European Credit Transfer System (ECTS) was developed by the European Comission as a means of improving academic recognition of studies abroad. ECTS provides a way of measuring and comparing learning achievements, and transferring them from one institution of higher learning to another. ECTS credits reflect the quantity of work each course requires, e.g. lectures, seminars, practical work and work in the laboratory. In order to be awarded ECTS credits, the student must pass an examination (written and/or oral) or other assessments of academic achievements.
ECTS consists of three basic principles:
- Information (on study programmes and student achievement)
- Mutual agreement (between student and partner institutions)
- Use of ECTS credits (to indicate student workload)
These key documents are the main tools used to make the system work:
- Information package
- Application form
- Learning agreement
- Transcript of records
The ECTS principles are applied to all incoming and outgoing students at AAUC.
60 ECTS credits represent the workload of one year of study; 30 ECTS credits the workload of one semester.
As from the academic year 2002/2003, Aalesund University College has implemented the ECTS system for all our study programmes. This means that 1 Norwegian “studiepoeng” in the course descriptions equals 1 ECTS credit.