Doctor’s certificates

When do you need a doctor's certificate?

When applying for dispensation due to illness or disability, you must provide a doctor's certificate.

The doctor's certificate is a medical assessment that will provide the Board of Studies with the basis to assess whether you should receive dispensation.

The doctor's certificate must document how, to what extent, and for how long your illness or disability affects your ability to study / attend exams.

You are responsible for covering the cost of the doctor's certificate.

Duty of confidentiality

The Board of Studies and the Study Administration are bound by confidentiality.

Therefore, you can feel safe being open about your situation.

The better we understand your situation, the better we can process your application.

Legal capacity – who can issue a doctor's certificate?

The doctor's certificate must be issued by a doctor who is not closely related to you.

This means you cannot submit a doctor's certificate from a close family member or relative, regardless of whether they are your regular doctor or not.

Instead, you must contact another doctor to obtain an impartial doctor's certificate.

Guidelines for doctor's certificates

Please take this guide with you to your doctor!

The requirements for the content of a doctor's certificate depends on the type of exemption you are applying for. It is up to the Board of Studies to assess whether you can be granted an exemption. The Board of studies always considers a doctor's certificate and it is part of processing your application. Please note that a doctor's certificate may not always result in an exemption, as the Board og Studies is not obligated to follow the doctor's recommendations.

If we need more documentation, we will contact you.

We do not contact your doctor.

It is important that your medical certificate contains information about:

1. Time

  • When did the doctor see you?
  • During which period have you been ill?
  • Is the illness chronic?
  • How long do you expect to be ill?
  • Are you completely or partially on sick leave?
  • If you are partially on sick leave – how many hours a week can you work?
  • Is there a prospect of improvement (what is the prognosis)?
  • Can you do anything yourself to improve the condition?

Please note that it is important that the doctor has seen you during the period covered by the doctor's certificate.

If the doctor's certificate concerns an illness from the past, it may mean that the study board places less weight on the doctor's certificate.

2. Medical Assessment

The doctor does not necessarily need to specify which illness is involved. The medical certificate should clearly explain how your illness or disability affects you. If the medical certificate is specific regarding how, when, and to what extent your illness affects your study activities and your ability to complete your education, a precise diagnosis is often less important.

It should be clear from the medical certificate how the doctor obtained the information.

The doctor should state which information comes from the doctor’s own examination of you and which comes from conversations with you, from a specialist, patient records, or similar sources.

3. Formal Requirements for a Medical Certificate

A medical certificate must also include:

  • Your name, social security number, and address.
  • The doctor's name, authorization ID, business address, and education.
  • Information about who your general practitioner is.
  • Date and the doctor’s signature or similar.