This leniency has everything to do with COVID-19. Normally, students can only start once they have their bachelor’s diploma. But because the coronavirus most likely will cause study delays for lots of students, a so-called ‘soft cut-off’ will apply: those who still have 12 ECTS points (of the 60) or less to be acquired from third year (the first and second year must have been completed), may continue on to do a master’s. This measure was announced a few weeks ago by dean Peter Møllgaard during the School of Business and Economics Faculty Council meeting. Inquiries then proved that the plan had not yet been “crystallised,” said Møllgaard.
The ruling applies to students from the UM as well as from its sister institutes in the Netherlands and abroad. Anyone preparing for a master’s study by doing a pre-master’s or bridging programme, will hear from the programme organisers whether they can start. The 80 per cent norm also applies as a guideline in this case. All other requirements, such as linguistic fluency, remain valid.
Should a master’s programme want to apply a more flexible norm, then that is allowed, the Executive Board writes. Although it must be “feasible”.
All students who continue to do a master’s without a diploma, are expected to get their bachelor’s diploma in the upcoming academic year. Exactly when that is, the student will agree on at the beginning of the new study.