Examination Regulations Master Informatics

Subject Examination Regulations  15. October 2007

Please note:
This English version is provided merely as a convenience and is not intended to be a legally binding document. Legally binding is only the German version from 15. October 2007.

In accordance with Art. 13 (1) sentence 2 in conjunction with Art. 61 (2) sentence 1 and Art. 43 (5) of the Bayerisches Hochschulgesetz (BayHSchG) [Bavarian Higher Education Act] the Technische Universität München issues the following Subject Examination Regulations (Fachprüfungsordnung, FPO):                                

Preliminary statement on linguistic usage

In accordance with Art. 3 (2) of the German Constitution, women and men have equal rights. Any terms relating to persons and functions mentioned in the following regulations are equally valid for women and men.

Table of Contents

Appendix

§ 1 Applicability, Academic Titles

(1) Except as otherwise provided for hereinafter, the regulations of the Allgemeine Diplomprüfungsordnung der Technischen Universität München (ADPO) [general diploma examination regulations of the Technische Universität München] shall apply as amended.

(2) Upon successful completion of the Master’s examination the academic degree ”Master of Science”*) (“M.Sc.”) is awarded. The academic title may also be used with the name of the university “(TUM)”.

(3) Diplom and Master’s degree conferred by the Technische Universität München are deemed to be equivalent academic qualifications which, as a rule, entitle the graduate to pursue a doctoral program in accordance with the General Provisions of the Doctoral Program Regulations of the Technische Universität München as amended.

§ 2 Purpose of the Master’s Examination

The Master’s Examination is the final component of the Master’s program, qualifying the graduate for entry into professional practice or research. The Master’s Examination is designed to determine whether or not the student has acquired the thorough knowledge of the discipline that is necessary for transition into a professional career; has a comprehensive view of the discipline’s interrelated issues; and has the ability to work independently according to academic principles.

§ 3 Commencement of Studies, Standard Period of Study, ECTS

(1) The number of classes in required and elective subjects needed to obtain the Master’s degree is 90 credits (63 weekly hours per semester) spread over three semesters plus a maximum of six months for the completion of the Master’s Thesis pursuant to § 15 with 30 credits. The standard period of study for the Master’s program will be a total of four semesters.

(2) The number of courses and examinations to be completed is calculated on the basis of student workload for a given module measured in credits and the accumulation of credits pursuant to the European Credit Transfer System (ECTS). The award of credits requires the successful completion of modules. Credits cannot be awarded for mere attendance, they require successful proof of completion of a module examination. Credits are a quantitative measurement of a student’s total workload. One credit reflects a workload of 30 hours. As a rule 30 credits are awarded each semester. For each semester, as a rule 30 credits may be allocated. The number of examinations in required and elective subjects to be completed in the Master’s program Informatics according to Appendix 1 is 120 credits.

§ 4 Eligibility Requirements

(1) Eligibility for the Master’s Program in Informatics is demonstrated by

(2) A degree is deemed a qualified degree within the meaning of subsection 1 if such degree is based on the successful completion of examinations which are equivalent to the examinations in the scholarly oriented Bachelor’s Program in Informatics at the Technische Universität München and correspond to the subject-specific requirements of the Master’s Program in Informatics.

(3) Candidates who were admitted to a Bachelor’s program in the same discipline at a German university after having passed the Aptitude Test, or candidates who passed the Fundamentals Examination (GOP) of a Bachelor’s program as delineated in sentence 2, fulfill the requirements set forth in subsection 1 nos. 1 and 3. A Fundamentals Examination, to be taken by the end of the second semester of study, tests the basic theoretical knowledge in a discipline. All students concerned are automatically registered for most of the examinations to be taken concurrently with this part of the program. Failed examinations may, as a rule, be repeated only once.

(4) The assessment according to subsection 2 will be performed on the basis of the required modules of the Bachelor’s Program in Informatics. If the examination results from required modules fall short of the required number of credits by no more than 30 credits, the Aptitude Test Commission pursuant to Appendix 2 no. 3 may demand that the candidates demonstrate eligibility pursuant to subsection 1 by taking those examinations as additional fundamentals examinations pursuant to Appendix 2 no. 5.1.3. The candidate must be informed thereof after review of the documentation during the first stage of the Aptitude Test.

(5) The comparability of programs, the subject-specific aptitude as well as the equivalence of degrees acquired from foreign institutions will be decided upon by the Examination Board in compliance with Art. 63 of the Bayerisches Hochschulgesetz [Bavarian Higher Education Act].

§ 5 Modular Structure, Module Examination

(1) Studies are organized into modules. A module consists of one or several thematically linked and synchronized courses. Modules may consist of several forms of teaching (for example, lectures, exercises, practicum, project report) and learning (for example, independent and private study, distance education programs, research paper). A module should be designed to enable a student to finish the module as a rule within one semester. A module may extend over one academic year if this is necessary for reasons of content.  Module content and organization are determined by the Faculty or Studienfakultät. Any regulations regarding examinations must be coordinated with the Examination Board.

(2) The program consists of required and elective modules. Required modules must be taken by all students and the pertinent examinations must be successfully completed. For elective modules students may choose modules in compliance with the selection and number of credits defined in the corresponding general examination regulation. Failed examinations in an elective module may be replaced by an examination that was passed in a different elective module within the relevant standard period of study and the expiration grace period. Number and content of the different module types shall be stipulated in the pertinent genral examination regulation. In the event of changes a resolution of the Examination Board shall be brought about.

(3) Credits for modules must be whole numbers. Modules may comprise 2 to 10 credits. In justified exceptional cases modules may comprise up to 20 credits provided that the module extends over one academic year. Further, a higher number of credits is permitted only for modules which comprise preparation of a final thesis or which require special practica or project reports. For the preparation of the Bachelor’s Thesis 6 to 12 credits shall be allocated, for the Master’s Thesis 30 credits. For continuing education Master’s programs 15 to 30 credits may be allocated to the preparation of the Master’s Thesis.

(4) As a rule, a module is completed with a written or oral module examination taken along with the coursework. The module examination may consist of an examination, coursework, or a combination of an examination and one or more coursework assignments. In addition to this module examination assignments or mid-term papers may be required during the semester. Details, in particular number, type and content of the examinations and their weighting for the module grade, are determined by the examiners in coordination with the Examination Board and shall be announced to the students in due form no later than four weeks before the beginning of classes of the respective term.

(5) Examinations are graded. Coursework is assessed as “successful” or „not successful“. Examinations or coursework to be completed in a given module shall not be an admission requirement for another examination to be completed in that module.

(6) A module examination is deemed a continuous examination if it is offered subsequent to the last class of the module prior to beginning of classes of the following semester.

(7) The module compendium shall delineate, university-wide and for each required, required elective and elective module, the descriptions necessary pursuant to the structural specifications of the Kultusministerkonferenz [Standing Conference of Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs of the Länder in the Federal Republic of Germany].

§ 6 Examination Time Limits, Progress Monitoring, Non-compliance with Time Limit

(1) Examinations should be completed in time for the student to achieve a minimum of 120 credits by the end of the fourth semester. For compliance with the standard period of study students should achieve 30 credits per semester. Students should pursue their studies in a goal-oriented way and complete all required module examinations of the subject semester. It is expected that students, in compliance with the pertinent selection provisions, achieve a minimum of 20 credits per semester. Progress is monitored each semester in compliance with subsections (2) and (3). Students who fall below the number of credits per semester pursuant to sentences 1 and 2 by at least 15 credits get a warning. Students will be appropriately informed of further details by the Faculty.

(2) At least one of the module examinations listed in Appendix 1 must be successfully completed by the end of the second semester.

(3) Moreover, the following number of credits must be achieved in the modules set forth in § 12:

(4) In the event that students exceed the time limits pursuant to subsection (2) the module examinations not yet taken are irreversibly failed unless justified by good cause pursuant to § 13 ADPO.

(5) In the event that students exceed the time limits pursuant to subsection (3) nos. 1 to 3 the module examinations not yet taken are deemed taken and irreversibly failed unless justified by good cause pursuant to § 13 ADPO.

(6) In the event that students exceed the time limits pursuant to subsections (3) no. 4 the module examinations not yet taken are deemed taken and not passed. In the event that students exceed those time limits by another semester the module examinations not yet taken are deemed irreversibly failed unless justified by good cause pursuant to § 13 ADPO.

§ 7 Examination Board

Pursuant to § 5 of the ADPO the board responsible for all decisions concerning examination matters shall be the  Examination Board of the Faculty of Informatics.

§ 8 Recognition of Examination Results

(1) Examination results acquired from institutions of higher education abroad will as a rule be recognized unless they are not equivalent.

(2) Examination results are deemed equivalent if they correspond in essence to those of the Master’s program Informatics at the Technische Universität München with regard to content, scope and requirements. The assessment of such examination results shall not be a schematic comparison, but rather an overall consideration and assessment.

(3) According to regulations in appendix 1 B examination results in Informatics (up to 18 credits)  that are completed at a foreign university studying abroad can be recognized for the Master’s Program at the Technische Universität München. If there is not a corresponding module in the module catalog at the Technische Universität München but the module completed abroad fits the requirements of the Master’s Program Informatics it is possible to recognize the module at the Technische Universität München.

The Examination Board, together with the Departmental International Advisor, will decide upon the acceptance of examination results.

(4) However, at least half of the component parts of the Master’s examination, assessed in accordance with ECTS, must be completed in the Master’s program in Informatics at the Technische Universität München.

(5) The Master’s Thesis must be prepared at the Technische Universität München.

(6) University collaborations and double degree programs may have individually regulated recognition regulations which differ from (4) and (5).

(7) An application for recognition of examination results from earlier programs of study may be filed with the Examination Board only once within the first study year at the Technische Universität München.

§ 9 Continuous Assessment Procedure

(1) The module examinations will strictly be taken concurrently with the program. Various types of examinations are possible; i.e. written examinations, other written performance and oral examinations, other oral performance as well as practical sports examinations.  “Other written performance“ may be, for example, project reports, research papers, seminar papers, graphical and creative designs, posters and work reports.  Other oral performance may be oral reports, presentations, or technical discussions. Type and duration of module examinations are specified in Appendix 1.

Oral individual examinations will last at least 20 minutes and not more than 60 minutes, written examinations will last at least 60 and not more than 180 minutes. Oral group examinations will last at least 15 minutes and not more than 45 minutes for each candidate.

(2) The examiners in the respective subject, together with the Examination Board, may determine conditions different from those specified in Appendix 1.

Students must be appropriately informed of any changes at the beginning of the course, in any event no later than four weeks after the beginning of classes of the respective term.

(3) If only a few students have registered for an examination, the lecturer in charge of the course may announce, in writing and no later than four weeks before the scheduled date of the examination, that instead of a written examination an oral examination will be held.

(4) Upon request of a student and with the agreement of the examiners, examinations may be taken in the English language/a foreign language for courses taught in the German language.

(5) If students may take examinations only at another Department of the Technische Universität München, the provisions of the General Regulations of that Department differing from (1) apply to the type and duration of the examination.

§ 10 Plus/Minus Credits Account

(1) A specified number of credits pursuant to appendix 1 will be allocated to each examination subject. These credits reflect the workload that a student will encounter when enrolled in classes in a certain subject. The credits are deemed achieved if the respective module examination has received at least the grade of “sufficient” (4.0).

(2) For each student who is enrolled in the Master’s program Informatics, a credits account will be established; the file will be kept by the responsible Examination Board. Electronic files are admissible.      

(3) The credits account contains the total credits gained in a certain program.

§ 11 Admission to and Registration for the Master’s Examination

(1) Students who are enrolled in the Master’s program in Informatics are deemed admitted to the module examinations of the Master’s examination. Also, a student is deemed admitted to certain individual module examinations if that student, during his/her consecutive Bachelor’s program in Informatics at the Technische Universität München, has taken additional examinations in accordance with § 14 of the Subject Examination and General Academic Regulations of 24^th October 2005 for the Bachelor’s program in Informatics of the Technische Universität München.

(2) In order to participate in module examinations a student must register with the relevant Examination Board. Students will be appropriately informed of the registration dates and formalities.

A registration will be considered as early in sense of § 13 (1) no. 4 sentence 2 ADPO if the registration happenend at the point in time listed in § 6 (1) sentence 1.

For written examination the withdrawal is effective if it is submitted to the examination board at least one day before the first part of the examination; for oral examination the withdrawal is effective if it is submitted to the examination board at least one week before the examination.

§ 12 Scope of the Master’s Examination

(1) The Master’s Examination consists of:

(2) The module examinations are listed in Appendix 1. In addition to module examinations in required modules listed in Appendix 1 A, a minimum of 52 credits of module examinations in elective subjects pursuant to Appendix 1 B, a minimum of 8 credits of module examination in elective subjects in the area of soft skills pursuant to Appendix 1 C and 16 credits in the area Interdisciplinary Project in an application area must be chosen.

(3) Where there is an insufficient number of students there is no entitlement that required elective modules or elective modules pertaining to a specific field of study or area of concentration are taught. The same applies if a lecturer for a certain module is not available at the Technische Universität München. The availability of courses for the area of concentration or field of study offered must be ensured.

(4) Courses in which examinations were taken during Bachelor’s programs whose results counted towards the overall grade cannot be selected again for the Master’s program. For elective subjects, the students themselves may determine which of the successfully completed examinations with the required number of credits pursuant to subsection 2 should be taken into account in calculating the overall average. Should the Examination Office not receive a notification, the best examination results, up to the maximum number of credits for the elective module in question, will be counted towards the overall grade.

(5) Working on project reports the student’s capacity for teamwork and in particular the student’s ability to develop, accomplish and present concepts should be demonstrated.

At this the student should show that he/she is able to define goals, find interdisciplinary solutions and develop concepts for a major assignment. If the project report is completed in a group the individual results have to be strictly distinguishable and assessable and the requirements pursuant to sentence 1 and 2 must be fulfilled.

§ 13 Repetition of Examinations

(1) A module is deemed passed when the module examination has been graded at least “sufficient” (4.0). If the module examination also requires coursework, coursework must have been graded “Successful” in order to pass the module.

(2) If a module examination in a required module is failed, the module examination must be repeated. The repeat examination must, as a rule, be taken within six months from notification of the examination results. In the event of non-compliance with the aforementioned provision, the repeat examination is deemed taken and not passed.

(3) A repeat examination for failed examinations required modules is to be offered every semester. If a repeat examination is offered only after two semesters, subsection (2), sentences 2 and 3 shall not apply. In special cases, upon resolution of the Examination Board, the repeat examination may be administered as a different type of examination.

(4) A failed module examination may be repeated within the examination deadlines listed in § 6. When repeating the failed module examination, passed examination results and coursework will be taken into account for not more than one repeat examination. Thereafter the whole module must be repeated subject to the applicable examination regulations.

(5) Repeat examinations are restricted to repeating failed examinations or coursework. Passed examinations may not be repeated for the purpose of improving grades. In the case of § 5, subsection (4), sentence 3, only the failed module examination must be repeated; the grade of the Hausarbeit or mid-term paper written in the course of the lecture period will not be taken into account in grading the repeat examination.

In the event of failure to appear at an examination, the module examination is deemed taken and not passed unless conclusive reasons are given pursuant to § 13 of ADPO. If the Examination Board accepts the reasons that have been furnished for failure to appear at examinations, the examinations must be taken on the next possible date to the extent that these reasons do not preclude this. § 13 subsection 3 sentence 2 of ADPO shall remain unaffected.

§ 14 Coursework

The Master’s program in Informatics does not require coursework, except assignments.

§ 15 Master’s Thesis

(1) As part of the Master’s Examination, each candidate must write a Master’s Thesis.

(2) Work on the Master’s Thesis should commence considering § 6 (1) no. 1 after successful completion of all module examinations.

(3) If the Aptitude Assessment Commission makes admission subject to successful completion of Fundamentals Examinations according to appendix 2 no. 5.1.3 sentence 2 the student is allowed to register for the Master’s Thesis only if these Fundamentals Examinations are successfully completed.

(4) The Master’s Thesis can be issued and supervised by any person who is allowed to examine in the sense of the Hochschulprüferordnung (HSchPrüferV) of the Department of Informatics at the Technische Universität München. The Master’s Thesis can be completed in cooperation with or completely in another department of the Technische Universität München or an institution outside the university.

(5) The period of time between topic determination and submission of the completed Master’s Thesis must not exceed six months. Upon a student’s written request, the period of time for writing the Master’s Thesis may, in especially justified cases, be extended by a maximum of three months, subject to the approval of the Examination Board and the agreement of the supervisor (Themensteller).

(6) The Master’s Thesis may be written in either the German or the English language. ²The Examination Board may permit that the thesis be written in a language other than German or English if it can be guaranteed that there will be expert assessment of the thesis in that other language pursuant to § 12 subsection (10) ADPO.

(7) The completion of the Master’s Thesis consists of a written composition and a lecture on its content. The lecture does not affect the grading.

(8) The Master’s Thesis is deemed successfully completed if it was graded at least “Sufficient” (4.0). The final thesis will be assessed, as a rule, by the supervisor/Themensteller. If the thesis is assessed as Not Passed, it must be assessed by a second examiner. The grade will be calculated as the average of the grades awarded by the two examiners and will be adjusted to the grade scale of § 16 subsections (1) and (2) ADPO; the mean value will be rounded off to the nearest grade on the scale. In case of an equal difference between the mean and two scale grades, the mean value will be rounded up to the better grade.  30 credits will be awarded for a passed Master’s Thesis.

(9) If the Master’s Thesis is failed, it may be repeated once with a new subject. Application for the repetition must be filed no later than six weeks after notification of the result.

§ 16 Irreversible Failure of the Master’s Examination

The final examination is deemed irreversibly failed when

§ 17 Assessment of the Master’s Examination

(1) The Master’s Examination is deemed passed when all examinations required for the Master’s Examination pursuant to § 12 (1) have been passed and a plus credits account of at least 120 credits has been achieved.

(2) The overall grade for the Master’s Examination will be calculated as the weighted grade average of the modules according to § X and the Master’s Thesis. The grade weights of the individual modules correspond to the credits assigned to each module. If a student has successfully completed more elective modules than required, the student must notify the Examination Office [Prüfungsamt] which examination results should be counted. The notification must be delivered to the Examination Office; choice of the examinations to be counted shall be binding. Should the Examination Office not receive a notification, the best examination results, up to the maximum number of credits for the elective module in question, will be counted towards the overall grade.

§ 18 Degree Certificate, Master’s Diploma, Diploma Supplement

(1) If the Master’s Examination was passed a Degree Certificate containing the grade and the topic of the Master’s Thesis and the overall grade is to be issued.

(2) Together with the Degree Certificate the student is awarded with the degree “Master of Science” (M.Sc.). The Master’s Diploma will be signed by the President of the Technische Universität München, the Degree Certificate by the chairperson of the examination board or his/her representative. The date to be entered on the Degree Certificate is the day when all examination requirements have been fulfilled.

(3) In addition the student will receive an English language Diploma Supplement including a Transcript of Records bearing the date of the degree certificate. The Transcript of Records lists all completed modules the student passed and their examination results and courswork including the pertaining credits and examination grades that were awarded. The Diploma Supplement will be signed by the chairperson of the Examination Board.

§ 19 Entry into Force

(1) These Subject Examination and General Academic Regulations shall enter into force on 1^st May 2007. They shall apply to all students who commence their studies in a specific program at the Technische Universität München as of the winter semester 2007/08.

(2) At the same time the Subject Examination Regulations for the Master’s Program in Informatics at the Technische Universität München of 10^th October 2006, changed by constitution from 18^th May 2007, shall cease to be in effect subject to the provision set forth in subsection (1) sentence 2.

Appendix

 Appendix 1: Examination Modules

 Appendix 2: Aptitude Assessment