Source: https://fernstudium.study/successfully-passing-exams/
Timestamp: 2019-04-21 21:04:23+00:00

Document:
According to the curriculum, every module includes a home assignment and a multiple-choice-test. Both performance records must have positive assessment, with homework constituting 60% and multiple-choice-test constituting 40% of the overall grade per module.
Multiple-choice-test: Can be performed at home using specially developed software. The online-tests are time-limited and monitored by webcam snapshots. The snapshots are taken randomly during the test and are stored/archived as a part of the test assuring the discreteness of the test performance.
Home assignment: The home assignment is a stand-alone practical task to be performed at home, requiring the application of the subject matter in real life. In principal, each module involves its own home assignment. The students are encouraged to apply the subject matter to their respective companies.
A final exam is administered at the end of the Distance Learning programs MBA Business Management, MBA Finance and MBA Project/ Process Management, which are purely Distance Learning programs, i.e. with no on-campus classes held. In this case, performance evaluation of the respective MBA programs is carried out in form of a presentation of the project work and a subsequent exam on the subject of the project work as well as fields of study. In principal, we aim at holding a final exam through internet media.
In accordance with the § 3 (2) Z.6, the final exam of the master’s program at the university of applied sciences is a general exam, which consists of the master’s thesis (in the given case, a project work) and the exam before a board.
an oral exam on the curriculum-relevant content.
The final exam before a board, taken at the end of the master program at the University for Applied Sciences, takes place before an examination board represented by the respective professionals.
The positive completion of all courses as well as the approval of the master’s thesis (in the given case, the project work) is required for taking the master program final exam. These requirements must be met four weeks prior to the examination date.
The students will be informed by a written notification about the admittance to the master program final exam. This notification will also include the information on the composition of the examination board, date and place of the exam as well as criteria of the performance assessment and place of the publication (e.g. the learning platform). The notification will be sent at least two weeks prior to the exam date.
There will be at least three exam dates appropriately distributed throughout the academic year.
According to FHStG § 16 (3), the examination board consists of the academic staff involved in teaching in the concerned programs. The examination board consists of the men and women examiners for each examinee. The examination board, which is appointed by the program director, consists of the chairman/-woman, the first examiner and the second examiner.
The students will be notified of the results of the performance evaluation of the exam before a board directly after the exam.
Passed with excellent result: for an excellent exam performance.
The assessment criteria that constitute the basis of the aforementioned evaluation are reported to students in a written form (e.g. through the learning platform).
According to FHStG § 18 (3), the final exam before a board, taken at the end of the master’s program at the university for applied sciences, can be repeated twice if the examinee did not pass it at the first time. The opportunity mentioned in the FHStG § 18 (3), in the article on the exam re-sitting opportunities, will not be included.
According to FHStG § 15 (1) in regard to the oral exams, the master program final exam is publicly available. The number of students admitted to the exam can be limited due to spatial conditions.
According to FHStG § 15 (1) in regard to oral exams, the master program final exam process is protocolled. The chairman/-woman issues a protocol, which accordingly includes the place and the time of the exam, the names of the examination board members, the name of the student, the asked questions, the assessment given according to the criteria of the performance evaluation, the reason for a negative assessment as well as any special cases. The exam protocol will be stored for at least one year from the time of the announcement of the assessment.
According to FHStG § 15 (3) in regard to oral exams before a board, all members of the examination board have to be present during the entire exam period. This obligation can also be met by means of electronic media.
As a part of the final exam, the examinee holds a presentation of the written thesis and speaks on the gained scientific and practical experience. This is followed by a discussion, which includes questions concerning the master’s thesis itself as well as scientific and practice-relevant fields from the program courses. During the exam and the discussion in particular, close attention will be paid to the content interrelation. The examinees must be in the position to answer the cross-module questions from the meta-view and to prove the apprehension of the learned contents.
The master’s thesis abstract as well as the whole master’s thesis are electronically provided as support for both examiners and the chairman/-woman of the examination board.
The ca. 20-minute oral exam held by the two examiners (2 x ca. 10 min) includes questions concerning the scientific and practice-relevant context of the master’s thesis as well as the contents of the program.
The examination materials including the examination literature regard, in principal, all modules of the curriculum. The exam questions concern the thematic context of the project work and the fields of knowledge of the respective study program.
No specific examination subject is defined, i.e. the examinee and the suggested examiner do not agree on any specific subject/ theme for the exam.
The presentation of the master’s thesis / the project assignment: clear presentation of the topic (object of the research, defining the problem and formulating the question of the research) and of the examinee’s own approach (model, concept, and methods) as well as the clear, well-structured and conclusive presentation of the most important results of the research using appropriate media. For their ability to explain one’s own work, to reflect on it and to interpret its results the examinees will be awarded maximum 40 ECTS credit points.
For the acquired expertise in the core subject field of the master’s thesis / project work the examinees will be awarded maximum 40 ECTS credit points.
For the acquired expertise in other fields of the study program the examinees will be awarded maximum 40 ECTS credit points.
In total, the examinees can earn 120 ECTS credit points for the final exam. The evaluation of the aforementioned aspects is descriptively done in a written form. The final overall evaluation of the master’s thesis defense is completed with a numerical grade from 1 to 5. The following table is to be used as the basis for evaluation.
Passed with excellent result: percentage grade 100% – 94%.

References: § 3
 § 16
 § 18
 § 18
 § 15
 § 15
 § 15