You can find descriptions of the different exams in your degree programme in your academic regulations, which you can find at mitstudie.au.dk.
Where can I find information about the language of my courses and exams?
You can find information about the language of teaching in the course catalogue. The rules about the language of exams are stated in your academic regulations.
Faculty policy regarding language of teaching and exams
The language of the exam is normally the same as the language of the teaching.
Subject to agreement with the teacher/examiner, the exams on some degree programmes are conducted in Danish even though the teaching has been in English (or in English when the teaching has been in Danish).
This kind of special agreement is not possible in the following cases:
If the teaching has been conducted in more than one language, the students can choose the language in which they want to take the exam.
Exams that are normally conducted in Danish can also be taken in Swedish or Norwegian.
Am I always entitled to take exams in all the languages stated for a course in the academic regulations?
No. The languages stated in the academic regulations are the languages in which a course can be conducted. But the language in which the course is actually conducted may vary. And you are normally only allowed to take the exam in the language(s) in which the teaching has actually been conducted. So you need to check the course catalogue to find out which language applies in your particular case.
On some degree programmes it is possible to reach an agreement with your teacher about taking an exam in another language. If this is possible, it will be stated in the academic regulations above the degree programme diagram, where you can also see your options.
If a course is taught in several languages, can I choose the language of the exam myself?
Yes. If the course catalogue states that a course is taught in more than one language (Danish and English, for instance), you can choose between these languages for your exam. However, your choice may be limited by the topics/themes which are suitable for the exam, and will also depend on whether the teacher supervising and assessing assignments relating to these topics/themes can conduct exams in the language in question.
If the exam is conducted in Danish, does the teacher have to be able to speak Danish at oral exams – or is it sufficient that they can understand Danish and reply in English?
As long as the teacher understands Danish, thereby enabling you to speak Danish, the teacher may reply and ask questions in English.
If you are applying for dispensation in connection with the upcoming examination period, please note that the Arts Studies Administration has a processing time of up to eight weeks (July not included). So we recommend that you apply well in advance – preferably in March and October, respectively.
If you fail an exam, you can register for the re-examination. Please be aware of the short deadline if you want to take the re-examination in the same semester as the ordinary exam.
Your syllabus is connected to the course you have followed and is valid until the course* is offered again.
This means that your syllabus remains valid after the teaching on your course has finished – until the ordinary exam and the re-examination.
If a re-examination is offered in the following semester’s exam period, your syllabus is also valid for this re-examination.
If you take the re-examination in later semesters, the syllabus will usually follow the most recently offered course.
* Special rules apply for the reuse of syllabuses in connection with courses with changing topics (both compulsory and elective) and courses in academic regulations being phased out. Please see below.
The general principle is that you can reuse your syllabus until the course is offered again. The 'course' is defined as the topic of each course offered.
Example 1: You followed the course 'General Topic: Christian IV built the Round Tower’ in spring 2020 and are registered for the re-examination in summer 2021. Teaching has not been offered in ‘General Topic: Christian IV built the Round Tower’ since you completed the course. You must therefore reuse your syllabus from spring 2020.
Example 2: You followed the course 'General Topic: Christian IV built the Round Tower’ in spring 2020 and are registered for the re-examination in summer 2021. Three different 'General Topic' courses were offered in spring 2021, and one of these courses was called 'Christian IV built the Round Tower'. Your re-examination will therefore follow the syllabus from spring 2021, as this is the syllabus that was offered most recently.
Regulations regarding the reuse of syllabuses for elective courses follow the same principles described above.
Example 1: You followed the internationalisation elective course 'Cognitive Aesthetics' in autumn 2020 and are registered for the re-examination in winter 2021. Teaching in 'Cognitive Aesthetics' has not been offered since you completed the course. You must therefore reuse your syllabus from autumn 2020.
Example 2: You followed the internationalisation elective course 'Cognitive Aesthetics' in autumn 2020 and are registered for the re-examination in winter 2021. Teaching in 'Cognitive Aesthetics' was offered in autumn 2021. Your re-examination will therefore follow the syllabus from autumn 2021, as this is the syllabus that was offered most recently.
If your academic regulations is being phased out, your syllabus will follow the most recently offered course in your academic regulations. This also applies if the new academic regulations includes a course with the same title.
Example: You followed a compulsory course in spring 2021, and this was the last time the course was offered in the 2016 academic regulations from 2016. You are registered for the re-examination in this course in summer 2022. In the new academic regulations from 2020, there is a new course with the same title, which will be offered in spring 2022. It does not affect your syllabus that there is a new course with the same title in a more recent academic regulations. Your re-examination will therefore follow your syllabus from spring 2021 and not the syllabus from courses in the most recent academic regulations.