If you are in a situation where you cannot follow the rules and regulations, that apply for your education, you can apply for an exemption. Exemptions are approved deviations from rules stipulated in ministerial legislation, IT University rules or rules in the curriculum.
When is an exemption a possibility?
The university can grant you an exemption if you can document that special circumstances apply to your situation.
The special circumstances must relate to you as a student and must be externally imposed and something that you could not anticipate or plan for. This could for instance be illness affecting yourself or illness in your immediate family - or other personal special circumstances.
What is special conditions?
- Documented illness or an accident affecting yourself
- Documented illness in your immediate family (a spouse/partner, a sibling, a parent or a child)
- Death in your immediate family (see below)
- Childbirth (indsæt link til siden)
- Pregnancy-related complications
- A worsening of a chronic illness
- Or other special circumstances related to you individually which you could not anticipate or plan for
- Vacation
- Challenges or problems with attending classes and/or exams because of work
- Exams or courses scheduled at the same time or close to each other
- Academic challenges
- Lack of knowledge of rules and deadlines
- The fact that you will be delayed in completing your studies is not in itself a special circumstance
- The fact that you plan to start a master’s programme as a direct extension of your bachelor programme is not a special circumstance.
- Civic duties as a lay judge or member of a jury
- Athlete of elite sports
- Entrepreneurship of a certain scale
- In some cases where students are not following a normal study programme due to for example previous exemptions or other academic considerations, students can apply for exemptions in order to avoid being further prolonged.
Please note that the special circumstance, you describe in your application, must have taken place at a time and been of a duration that corresponds with the exemption you are applying for.
Death in the immediate family
Death in the immediate family includes a spouse/partner, a parent, a sibling or a child. You can document this special circumstance with a copy of a death certificate.
If you lose someone who is not your immediate family (see above) but someone you are very close to, you can apply for an exemption, if the death affects your ability to study. You must submit medical documentation which describes the close relationship with the person as well as how the death affects you and your ability to study.
The rules to deviate from
Below you can find examples of the rules that students are most likely to apply for an exemption from. The list is not exhaustive, and each application is handled based on its specific situation.
The requirements for progression is a rule outlining how many ECTS you must pass every year in order to obtain your enrollment and be considered as an active student.
You must pass a minimum of 45 ECTS each year.
If you due to special circumstances cannot meet the requirements of progression, you can apply for an exemption from the rule.
For more information, see here.
A semester of full-time studies corresponds to 30 ECTS.
According to ITU rules, it is a requirement that you register for study activities corresponding to minimum 22,5 ECTS each semester.
The study activities are everything you are registered for: all courses and all projects.
If you due to special circumstances cannot meet the registration requirement for a current or upcoming semester, you can apply for an exemption from this study rule.
Please note
1st year BSc students must register for 30 ECTS during your first and second semester.
In cases where the registration requirement cannot be met simply because it is not possible to register for the required ECTS, applying for an exemption is not necessary.
For more information about the registration requirement click here
All bachelor students must pass exams corresponding to 45 ECTS before the end of their first year of studies. If you due to special circumstances cannot meet the requirement, you can apply for an exemption from the rule.
If you have credits transferred from previous studies to your ITU programme, these credits will not count as part of the fulfilment of the progression requirement or the first-year exam.
However, if you have credits transferred, and ITU is not able to offer a coherent study plan with 30 ECTS each semester, you will be exempted from the progression requirement.
More information about the first-year exam.
The Bachelor of Science (BSc) programme must be concluded within four years for students enrolled autumn 2015 or later.
Students enrolled autumn 2014 or earlier have five years to complete their education.
The Master of Science (MSc) programme must be concluded within three years for students enrolled in autumn 2015 or later.
Students enrolled spring 2015 or earlier must have completed their education within five years, though no longer than until august 2018.
Being an active student you need to follow the mandatory courses on your programme and register for elective courses and projects. Your registrations for study activities are binding.
If you due to special circumstances cannot complete an elective course or project, you will need to apply for an exemption from the rule.
We cannot make exemptions from the rule regarding your mandatory courses or projects. The binding registration is absolute in these cases.
Very important
If you have used exam attempts for a course or project an exemption from the rule is very unlikely, since extraordinary circumstances need to be presented.
You have three attempts to pass your exam. If you do not pass your exam using the three attempts, you can apply for a fourth exam attempt.
Look here more information about How to apply for an exemption.
This page was last updated April 2024