Guides to the university

2011-2012 A.Y.

Bachelor of Science Programs (3-y)



7. EXAMS

Assessment methods such as exams and other types of tests are designed to assess the students' required level of preparation in order to be awarded the credit points for the various educational activities. Assessments are marked out of thirty (exams) or given a pass/fail grade and are always individual.


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7.1. Exam program

Exams, like lessons, are based on the topics described in the course program, 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 following sections: Course Objectives, Course Content Summary, Textbooks, Detailed Description of Assessment Methods and, were applicable, prerequisites. Students can access the course profiles on the Bocconi Internet site at http://www.unibocconi.eu/profiles. 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 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 purpose of the course syllabus together with the information published online is to explain in more detail the topics covered. For every learning session of the course, if possible the reference materials necessary for an in-depth consolidation of the concepts dealt with in the lessons and assessment methods are specified and tutors are available (see "Teaching assistants"). The course syllabus is prepared by the Course Director in conjunction with the views of the Program Director. The syllabus is generally distributed during lessons and generally is also available online (yoU@B student Diary, in the course profile, e-learning).


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7.2. Assessment methods

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 lectures and generally available online.  
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.

Exams may be written or oral or a combination of a written exam with either an obligatory or optional oral part.

Generally the exam assessment methods include partial exams (one or more) and/or a single general exam.
Partial exams are not compulsory, although they are strongly recommended.

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

Oral exams are open to the public, while for written exams (either general or partial exams) students have the right to inspect their exam paper, which they are advised to do before the mark is registered.

For courses with multi-class groups in the same Bachelor Program, the exams are organized in the same way.


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


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7.3. Past exam papers

The Course Director will decide on the availability of past exam papers, together with the correct answers. The course director can do it through:

- the Teaching box available in the yoU@B student Diary;
- his personal page available on the website;
- e-learning platform.

Past exam papers which are released are available for 12 months, unless otherwise stipulated by the teacher. 


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7.4. Period of general/partial exams and timetable

         

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7.4.1. General and partial exams

The exam timetable is organized in periods that do not coincide with the lessons . Each exam period consists of one or more sessions.
The exam timetable (October 2011 - September 2012) allocates 4 exam sessions for all courses and when necessary also includes partial exams. For foreign language courses 6 exam sessions are scheduled.

Students can take exams in all sessions as long as they satisfy the attendance requirements (semester course lessons in the study plan must be finished).

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).
Partial exam dates  may or may not coincide with those fixed for general exams.

The exam periods and exam sessions (reference period: October 2011 - September 2012) are scheduled as follows.

Period

I Semester

II Semester

From

To

courses

courses

Period I

24/10/11

24/10/11

 

5/11/11

 

1st Partial exams

 

Period II

09/01/12

09/01/12

 

25/01/12

 

2nd Partial exams

 

09/01/12

26/01/12

25/01/12

11/02/12

2 sessions

1 session 2010-2011 academic year

Period III

29/03/12

 

21/04/12

 

1 session

 

1st Partial exams

Period IV

11/06/12

 

27/06/12

 

 

2nd Partial exams

11/06/12

28/06/12

27/06/12

18/07/12

 

2 sessions

Period V

29/08/12

29/08/12

 

11/09/12

 

1 session

 

1 session

Note

  • "Session" refers to both exams of the current academic year and the previous years;
  •  the fourth exam session for II semester courses will be held in February 2013;
  • exam sessions for foreign language courses are scheduled for: October/November 2011; January, April, June, July and September 2012;
  • an additional exam session has been scheduled in December (12-21 December 2011), for 1st semester courses, reserved for students who: 
      1. are participating in: Exchange and Free Mover programs abroad in the 2nd semester 2011/2012 academic year;
      2. are participating in the Campus Abroad (Winter) program;
      3. are Incoming 1st semester (Exchange and single courses for visiting students)
      4. are participating in a curricular internship abroad or in Italy in January/February 2012 period.              
  • With reference to the the additional exam session:
    • only those students whose teaching activities described in points 1, 2 and 4 start before the February exam session ends (11 February 2012) can participate
    • students CANNOT sit exams for previous year's courses which have not been passed.

 

Please also note that the above calendar (except for the additional exam session of December 2011) is applicable to the courses referring to the Undergraduate programs started up to the 2005-2006 academic year and to the four-year degree programs.

There is NO overlapping between compulsory course exam sessions of the same year, same semester and Bachelor program; therefore no 2 exams on the same day are usually scheduled. This rule is not applied for April and September exam periods, for which the number of days available to schedule exams is limited.
Such overlapping rules refers ONLY to compulsory courses of the year in which the student is enrolled and do not refer to previous years' exams which have not been passed yet and/or to elective courses.


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7.4.2. Exam timetable

The exam timetable for the October 2011 - September 2012 period is published in the second half of September on the University Internet site at www.unibocconi.eu/exams.

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. In addition, any changes to the exam timetable can be viewed on the yoU@B student Diary.

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

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

  • I Partial exam
  • S Written exam
  • O Oral exam 

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7.4.3. Classroom and student allocation

Students can check the classroom assigned for their exam via yoU@B student Diary generally 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 Department 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 to sit for the exam.

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

It is also available:

  • on the ground floor in via Sarfatti 25 on the "Today's exams and activities" bulletin board;
  • on the ground floor 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 in via Sarfatti 25 and Piazza Sraffa 13.


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7.5. Exam and partial exam registration procedure

Registration for written, oral and partial exams can be carried out at Punto Blu up to the fourth last working day before the exam itself. The following days and periods are classified as non-working days:

  • Saturdays and Sundays;
  • Holidays and periods when the University is closed, as indicated below:
    - for 2011: 1st November, 7-8 December, from 22 to 31 December;
    - for 2012 (up to the September exam period): 1st  January, 6 January, 09 April, 25 April, 1st May, 2 June.


To register for general exams and partial exams students must have recorded the payment of the 1st instalment of the university fees and tuition and have no academic penalties.

To register, after accessing to the Punto Blu through the yoU@B student Diary, student must use the function "Exams>Exam sessions": a list of the un-passed courses included in the study plan appears.

Via Punto Blu you can register for only one of the two exams which follow the displaying date, for each code and type of exam.

By clicking on the appropriate icon beside the exam session, according to the deadlines for the exam registration, the following operations can be carried out:

  • Exam registration
  • Exam cancellation

If the exam calendar includes in the same day both a written exam and a partial exam or both a oral exam and a partial one students cannot register to both types of exams at the same time. Therefore students must choose which of the 2 types of exam they want to register for (written or partial exam; oral or partial exam).

If the exam timetable shows both a date for the written exam and a date for the oral exam, students must register for both (even if they are on the same day). If students do not register for both, 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 ("registration to the groups"), 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 confirmation prompt asked for by the system is given. If confirmation is not given, registration for the specific activity will NOT take place.

After registering for the exams it is possible to print the receipt for every operation carried out at Punto Blu by using the function "Exams>Exam sessions" by clicking on the appropriate icon besides the selected session.

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 expired;
  • the course is not included in the study plan;
  • the exam has already been passed;
  • the student is suspended for non-payment of university fees and tuition;
  • the student does not have the right to sit the exam because the exam is scheduled before 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 informing them that they cannot sit the examStudents who clear their position before registration closes have the right to sit the exam. Once students clear their position they will receive a message via the above channels.


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7.6. Examining boards

Examining boards are appointed by the Rector or one of his delegates. They consist of at least 2 members, including a President, and are presided over by the Course Director. When necessary, exam commissions may be divided into sub-examining 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 required 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 for various class groups, in which case students sit exams with a teacher or teachers of one of the class groups, or with an expert in the subject. The class groups may not be the same that were assigned to the students.


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7.7. Exam procedure

            

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7.7.1. Procedure

ONLY students who have regularly registered for exams can be admitted to sit for them.
Students must come to exams equipped with:

  • unofficial academic transcript;
  • personalized Bocconi ID card;
  • valid proof of identity (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.

As a general guide, in case of written exams, students who withdraw must stay in the room until the end of their exams; 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) specifically means accepting the mark the teacher gives the paper, no matter what it is.


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7.7.2. Exam conduct

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 entirely or partially copied;
  • cannot keep mobile phones on their desks.

Violation of the above rules or 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. 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.

Finally students are strongly recommended to carefully read the content of the Honor Code, which is published on the website at www.unibocconi.eu/honorcode where they can find a summary of the unfair and illegal behaviors and the relating sanctions.


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7.8. Marks

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.
The examining board may award "lode" (cum laude) to students who are awarded thirty out of thirty (30/30).
Exams that are awarded a satisfactory mark are considered to have been passed and cannot be retaken (whether they are partial exams or general exams).
Exams that are awarded an unsatisfactory mark are considered to have been failed and must therefore be taken again.


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7.9. Publication of exam results

Exams or other assessments are public.
The results of written exams are available from the Secretary's Office of the Department the courses refer to.
The results are also generally published on the yoU@B student Diary. Marks are communicated for informational purposes only, therefore once the result of an exam has been registered, students are advised to check that it has been correctly recorded in their academic career by using the "Career>Study plan" menu at Punto Blu.
Results are also available via the SMS Bocconi service if students have entered their mobile phone number in the yoU@B Diary.


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7.10. Recording, registering and certifying

The final results of exams are recorded with a mark out of thirty and are registered in the student's academic career by the Study Planning Office.
The exams of course subdivided in modules are considered passed, and may be recorded in the academic career and certified, only after passing both exams of which the course is made up. The final grade is obtained by the grade point average (compared to the credit points of each module) of the two marks achieved.

The appropriate offices periodically check the grades recorded in the academic career of all students.

Each student's "Official academic transcript" contains all the exams included in the study plan, together with the date when the exam was passed, marks and credit points awarded and subject groups for the exams that have been recorded.

The "unofficial academic transcript" contains all exams including those that have been passed, i.e. the exams for which students have been awarded a sufficient mark.

The unofficial academic transcript contains all the exams, including those that have been passed, that is the exams for which students have been awarded a sufficient mark. The positive mark of the exams of each module (if included in the program structure) can be viewed. Such document (NOT valid as certification) is valid only within the University (e.g. ISU Scholarship ranking, exchanges, etc.).

Only passed exams are certified.


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7.11. Credit for foreign language certifications

For the first and second foreign language courses, some international language certifications (the mark is converted into a mark out of thirty) are recognized as an alternative to Bocconi exams.
For more detailed information see "Foreign languages and Computer Skills"


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7.12. How to calculate the Grade Point Average (GPA)

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.
A 30 "cum laude" is awarded the value of 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 are assigned the mark awarded by the university where the exam was originally taken.
The exams ratified for students transferring from universities abroad 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 exams taken at other universities that have an agreement with Università Bocconi 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 conversion tables.


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7.13. Exam sequence and progress requirements

Exam sequence indicates the sequence that must be followed in terms of time and prerequisites in preparing exams, requiring students to pass some exams before sitting for others.
Students can sit for prerequisite exams in the same period ("session"). At the end of every exam period checks will be carried out to ensure that the regulations have been adhered to. Any exams taken in breach of the sequence will be annulled.
There are language prerequisites for the 2011-2012 academic year. For the first foreign language the first-year exam is a prerequisite of the second-year exam.
Notice that in order to take the exam for Informatica per l'Economia/Computer skills for Economics (cod. 6033/cod. 30068) students must have already passed the complete ECDL (see "Foreign Languages Computer skills").
In any case for courses where there is no pre-ordered sequence in sitting the exams of programs, students are advised to sit exams following the teaching activities sequence in terms of year of studies and semester.
Furthermore, in order to continue studies in the second year, students must have acquired a minimum of 24 credits in the first year of studies by the July exam period (see "Continuing studies").


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7.14. Credit for exams passed at universities abroad

Students enrolled in the programs can obtain credit recognition (grade and credit points)for exams taken as part of activities carried out abroad in the following programs, which are promoted and coordinated by the Markets and External Affairs Division International Relations: Exchange, Free-Mover Semester, Campus Abroad* and Free-Mover Summer Programs.

Specifically:

  • As part of the above programs carried out abroad, students can have a maximum of 5 exams recognized for the Exchange, Free-Mover Semester programs and not more than 1 exam for the Free-Mover Summer program;
  • Students who take part in the Exchange Program cannot take part in the Free-Mover Semester one and vice versa as they cannot do 2 semesters abroad: exams relating to compulsory courses (except for compulsory courses included in the list below) and elective ones can be recognized (fully or with integration of part of the program):

(*) Exams passed as part of the Campus Abroad program do not include the phase of Credit for exams taken in foreign universities as they are Bocconi courses.


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7.14.1. Credit approval procedure for exams taken as part of Exchange, Free-Mover Semester and Free-Mover Summer Programs

Credit recognition for exams taken as part of Exchange, Free-Mover Semester and Free-Mover Summer Programs is not usually automatic and depends on the following credit approval procedure.
Before departure students present the course program to the Director of the corresponding course offered by Università Bocconi in order to obtain approval.

For the Exchange and Free-Mover Semester Programs, in case of elective courses which do not correspond to courses offered by Università Bocconi, students contact the Program Director or one of his/her delegates before departure to the foreign universities.

Only for the Exchange and Free-Mover Semester programs there are courses automatically recognized (see http://www.ir.unibocconi.eu in "Restricted area") and therefore students have not to follow the above procedure for having them recognised.

To start the credit approval procedure students should contact the Markets and External Affairs Division International Relations which will receive 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.

Students must go to the Course Director of the Bocconi equivalent course (or the 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 is not necessary.

For courses which are not automatically recognized the Course Director (or the Program Director or his/her delegate) will send the "Individual exam report" to Study Planning Office.

Once this process has been completed students hand in the "Summarized credit approval report" to the Markets and External Affairs Division. They will then go to the Academic Affairs Division Desk to make any elective course changes that have not yet been included in the study plan.


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7.14.2. Registration of exams taken as part of the Campus Abroad Program

Credit is granted for all exams taken as part of the Campus Abroad Program as they are considered as Bocconi exams.
On completion of the program, the Markets and External Affairs Division - International Relations sends a list of students who have passed exams along with marks to the Study Planning Office. The course is automatically registered in the student's academic career, if it conforms to the program structure regulations.


Last change 04/07/2011 12:25




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