General course and study information
The academic year
Each academic year is divided into two semesters: autumn and spring, and each semester is, in turn, divided into two study periods. The exact start and end dates of these study periods varies from year to year. For the exact dates of the current and upcoming academic years, please consult the academic calendar.
General course information
Most of our advanced level courses are 7.5 credits and are given at half-pace over one study period. This means that you usually study two courses in parallel over each study period. Exceptions to this are when studying project courses and the thesis course as these are more flexible.
Note that some of our courses are not offered every year. In case you are interested in studying one of these courses, it is important that you plan your studies in advance to make this possible. You can find out which courses this applies to in the course offering schedule linked below.
For all our advanced courses, the schedules are coordinated so that no collisions between lectures, labs etc. should occur. If you are studying courses given by other departments in parallel with our courses, there is a risk that they will collide. If the number of collisions is small, then this is usually not a problem. However, please keep in mind that it is your responsibility to catch up on what you have missed, for instance by asking a fellow student to copy their lecture notes. It is also important to make sure that you will not miss any compulsory tasks or assessments. Also keep in mind that you usually do not need to attend all scheduled laboratory sessions for the physics courses (see below under Schedule).
Course structure
Our courses comprise one or more parts. For the majority of our courses, the theory part is the largest one. In addition to this, there is an experimental and/or computer laboratory part. Each part of the course is usually assessed and graded separately. In order to pass the course, you need to pass all parts. The course grade is commonly determined by the grade of the theory parts, but for some courses it is determined by, for instance, averaging the different parts. You can find the exact information that applies to your courses by consulting the course syllabus.
Teaching
Teaching on the course can be given in the form of lectures, problem-solving sessions, supervisions during labs, group exercises etc.
Registering to the course
You must register for the course you are admitted to. This also applies to courses within a programme. Read about course registration and how it works.
In case you run into any problems or have any questions regarding course registration, please contact the study administrator at the department.
Course information
All of our courses have a course page on one of the two learning platforms Canvas and Cambro. As soon as you are registered on a course, you will gain access to the course page. There, you will find all information needed to follow the course, e.g., schedules, lecture planning, course materials, etc. You will also be able to contact the teachers of the course and other students via a messaging system within the learning platform.
Schedule
Each course has a schedule where you can find the time, date and place of each lecture, problem-solving sessions, labs, and so on. There are various ways to find your schedules:
- By logging into the student web, you will find the schedule of each course for which you are registered on.
- By searching for the schedule in our scheduling system TimeEdit. This system also allows you to sync the schedules of your courses to your calendar application on your computer and phone.
- Usually you can also find the schedule on the course page in the learning platform.
The course schedule shows a number of laboratory sessions. These are the total number or lab sessions for the course, but please note that you usually do not have to attend all of these. Instead, you will be given a separate lab schedule by the lab supervisors where you can see exactly which of the sessions you need to attend. If you have questions regarding this, please contact the course supervisor.
Exams
The theory part of a course is usually assessed through a written exam at the end of the course. The exams are usually six hours long and consist of a number of problems that you need to solve. What you are allowed to bring to the exam varies from course to course. Your teacher will provide information about what you can bring.
It can take up to three weeks before the exams have been graded. When this is done, you will be able to see your course grade by logging into the student website. You can also ask your teacher to get the corrected exam back to see which problems you managed to solve and which errors you made.
The laboratory parts of the course are usually assessed via written and oral reports.
Sign up for an exam
A really important thing to take note of is that you need to sign up for your exams in advance! For the first exam of a course, you can sign up already at the start of the course, but not later than ten working days before the exam. Each course usually also has one or two retake exams each year. You can register for the retake one month in advance at the earliest, and ten working days before at the latest. You cannot take a retake to achieve a higher grade if you have already passed the exam. Sign up through Ladok. Please contact the study administrator in case you run into any problems with signing up.
Read more about signing up for an exam
Course literature
A majority of our courses follows one or more course books, which you should acquire. Information about the course literature for each course can be found in the end of the course syllabus. It is recommended to get the books before the course starts. If you have questions, for instance on what extent each book is used, please contact the course teacher.
In addition to books, some courses also have own-produced and copied materials, such as lecture notes, and laboratory instructions. This material is usually handed out at the beginning of the course or distributed via the course page in the learning platform.
Contact the study administrator
