Organization of the Bachelor's Degree - University of Savoie Mont Blanc - Education

The bachelor's degree program is organized into six consecutive semesters (S1 to S6), or three years, as each year is divided into two semesters. It leads to the award of a national bachelor's degree, which confers 180 European credits (ECTS) and allows students to enter the first year of a master's degree program. There are two exam sessions per semester: the initial session and the resit session.

2. How is a semester organized?

An academic year consists of two semesters. Each semester corresponds to 30 ECTS credits.

A semester consists of teaching units (UE) that may be compulsory, optional, or elective. UE are assigned ECTS credits and coefficients. If you have obtained an average of 10 out of 20 or higher in a UE, it is definitively acquired and cannot be waived; you have acquired the UE and the corresponding ECTS credits, and cannot retake the corresponding exams.

A course unit can be subdivided into components (EC) corresponding to separate courses, which also carry ECTS credits. Once you have obtained an average grade of 10 out of 20 or higher in an EC, it is definitively acquired and can be capitalized. The grade for a course unit composed of CE corresponds to the average of the grades obtained in the CE, weighted by their coefficient (correlated to the ECTS of the CE). The acquisition of a course unit (minimum average of 10 out of 20) results in the acquisition, by compensation, of a CE for which you would not have obtained the minimum grade of 10 out of 20. You cannot retake the exams for the so-called "compensated" CE.

3. Where can I find detailed information about organizing a semester?

All information concerning assessment is provided in the "Assessment Methods" (MCC). These are tables that summarize, by degree program and semester, the exams you will have to take, their type (written, oral, portfolio, etc.), their duration, their weighting, and the distribution between continuous assessment and final assessment. At the beginning of the year, your year coordinator will tell you where to find the MCC.

4. How do I validate a semester?

The semester average corresponds to the overall average of the marks obtained in the teaching units, weighted by their coefficients (correlated to ECTS credits). There are no eliminatory marks.

If you obtain an average grade of 10 out of 20 or higher for the semester, you have definitively acquired and capitalized on that semester, which results in the acquisition of the corresponding 30 ECTS credits. Passing a semester (average equal to or higher than 10 out of 20) means that you will be awarded a credit for a course unit for which you did not achieve the minimum average of 10 out of 20, and you cannot retake the exams for the compensated course unit.

If you did not pass the semester in the initial session, you must take the exams in the make-up session.

The initial session for^{the first} semester of the year (S1, S3, S5) is held in December or January, depending on the department. The resit session for^{the first semester}may be held closer together (February or March) or at the end of the year (June), depending on the degree program. The minimum period between the publication of the results of the initial session and the start of the resit session exams is 15 days.

The initial session for the^second semester of the year (S2, S4, S6) takes place in May, and the resit session at the end of the year (June) for all bachelor's degrees.

At the beginning of the year, the training manager will provide you with the academic calendar for the university year, including exam periods.

See examples: example 1 and example 2.

5. In the same year, can you continue in the second semester (S2, S4, S6) if you have not passed the first semester (S1, S3, S5)?

Students who have completed the odd-numbered semester (S1, S3, S5) are automatically entitled to continue their studies in the even-numbered semester (S2, S4, S6), regardless of their results in the odd-numbered semester.

6. How do you progress to the next grade?

To progress to the next grade, you have two options:

By acquiring both semesters of the year:

You have completed each of the two semesters of the year, either in the initial session or in the make-up session.

By balancing the two semesters of the year:

You obtained a grade equal to or higher than 10 out of 20 on average for both semesters of the year (between semester 1 and 2, between semester 3 and 4, between semester 5 and 6). Compensation applies from the initial session of the even semester and can be applied between the results of the two semesters, regardless of the exam session. At the end of the even semester's make-up session, the annual compensation is calculated by taking into account the best average between the initial session and the make-up session for each of the two semesters.

If a "deferred" semester becomes "compensated" after the compensation calculation, you will receive a new semester transcript with the "compensated" result.

7. What is the difference between a "compensated" result for the semester and an "accepted" result?

When a semester is "compensated," you can progress to the next year, but you have not earned the 30 ECTS credits for that semester. They will be awarded to you at the end of the three-year bachelor's degree program if you have validated or compensated for all six semesters.

8. Can compensation be waived?

Once semesters have been compensated for, it is not possible to waive this compensation in order to try to improve one's results in the resit session.

9. What are the consequences of missing an exam?

If you are absent from an exam, you will not be able to validate either the EC or the UE to which the EC belongs, and therefore neither the semester. You will receive a "fail" grade for the semester in the session affected by your absence, even if your overall average is greater than or equal to 10. A "fail" grade does not allow you to validate or compensate for the semester in the corresponding session.

If you have a specific reason for absence, duly justified, you must report it as soon as possible to the educational administration or to the teaching and year coordinators, who may, if provided for in the study regulations, apply specific provisions.

If you are receiving a social criteria scholarship, you are required to attend classes, tutorials, practical work, internships, and exams. If you do not meetall of these requirements, the CROUS will ask you to repay the money you have received.

10. Which exam(s) must be retaken during the resit session in the event of a "deferred" or "failed" result in the semester during the initial session?

If you are "deferred" or "failed" in the initial session of the semester, you must retake all the course units you did not pass in the retake session.

See an example.

11. How is the semester average calculated in the make-up session?

The grades obtained in the resit session replace the grades from the initial session. The semester average is calculated using the grades obtained in the initial session exams that you did not have to retake in the resit session and the grades obtained in the resit session.

Since the grades from the retake session automatically replace the corresponding grades from the initial session, the semester average obtained in the retake session may well be lower than the semester average obtained in the initial session. In this case, it is the semester average obtained in the initial session that is taken into account for the calculation of the annual compensation for the purpose of continuing studies.

See an example.

12. How do we validate the license?

You will have earned your bachelor's degree as soon as you have individually validated the six semesters or as soon as they have been compensated. At that point, you will automatically be awarded the 180 credits required for a bachelor's degree. Holders of a bachelor's degree in the same field of study are automatically entitled to continue on to^{the first} year of a master's program.

See examples: example 1 and example 2.

13. Can we have a mention on the bachelor's degree?

Some degrees are awarded with honors based on the overall average for the^third year (average of semesters 5 and 6). Please check with your year or degree program coordinator for more information.

14. What is the role of the jury?

The jury, composed of teachers and research professors involved in the bachelor's degree program, meets at the end of each semester and at the end of the year to decide on progression to the next year or on the awarding of the degree at the end of the^third year of the bachelor's program.

The jury has the final say in its decision. It validates the grades and may, in very exceptional cases, add jury points in order to validate a semester or to allow for annual compensation, the awarding of a diploma, or the awarding of honors.

15. Can a test, course unit, or semester that has been passed be retaken during the resit session or the following year?

Once a semester, a course unit, or a course has been completed, it is final. You cannot retake them in a resit session or the following year. They are capitalized.

16. Can you progress to the next year if you have passed one semester but there is no compensation between the two semesters of the year?

In the event of special circumstances limited in time and for a number of missing credits less than or equal to 6 ECTS in the uncompensated semester of the past year, the Vice President of Education may authorize you, on an exceptional basis and upon the recommendation of the jury, to progress to the next year. In this case, the corresponding exams must be retaken the following year and the missing credits obtained or compensated for in order to continue the program or obtain the degree.

17. In the event of repeating a year, which subjects must be retaken?

If you repeat a semester, you must retake all credits that were not earned or compensated for in the course units that were not earned or compensated for the following year.

See an example.

18. If a student repeats a year, can they take classes and exams for the next grade?

You must submit a request to the teaching team, who may offer you the opportunity to take courses from the next academic year in advance, for one or both semesters, without being officially enrolled in that academic year, within the very specific limits set out in § C5 of the general provisions.

19. Can you review your exam papers?

You can view your exam papers after the jury has deliberated and once the results have been announced. The year coordinator or teachers will inform you of the dates on which you can view your papers.

You are also entitled to an individual meeting with the teaching team. This appointment should be requested from the year coordinator.

20. What document must be presented at exams?

During exams, you must have your current year's student ID card with you. It will be checked by the invigilator when signing the attendance list.

21. Are we allowed to have documents (notes, calculators, etc.) during the exams?

No documents or materials are permitted, except those provided with the exam paper, indicated on the exam paper, or specifically mentioned in the exam notification.

22. What if you come from a different field or university?

Students from other programs or institutions may be accepted. The jury validates credits corresponding to a course, a unit, or a semester; it may assign them a grade, which must be greater than or equal to 10 out of 20.

23. What about the DEUG?

The intermediate DEUG degree is awarded once the corresponding four semesters have been validated or compensated for.

The awarding of honors follows the same rules as for the bachelor's degree. It is calculated based on the overall average for the^{second year}(average of semesters 3 and 4).

24. How do I obtain my bachelor's degree (diploma)?

See the procedure for withdrawing a diploma.