to gain the credit points provided for by the program structure.
Examining board may award "lode" (cum laude) to students who achieve thirty out of thirty (30/30).

Exams that are awarded an unsatisfactory mark are considered to have been failed and must therefore be repeated (this applies to both partial and general exams).

Exams that are awarded a satisfactory mark are considered to have been passed and cannot be retaken.

Students must turn up to exams equipped with:

• unofficial academic transcript;
• Bocconi ID card;
• valid proof of identity document (e.g. identity card).

Students must sign in to certify their presence at the exam (this does not refer to mark acceptance).
For written exams, students certify their presence by signing the exam paper.
For oral exams, students certify their presence by signing the appropriate documents used to register the exam mark.

During exams students may decide to withdraw, in which case their papers are not considered valid and the exam result is not registered.

For written exams students are deemed to have withdrawn if they hand in their exam papers with "withdrawn" written on them. For oral exams, students may only withdraw before the teacher declares the mark. Withdrawing from an exam is equivalent to not taking the exam.
Handing in written exam papers (whether they are partial or general exams) means accepting the mark the teacher gives the paper, no matter what it is.
Only passed exams are recorded.

Exams are official assessments which must be taken in full compliance with the rules.

During an examination students:

• cannot offer or receive any assistance from students or any other party, nor can they use notes unless authorized by the teacher;
• cannot attempt to obtain confidential information about the specific questions of the exam;
• cannot assume the identity of another nor allow others to assume their identity during an exam; nor can students present as their own a piece of work which has been copied, entirely or partially.
  

Violation of the above rules or the instructions given by the teacher during exams, is cause for cancellation of the exam, and the start of disciplinary procedures. The disciplinary sanctions applied in this University include:

• official warning;
• temporary ban from one or more courses;
• exclusion from one or more exams for one or more exam periods;
• temporary suspension from the University and loss of exam periods (not more than three years).
  

All disciplinary sanctions are registered in the student's academic career, written in the transfer form, and in all university documents used in determining the student's graduation grade. A disciplinary sanction more serious than a warning precludes any student benefits (scholarships, housing etc.).

These rules do not substitute the university in the monitoring of the exams. The university will maintain strict exam procedures. At least one teacher will be physically present at each exam. The university moreover will do its best to ensure that the exams are taken in adequate rooms, with enough space and silence to allow students to concentrate. Teachers are required to set clear questions and to mark exams following clear rules, allowing students to show their ability and degree of understanding of the subject area

Examining boards are appointed by the Rector or one of his delegates and consist of at least 2 members, including a President, and are presided over by the Course Director. When necessary, examining boards may be divided into sub-boards.

Examining professors include: the Course Director and the official course teaching team, as indicated in the annual teaching activities program, together with those experts in the subject who have the necessary qualifications and have been proposed by the Course Director.

Students will generally sit exams with the teacher(s) of their assigned class group if they take the exam in the first exam period after the end of the course. In successive exam sessions, exams may also be organized in various class groups, in which case student may sit exams with either a teacher or teachers of one of the class groups or with an expert in the subject. The class group may not be the same that was assigned to the students.

Exams and other assessment items are public.
The results of written exams are available from the secretary's office of the Institute responsible for the courses and are also generally published on the Bocconi Internet site, where they can be accessed via the yoU@B student diary. Marks are communicated for informational purposes only, therefore students are advised to check that it has been correctly recorded in their academic career by using the "Certification" menu at Punto Blu terminals.

In addition, results are also sent via the SMS Bocconi service.

For the first and second foreign language courses, a list of international language certifications (the marks of which are converted into a mark out of thirty) are recognized as an alternative to Bocconi exams.

For more detailed information regarding these assessment methods see paragraph 4.8.

The Grade Point Average (GPA) is calculated by the mathematical average weighted on the credit point values of all courses with marks expressed out of thirty recorded in the student's academic career.

When calculating the GPA, exams that have been awarded "lode" (cum laude) are given the value 31.

A maximum of 2 additional exams can be included in the calculation of the GPA. If a student has passed more than 2 additional exams, the 2 best results are considered.

The exams ratified for students transferring from other Italian universities, universities abroad and exams taken at other universities by Bocconi students are assigned the mark awarded by the university where the exam was originally taken. If the original marks are expressed in different numerical scales or in letters, they are converted to marks out of thirty on the basis of the specific conversion table.

The marks for courses taken to resolve ministerial and Bocconi requirements are not taken into consideration for the calculation of the student's GPA.

Students enrolled in MSc programs may obtain credit for exams (marks and credit points) taken abroad as part of the International Exchange, Free-Mover Semester Campus Abroad(*), Master CEMS-MIM, Themis Program, and the Double Degree Program (see chapter 5) which are promoted and co-ordinated by the International Relations Service.

Please note:

• with reference to the following initiatives undertaken abroad, students can receive credit for a maximum of 30 CP for the Exchange Program, Free-Mover Semester Program and Master CEMS-MIM, Themis Program;
• students who take part in the Exchange Program cannot take part in the Free-Mover Semester Program, and vice versa, since it is not possible to accumulate 2 semesters abroad;
• credit can be granted for both compulsory and elective courses, either in full or after integration of part of the program, on the following conditions:
  • compulsory courses: students cannot obtain credit for the courses listed on the website at http://www.unibocconi.it/graduateexams in "List of exams for which credit cannot be granted if taken abroad";
  • credit cannot be awarded for language courses (except for international language certifications).
    
    

Students can receive credit for both compulsory and elective courses that correspond to Bocconi courses if they have obtained prior approval from the Course Director.
In both cases students must receive the approval before choosing the courses they intend to take abroad.

Students can also receive credit for electives that do not correspond to Bocconi courses taken as part of Exchange Programs (CEMS and Themis) and Free-Mover Semester. Credit can be granted for a maximum of 4 courses and requires approval from the Master of Science Program Director, or his/her delegate.

(*) Exams passed as part of the Campus Abroad Program, co-ordinated by the International Relations Office, do not require "credit approval" as long as they refer to Bocconi courses.

Gaining credit for exams taken as part of the Exchange and Free-Mover Semester Programs is not usually automatic and depends on the following credit approval procedure.
In order to obtain approval, prior to departure, students seeking credit must present the course program to the Course Director of the corresponding Bocconi course.
If electives do not correspond to any courses offered by Università Bocconi, prior to departure, students must apply to the Program Director or one of his/her delegates. This refers to the Exchange Program only and is limited to particular cases.

To start the credit approval procedure students should contact the International Relations Service  which receives the academic transcript from the host university abroad. Based on this document and the student's request, the "Summarized Credit Approval Report" and "Individual Exam Report" will be prepared. These will be used for exam conversion together with the "mark conversion tables".

Students can go to the Course Director of the Bocconi equivalent course (or the Master of Science Program Director or his/her delegate for courses that do not have a Bocconi equivalent) with the "Summarized Credit Approval Report" and "Individual Exam Report" in order to have the exam mark recorded. Exam registration via Punto Blu or Virtual Punto Blu is not necessary.

The Course Director (or the Master of Science Program Director or his/her delegate) will send the "Individual Exam Report" to the Student Administration Centre.

Once this process has been completed students will hand in once again the "Summarized Credit Approval Report" to the International Relations Service and go to the Teaching Services and Organization Desk to make any elective course changes that have not yet been included in the study plan.

Credit is granted for all exams taken as part of the Campus Abroad Program.
On completion of the program, the International Relations Service sends a list of students who have passed exams with the relative marks to the Student Administration Centre. The course is automatically registered in the student's academic career, as long as it conforms to the program structure regulations.

Concerning the Double Degree Program:

• the maximum credits that may be approved is based on the individual integrative study plan, approved by Organs of administration displayed on the University website www.ir.unibocconi.it/doubledegree;
• students who are enrolled in the Double Degree Program cannot sign up for the following international programs: Exchange Program and Free-Mover, CEMS Program. If the student is admitted to more than one program, he/she must choose only one;
• credit is granted for all exams in the integrative study plan including foreign languages, upon approval by the Language Centre;
• the Master of Science Course Director approves credits for exams whether or not they correspond to Bocconi courses.

Credits for exams taken during the Double Degree Program are generally not automatic and are subject to the following procedure. Prior to departure, students seeking credit must subscribe an integrated study plan approved by the Master of Science Course Director.

As soon as students returns from the period abroad they must start the credit approval procedure by contacting the International Relations Service which receives the academic transcript from the host university abroad.  Based on this document and the student's request, the "Summarized Credit Approval Report" and "Individual Exam Report" will be prepared. These will be used for exam conversion together with the "mark conversion tables".  

Students must go to the Master of Science Program Director with the "Summarized Credit Approval Report" and "Individual Exam Report" in order to have the exam mark recorded. Exam registration via Punto Blu or Virtual Punto Blu is not necessary.

The Master of Science Program Director (or his/her delegate) will send the "Individual Exam Report" to the Student Administration Centre.

Once this process has been completed students will hand in once again the "Summarized Credit Approval Report" to the International Relations Service and go to the Teaching Services and Organization Desk to make any elective course changes that have not yet been included in the study plan.