Everything about exams

You register for ordinary exams in Studentweb at the same time as you complete the semester registration.

Deadlines:

• Autumn: September 1^st
• Spring: February 1^st

After the deadline has passed you will need to apply for registration. You apply through the Digital Student Service Desk.

Candidates who did not pass, withdrew during, or were absent for valid reasons (pdf) from a previous ordinary exam, can sign up for resit exams. Please note that not all courses offer resit exams, this is stated in the course description.

Deadlines: 

• Resit exams for the autumn semester: Januar 20^th 
• Resit exams for the spring semester: August 1^st

Students themselves are responsible for registering for resit/deferred exams in Studentweb within the deadline. A After the deadline has passed you will need to apply for registration. You apply through the Digital Student Service Desk.

How to register:

1. Click on ''Results'' in the top menu
2. Find the course you want to re-sit
3. Choose "Resit course"

If the exam consists of several parts you will automatically be signed up for all of them. You then have to withdraw from the parts you are not entitled to resit.

You can not resit exam parts that you have passed. If you want to improve your exam result you must register for the ordinary exam next time the course is offered.

4. To withdraw, click on "Active courses", find the correct course and click on "withdraw from exam" to the part you don't want to take.

If the function "Resit course" don't appear:  

1. Go to "Active courses"
2. Search for the course in the search box at the bottom of the page
3. Sign up

If you still are not able to sign up, please contact eksamen@uis.no.  

For candidates at the Faculty of Performing Arts, please contact your study program coordinator at your faculty.

When a subject or course is no longer available, the university arranges a third and final exam in this course. The exam will be held within a year of the final ordinary exam, ref §4-1, point 2b.

Only students who have previously been registered for the course exam and who fulfil any conditions for taking the exam accordanse with the last adopted course description shall have access to an extraordinary exam. If an extraordinary exam is scheduled, the same rules apply to registration as for ordinary exams. No new or postponed exam will be scheduled after an extraordinary exam.

List of extraordinary exams:

FALL 2023

• BRV320 Legal method II
• BRV340 Company law
• BRV370 Tax Law I
• BØK101 Introduction to companies and management
• BØK195 Financial and management accounting - an introduction
• BØK225 Organization, resources and management
• BØK256 Company project
• GEN360 Intersectionality: Critical perspectives on Inequality and Power
• GEN560 Intersectionality: Critical perspectives on Inequality and Power
• MEE140 Philosophy of Science and Research Methods

SPRING 2024

• BRV210 Public administrative Law II
• BRV310 Contract Law II
• BSS295 Digital Culture and Society
• MEE115 Social Science Research Methods
• MEN135 Organizational Design, Knowledge Transfer and Implementation
• MEN225 Applied Research Methods
• MFJ200 Introduction to accounting and accounting law

A student has the right to sit for an exam in the same course three times. For supervised practice it is only possible to present yourself twice, and for performing exams at the Faculty of Performing Arts only one time.

Note that resit/deferred exams also count as an attempt.

It is possible to apply for dispensation to sit a fourth attempt (third attempt for supervised practice and second attempt for performing exams). This may be granted if special circumstances warrant it, and this must be documented in the application. You apply through Digital Student Service Desk. Dispensation for a fifth attempt may not be granted. This applies even if the student has been readmitted to the university.

Active entitlement to study

If you have an active entitlement to study at the University of Stavanger, you can register in Studentweb for the course(s) you want to improve the exam result in. You register by searching and choosing the course(s) when you complete your semester registration.

Please note that you can only register for ordinary or extraordinary exams if you want to improve a result.

Resit exams are only for students who failed, had valid absence or withdrew during the previous ordinary exam.

Approaching the end of your studies

If you want to approve exam results after completing your study, you can use the last year of your entitlement to study to do so. That is the 4^th year for bachelor programs and 3^rd year for master programs. However, you must apply for deferral for your diploma in Digital Student Service Desk. This must be done within the last result is available.

Remember to register for the course(s) in Studentweb for the current semester. Contact your faculty or department if you have any questions.

No active entitlement to study

If you have used or ended your entitlement to study at the University of Stavanger, you have to check if the course(s) are available as single courses and apply for admission.

General information regarding improving an exam result

• It does not cost anything to improve an exam result. You only have to pay the semester fee.
• The best exam result will apply.
• In most cases, you will be exempted from coursework requirements that has previously been approved. However, you must contact the course coordinator after registration to get this confirmed in case there has been any changes in the requirements.

You can withdraw from an exam in Studentweb without using an attempt.

The deadlines is:  

• Ordinary exams: Two weeks before the exam date/start. 
• Resit exams: One week before the exam date/start.
• Bachelor/master's thesis: You have to withdraw the same semester as you signed up for the thesis. For the autumn semester the deadline is November 1^st, and for the spring semester April 1^st.
• Performing exams: Candidates at the Faculty of Performing Arts can't withdraw from performing exams unless they have a valid reason (pdf). This has to be documented, for example with a doctor's note. You have to report your absence to the faculty immediately.

If you withdraw before an exam, you can't sign up for the resit. You have to wait till the next ordinary exam is offered and sign up for that.

You can withdraw during an examination, in other words submit a blank answer.

The following procedures apply: 

• School exams: Contact the exam invigilator if you want to withdraw during the exam.
• Home exam in Inspera: Select "Submit blank" in the top menu when the test opens.
• Oral exam: Meet up for the exam and let the examiner know that you want to withdraw. For digital oral exams you have to log on and let the examiner know you want to withdraw.

Withdrawal during an exam count as an exam attempt.

You will get access to sign up for the resit exam in Studentweb after the withdrawal is registered in the system, or you can wait till the next ordinary exam is offered and sign up for that.

If you do not attend the exam at the appointed time, you will be registered with "Failure to attend". The same applies if you do not submit an exam paper (home exam, portfolio, assessment, etc.) by the deadline.

You will not get access to sign up for the resit exam and have to wait till the next ordinary exam is offered.

If you apply and get granted valid absence, you will not use an exam attempt and can sign up for resit exam.

If you get sick and can't attend an exam or submit within the deadline, you have to apply for valid absence in Digital Student Service Desk within 5 weekdays after the exam was conducted. What is defined as valid reason can be found here (pdf).

If the application regarding valid absence is not received within the deadline, the absence/failure to submit will be registered as an exam attempt. You will not get access to sign up for the resit exam and have to wait till the next ordinary exam is offered.

If valid absence is granted, you can register for the resit exam. You are responsible for doing this yourself in Studentweb. 

You have to apply through Digital Student Service Desk within the deadline by using the application form "Application for special arrangements during exams". Remember to attach documentation (for example a medical certification) to your application.

Deadlines:

• Autumn: September 1^st (also applies for resit exams held in February/March)
• Spring: February 1^st (also applies for resit exams held in August/September) 

If something urgent has occurred, you have to send an application as soon as possible. You must be able to document that the need for any special arrangements recently took place.

You can apply for:

• Extra time: Extra writing time for an exam. How much extra time you are entitled to appears in Regulations relating to studies and examinations at The University og Stavanger. It is regulated by the duration of the exam.
• Own exam room: Being allowed to sit in a private room during the exam.
  N.B. Granted only under special circumstances.
• Rest time: Extra time to rest during the exam. Rest time must be conducted outside of the exam room and can only be used for the purpose for which it was granted.
• Breastfeeding time: Extra time you can use to breastfeed your baby during an exam. The breastfeeding time must be used outside the examination room and can only be used for the purpose for which it was granted. It must be documented, for example with a birth certificate or a doctor's certificate confirming the due date.
• Lingdys/Lingright: A spell-check program for candidates with reading and writing difficulties. Documentation that confirms the need of a spell-check program during exam must be attached the application.
• Dictionary: Bilingual dictionaries and/or a Norwegian dictionary.
• PC: To use a computer on pen and paper exams.

You can apply for extra time for home exams, bachelor's and master's thesis and submissions of assignments.

You apply through the Digital Student Service Desk by using the form "Application regarding extension of submission date for home-exam, bachelor- og master's thesis". Remember to attach valid documentation (for example a doctor's certificate to your application.

Deadlines:

• Autumn: September 1^st
• Spring: February 1^st 

How much extra time that can be granted is regulated in Regulations relating to studies and examinations at University of Stavanger §§3-12 og 4-3.

Useful links

• Learning Support Center
• Additional needs
• Adaptations for outbound student exchange

Students who will be conducting an exam on their own computers, will receive information about this in Studentweb. If you show up without your own laptop, you will not be allowed to take the exam. 

Laptops that are going to be used on digital school exams must either have Windows or MacOS installed. Chromebooks and tablets are not supported at UiS.

Checklist for preparing your laptop:    

1. Username and password: Check that your username and password is working before the exam day. You log on Inspera by using your Feide account. Read if you have problems logging in.
2. Access to the internet: You need access to the internet during the exam. How to connect your computer to the wireless network at UiS.
3. Install Safe Exam Browser (SEB): Safe Exam Browser (SEB) is a secure browser that has to be installed if you are going to conduct a digital school exam on your own laptop. This program blocks access to resources on your laptop during the exam. Information on how to download the Safe Exam Browser can be found on the Inspera assessment pages. If you have an old version of SEB installed, be sure to uninstall SEB first.
4. Test that everything is in order and get to know Inspera: Go to uis.inspera.no, log on by using your Feide account and conduct the demotest "Demo med SEB". Enter the code uis123 when requested.

On pen and paper exams you will get the necessary papers and the exam questions handed out in the exam room when the exam starts. It is important that you bring with you a blue or black ballpoint pen on the exam day because a pencil will not go through the three layers of paper the cover sheet/exam paper consists of.

It is important that you use a new sheet of paper for each new page you write.

An examination invigilator will provide information about this on the exam day before the exam starts.

On some digital school exams you can write and draw on Scantron sheet as a part of your submission. It is important that you fill out the sheets correctly before you deliver.

1. Find the question code

There is an unique question code at each question, so it is important that you fill out the correct question code on the Scantron sheet(s). The question code is at the bottom of the question page.

You will not have access to the question codes after the exam time has expired or you have delivered/submitted in Inspera. You will not get extra time to fill inn the question codes after the end of the exam time.

You therefore have to fill in the information on the Scantron sheet(s) during the exam before the exam time expires.

2. Fill in the correct information on each sheet

Write firm and apparent and use a blue or black ballpoint pen. DO NOT use pencil or red ink.

You have to fill inn the following information on each Scantron sheet:

• Question code
• Date
• Course code 
• Candidate ID
• Question nr
• Page number (number of sheets)  

Do not leave any columns blank.

When you shade the task code, you must shade it completely and not partially.

Example of a correct filled out Scantron sheet:

3. Hand in the sheets in the order they are to be read

Before handing in the Scantron sheets, you must check that:

• All the columns on the sheets has been filled out
• The sheets are in the correct order

Finally, hand in the sheets to an exam invigilator in the exam room by raising your hand.

Out of consideration for other candidates who are still working on the exam, the exam room must be quiet at all time.

4. After the exam 

After the exam the Scantron sheets will be uploaded to your submission, and you can find these along with the rest of your submission in Inspera under "Archive".

Find guidelines for exam candidates on individual written exam.

The faculty responsible for the course decides which support materials are permitted for the exam. Support materials may include written and printed material, calculators, drawing equipment and other. What is permitted during different exams, can be found in the course description and exam question set. Support materials that is not listed/allowed will be confiscated and considered cheating or attempted cheating.

Find permitted support materials.

If you have any questions, contact the administration at your faculty/department.

Preparation

You have to use an updated and approved browser, such as Chrome.

Log in to Inspera with your Feide account here: https://uis.inspera.no/.

You will be able to open the test when the exam is in progress.

Deliver/submitting

In Inspera the assignment is delivered by uploading a file, and if no other information is given, the assignment must be a PDF-file. To ensure anonymity when submitting the assignment, you should remove personal information before saving the assignment as a PDF-file. You can find user manuals here for Windows (pdf) and MacOS (pdf).

To submit, click on "Submit now" after you have uploaded your assignment. Most of the home exams in Inspera has automatic submission. This means that if you upload several versions, the last file you uploaded will be delivered when the exam time is up.

Remember that the time you have available to conduct the exam also includes the time needed to upload the submission.  

After the submission:

If you want to see your submission, you can do this by log in to uis.inspera.no and go to "Archives". Please note that it will not be available until after the deadline for the test has expired.

Information regarding the conduction and submission will be posted in Canvas on the different courses.

You have to use references on home exams with an duration over several days. Stavanger University Library and The Citation compass can help you with referencing.

All submissions will be checked for plagiarism. If you don't use references, it will be considered as cheating.

What do I do if I have technical problems during a home exam?

Answer: Contact the person given on the information page in the exam paper. If you can't upload your file, you can send it by e-mail as a PDF-file attachment to the contact person.

Will the computer be locked during a home exam?

Answer: When you conduct a home exam the Safe Exam Browser (SEB) will not be used and your computer will not be locked. You can exit and enter the program as you wish.

Am I allowed to use support material and communicate with others?

Answer: During a home exam all support material will be available. However, keep in mind that a home exam is independent work and that plagiarism checks will be carried out on all completed exams. Violation of this can be considered cheating and plagiarism.

The exam results will be announced in Studentweb under «results».  

Grading must be complete within three weeks from the exam date, except:

• Bachelor thesis, projects or seminar papers for more than 15 credits: 4 weeks after the submission date.
• Master thesis and assignments that have a scope of 30 credits or more: 10 weeks after the submission date.

If the deadline falls on a Saturday, Sunday or a public holiday, the deadline is extended to the next working day. Special circumstances can also render it necessary for more time to be allowed.

The Norwegian grading system consist of two grading scales:

• One scale with the grades pass or fail
• One graded scale from A to E for pass and F for fail

The grade scale has the following qualitative descriptions: 

A Excellent: An excellent performance, clearly outstanding. The candidate demonstrates excellent judgement and a high degree of independent thinking.  

B Very good: A very good performance. The candidate demonstrates sound judgement and a very good degree of independent thinking.

C Good: A good performance in most areas. The candidate demonstrates a reasonable degree of judgement and independent thinking in the most important areas.

D Satisfactory: A satisfactory performance, but with significant shortcomings. The candidate demonstrates a limited degree of judgement and independent thinking.

E Sufficient: A performance that meets the minimum criteria, but no more. The candidate demonstrates a very limited degree of judgement and independent thinking.

F Fail: A performance that does not meet the minimum academic criteria. The candidate demonstrates an absence of both judgement and independent thinking.

If you want to know why you got the grade that you got, you can ask for a justification. In a justification you will get information about the general guidelines for the grading and how the examiner has assessed your exam answer.

How to ask for a justification:

You have to ask for justification in Studentweb. Click on ‘’More’’ in the menu, choose ‘’Exam appeals’’ and then choose the correct course. You will then find a button called "Request explanation of grade" if the deadline has not passed.

Deadline: 

You have to ask for justification within 1 week after the grade was published.

Exception: For oral exams or a practical skills assessments, the claim for justification must be submitted immediately to the examiner after the grade has been announced.

Processing time: 

The justification will normally be available within two weeks. You will get an e-mail when the justification is available and can then find it in Studentweb. 

Contact: 

If you have any questions, contact the administration at your faculty or department.

If you disagree with a grade, you can appeal the grading. Your work will then be reassessed by two other examiners where at least one of them are external.

The appeal will result in one of the following three outcomes: 

• The same grade 
• A worse grade
• A better grade

Candidates my appeal individually against the grade for a group exam. Any change in the grade after appeal and reassessment will only affect those students who appealed.

It is not possible to appeal against assessments of artistic practical performances, oral performances, assessed teaching practice or similar, which by their nature cannot be reassessed.

Please note that any grades determined after reassessment are final and may not be appealed. You cannot withdraw a appeal after the grading is published.

How to appeal 

You have to appeal in Studentweb. Click on ‘’More’’ in the menu, choose ‘’Exam appeals’’ and then choose the correct course. You will then find a button called "Appeal against grade" if the deadline has not passed.

Deadline

The appeal has to be registered in Studentweb within three weeks after the exam result has been announced, or within three weeks after the justification is received. Please note that only candidates who have asked for a justification in Studentweb will get an extended appeal deadline.
Important information if you have failed the exam: 

If you have failed the ordinary exam and made an appeal against the grade, you still have to register for the resit exam within the registration deadline. If you pass the exam after the appeal, the administration at your faculty/department will withdraw you from the resit exam.

If you fail the exam after the appeal, you can sign up for the resit exam on Studentweb. If the deadline has passed, your faculty/department can help you register.

The deadlines for registration is found under "Registration for an exam" further up this page.

Processing time: 

At the end of the appeal deadline, your work will be forwarded to the new examiners. The prosessing time is four weeks. This gives a total case processing time of approx seven weeks. If it takes longer, you will be notified of this. Note that the processing time normally will be longer in the summer, due to the summer holidays. You will get an e-mail when the appeal has been processed and you will find your result in Studentweb. 

If, in a new grading, the grade deviates by two or more grades from the original grading, it will be conducted an additional assement in order to determine a finale grade, see University and University Colleges Act, section 5-3 (6). 

Contact 

If you have any questions, contact the administration at your faculty or department.

You can complain against formal errors during testing on all types of tests, see § 5-2 in University and University Colleges Act.

What is a complaint against formal errors during testing?

Examples of formal errors during testing can be disturbances in the exam room or errors in the exam task. If an external examiner has not been used where this is a requirement, there will be a formal error with the grading. If you have not received guidance to which you are entitled to during supervised practice, can this be an example of formal an error during supervised practice.

If an error has been committed that may have a affected a candidate's performance or the assessment of this, the grading will be annulled. If the error can be corrected by reassessing work that has been submitted, a reassessment will be carried out. If this is not possible, a new test must be held with new examiners.

If you get your appeal upheld regarding supervised practice does this not mean that you will pass, but you can have the attempt cancelled. The result of this is that arrangements must be made so you can complete a new supervised practice as soon as possible.

How to complain and what is the deadline?

You have to appeal in Studentweb. Click on ‘’More’’ in the menu, choose ‘’Exam appeals’’ and then choose the correct course. You will then find a button called "Appeal against procedural errors" if the deadline has not passed.

When you appeal against procedural errors, you have to write a justification for the complaint and describe the conditions you belive constitute the procedural errors. You can also attach documents to the appeal.

The deadline to appeal is three weeks after you are, or should have been aware, of the circumstances that justify the complaint.

Withdrawal of complaint:

Complaint against formal errors during testing, which have been made within the deadline, can be withdrawn as long as no decision has been made in the case. The complaint is withdrawn in Studentweb.

Who process the complaint?

The complaint is mainly dealt with by the faculty/department the course belongs to. They can come to the following result:

• Reject the appeal (for example, if the deadline has passed)
• Appeal upheld
• Appeal not upheld

If the complaint is upheld, either a new grading or a new examination will be conducted.

If the complaint is not upheld, the case will be sent to The Board's Committee for Student Affairs who is the appeals body for the faculty's decision pursuant in these cases. The student will be copied in. If the appeals body belives that the faulty's assessment of this issue is inadequate, the appeals body may return the case to the institution for reassessment.

Processing time

The processing time for a complaint against formal errors during testing is usually one month. If it takes longer, you will be notified of this. You will receive a decision by e-mail or in your digital mailbox.

Contact:

If you have any questions, contact the administration by your faculty or department.

Cheating on the exam is a serious breach of trust towards fellow students, the University and society. The University of Stavanger will react strictly against cheating and attempted cheating in all parts of the academic activities.

Plagiarism is cheating. Plagiarism is direct copying or lighter paraphrases of other people's texts without the whole or parts of the text being marked as a quotation with quotation marks and with source references in the form of footnotes or parentheses in the text. In the exam, you must use your own words. It is therefore important that direct use of other texts is marked as a quotation and with source references. Lighter paraphrases of other people's text can also be perceived as cheating, so you should mark this by marking parts of the text as quotations, and by using footnotes or parenthetical references. In addition, the source can be stated directly in the text.

• Not stating sources at all 
• Stating unauthentic sources 
• Not marking reproduced text from others as quotations - plagiarism
• To retrieve an answer from the internet or other sources and pass it off as one's own
• Using an answer that has previously been used by another person, without referring to it/state the source
• Using one's own previous exam/submission without stating the source/referring to it
• Breaking the stated current rules about cooperation on the specific exam
• Using help that is not permitted (for example notes with professional content, mobile devices, smart watches etc.)
• Adding illegal help/literature to permitted help
• Having access to help that is not permitted (even if they have not been used)
• Contributing to cheating 

It is important to remember that attempted cheating can also lead to the same reactions as completed cheating. 

UiS takes cheating seriously and it can have serious consequences for your right to study. If you cheat, it may result in

• The exam is cancelled
• You will be banned from the University for up to two semesters (one year)
• You lose the right to sit for exams at all Norwegian universities and colleges during the exclusion period

If you send your own text/exam to a fellow student, in order to contribute to a fellow student's answer, this will be considered complicity in cheating and may result in expulsion for up to two semesters.

You are allowed to discuss and collaborate in the exam preparations. After the individual exam task has been distributed you are alone and must do everything yourself. Cooperation during the exam is considered cheating. You are encouraged to contact the person/lecturer responsible for the exam if you are unsure of what constitutes unregulated collaboration on the specific exam.

As a student, you are responsible for getting to know which help are permitted during the exam. Use of illegal help can ultimately result in exclusion. You must remember to read the exam information carefully, and if you are still unsure before the exam about which rules for help apply, you are encouraged to contact your subject teacher.

It is the Faculty and Department the student belongs to that will investigate and assess whether there is reason to file a case of cheating. If a case of cheating is brought, you as a student have the right to see the case documents, to explain yourself, and to express your opinion. But you are under no obligation to speak out or explain yourself.

When the Faculty has sent the case to the central Appeal Board who is responsible for complaints, you as a student have the right to use a lawyer or other assistant, at the University's expense. The lawyer's expenses are covered according to the public fee rate.

During the entire process, you also have the right to see the case documents and to express your views in writing and orally. If necessary, you can request a meeting with the Appeal Board. You also have the opportunity, within three weeks, to appeal the decision to the national joint Appeals Board for student affairs.

In appeals, the main rule is that the student has the right to have legal aid covered in cases of exclusion, but not cases of cancellation.

During the entire process, from the time you are suspected of cheating, you have the opportunity to contact the Student Ombudsperson at the University for information and assistance in the matter.

The University of Stavanger wants all students to know how to use sources and the many rules of academia. It is important for UiS that students should be able to easily find information and get to know the requirements for academic writing.

Below you will find an overview of the various ways students can learn more about the issues raised above.

Subject teacher/lecturer/professor

Subject teachers in the various subjects are responsible for teaching students good use of sources, what can lead to cheating, and other elements that have to do with academic writing. It can vary between the different subjects and disciplines how assignments should be written in terms of structure, layout and content. Nevertheless, there are some common characteristics of academic writing and rules for what can and should be done and not, which are important for subject teachers, as the person who knows the specific subject matter best, to pass on and teach to their students.

Study coordinators

The study coordinators in the administration at the Faculty can help and advice students on where to find rules and information in general related to cheating.

Stavanger University Library

Stavanger University Library offers courses in academic writing. If you, as a student, are going to write a thesis for your degree and are unsure of what is required to write a good thesis in higher education, the Stavanger University Library can give good tips on creating a problem, structure of an academic thesis, discussion and good reference practice. This also helps to avoid cheating in the form of e.g. plagiarism.

You can test yourself in plagiarism and in academic writing.