During your studies

Your examination dates can be found in Studentweb. They are published and available from 1 October in the autumn semester and 1 March in the spring semester.  

Once every year, the University Board decides on academic calendar, which includes the start and end of the ordinary examination period. Please note that there may be examinations or other compulsory activities at times other than those specified in the academic calendar.   

We have an academic calendar which shows you the important dates and events for each semester, so that you can plan your academic year.

Comment 1: The semester fee is assessed every semester and may change. 

Comment 2: Continuing and further education may entail extra fees in addition to the semester fee 

Comment 3: Some programmes of study may have additional study-specific fees such as money for materials. 

The semester fee is a statutory fee for all students. It covers the operation of the Student Welfare Organization and the costs of electronic compendiums. It also includes a voluntary SAIH (Norwegian Students’ and Academics’ International Assistance Fund) fee that you can choose whether you wish to pay or not. 

Anyone who registers for examinations must pay the semester fee cf. Regulations relating to Student Welfare Organisations (Chapter 7, §17 Payment of semester fees). There are some exceptions to this rule: 

• Exchange students from our international partner institutions (because they usually pay to the institution they come from) 

• Students on some continuing and further education programmes 

• PhD students 

• Students who are only going to take a re-sit examination in weeks 1 and 32. 

You can create the invoice for the semester fee yourself in StudentWeb. 

Payment deadlines 

• 1 September for the autumn semester 

• 1 February for the spring semester 

It can take up to four days from when you pay the semester fee until it becomes visible in studentweb that you have paid. 

The same deadlines apply to any semester fee refunds. You can request a refund of the semester fee if you have paid the semester fee at another institution, or if you withdraw from a programme of study. If you have withdrawn from a programme of study before the deadline, you will be reimbursed the full amount. If you have paid at another institution, only the amount paid to the Student Welfare Organisation will be refunded. 

Semester fee to the Student Welfare Organisation 

Visit ssn.no for more information about semester fees. 

Kopinor fee and electronic compendiums 

Through  the Kopinor Agreement, students and employees can make photocopies, printouts and digital copies. In addition, USN charges a fee to cover electronic compendiums.  

Click here for information about the printing service

SAIH 

Norwegian Students’ and Academics’ International Assistance Fund (SAIH) is a politically independent organisation. Ever since SAIH was founded in 1961, Norwegian students have supported SAIH’s work through the SAIH tenners. In addition to long-term relief efforts, they work to influence politics both in Norway and abroad so as to improve the framework conditions for education and development around the world. 

If you do not want to support SAIH, you can deduct the fee from the amount on the invoice when you pay. 

• You find your time schedule in TimeEdit.
• To see how TimeEdit works, you can take a look at this guide. 

We recommend all new students who will receive all or part of their teaching online to familiarise themselves with Zoom as early as possible!

keyboard_backspace Follow these guidelines

What is Zoom? 
Zoom is our online, real-time teaching tool. Read more on Zoom.

You can search for courses and find your reading list in the Leganto syllabus system: 

• Search for reading lists in Leganto. 

You can also access your reading list in Canvas and in the course plan for the various courses you are studying. The course plans can be found in the programme descriptions for each particular programme of study. 

We encourage our international students to subscribe to the online Norwegian class offered by the University of Oslo. More information can be found here.

or the online Norwegian course offered by Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU): www.futurelearn.com/courses/norwegian-for-beginners

Currently, USN does not offer any language courses for international students, but the institution is working on developing courses for the future.

There are volunteer organizations and private/public organizations that offer language classes to foreign citizens. In general, most providers charge a fee from students.

You may check out Folkeuniversitetet or check with the local community in your area.

We have a library on all of our campuses.

On the library's website, you can order books and periodicals, download e-books, search for literature, get tips on writing assignments and chat with a librarian. You can also attend courses.

For physical lending, you need a student ID card. You can access the library's online databases via your user name and password.

Opening hours (during the semester):

Check out the library web-page for opening hours and contact information for the different campus libraries

NB! During the examination period there will be extended opening hours on Saturdays and some weekdays.

Most campuses have a bookstore. 

Bø 

Akademikas bokhandel  can be found in Bø-gata, a short walking distance from campus. 

Drammen 

Brage Bok og kaffe  can be found on the ground floor on campus. 

Kongsberg 

The Student Welfare Organisation’s bookshop  can be found in Kirgegate 6 which is next door to campus. 

Notodden 

Akademikas bokhandel  can be found on the left inside the main entrance on campus. 

Porsgrunn 

Akademikas bokhandel  can be found on campus in building-A at the Henrikke student canteen. 

Ringerike 

The Student Welfare Organisation’s bookshop  can be found on campus just inside the main entrance. 

Rauland 

A small selection of office supplies are sold from the department office. 

Vestfold 

The Student Welfare Organisation’s bookshop, Brage, can be found next to the main entrance on the 1st floor of Innsikten. 

Yes, during teaching and digital examinations at USN, students are required to have their own laptop computer.  

Here you will find information about the minimum requirements and recommendations we have concerning ICT equipment during teaching and for examinations. Some programmes of study use special software, and this may have an impact on what kind of computer you need. You need to check this with the faculty you are going to study at. 

Diplomas

Diplomas for attained degrees are given automatically when you have completed the education within the nominal timeframe. All diplomas at USN are issued digitally with a digital signature, but if necessary it will also be possible to obtain a diploma on paper (for example, if there are requirements in connection with applications for admission to studies abroad). Please note that digital diplomas are only valid in their digital form and cannot be printed. Diplomas and Diploma Supplements can be downloaded as pdf files both from Studentweb and from Vitnemålsportalen.

Vitnemålsportalen/ the Diploma Registry

Vitnemålsportalen is a public service where you can retrieve your results from higher education and share them with campuses, potential employers and other relevant parties. You can log in to Vitnemålsportalen via ID-porten.

Transcript

A transcript of records shows all courses you have passed at USN. If you need a digital transcript, you can easily order it yourself via Studentweb, even after you are no longer a student at USN. You can also log in to Vitnemålsportalen and  both view and share your results from there. Please note that a transcript does not show courses accepted from other institutions. These are only included on the diploma itself. If you need a paper transcript, you can contact the service centre on your campus.

New diploma

If you have lost a previous paper diploma, you can still find all the results and eligibility in Vitnemålsportalen. If you need a new diploma, you must contact the faculty responsible for the education you have a diploma from – or send an e-mail to postmottak@usn.no. Any new diploma applies in the event of loss of a diploma or after improvement of grades.

Self- composed diploma

Self-composed diplomas are issued according to given rules described in  the Regulations relating to Studies and Examinations at the University of South-Eastern Norway (USN).

Section 2-2 on bachelor’s degrees 

(1) The Bachelor’s degree is awarded for three-year education amounting to 180 credits, in one of the following courses of study: 

1. study programme of 180 credits leading to the Bachelor’s degree according to the National Curriculum Regulations 

2. study programme of 180 credits, with specialisation amounting to at least 80 credits which leads to a Bachelor’s degree pursuant to decision made by the Board at the University of South-Eastern Norway 

3. vocational courses of study of at least 120 credits, with the addition of courses or course groups totalling 60 credits 

4. self-composed course of study of 180 credits, cf. third subsection 

5. completion of the three first years of study (180 credits) of the four-year teacher’s education according to the Norwegian Curriculum Regulations. 

(2) As a main rule, the requirements for the degree include a Bachelor's thesis or other independent work. This work can be of a theoretical, practical or artistic nature, and may be performed individually or in a group. 

(3) The student may apply to have a degree certificate conferred for a self-composed course of study. The degree requirements include specialisation in subjects or groups of subjects corresponding to at least 80 credits (specialisation unit) in an academic area offered by the University, and subjects or groups of subjects amounting to at least 30 credits (breadth subjects) within topics related to the specialisation unit. Up to 30 credits may consist of independent subjects or subjects from other subject areas or study programmes. The remaining 40 credits, beyond the maximum permissible scope of free topics, must be taken within either the specialisation unit or breadth subjects. The academic environment within the specialisation unit will assess whether it is academically justifiable to exempt the student from the requirement to submit an independent academic work as described in subsection two. 

(4) Students are entitled to academic supervision during their bachelor's thesis work. The student may be required to have attended academic supervision in order to be able to submit the thesis, cf. Section 7-3. The scope of academic supervision will be stated in the course plan.

More about the composition of self-composed bachelor’s degrees 

For elective courses, a ceiling of up to 30 credits must be set. This entails the following minimum and maximum requirements: 

• Specialisation unit minimum 80 credits 

• Minor courses minimum 30 credits 

• Elective courses maximum 30 credits 

Students can choose how the remaining 40 credits are to be distributed between the specialisation unit and the minor courses. 

As a general rule, specialisation courses that are to be included in a self-composed bachelor’s degree should be a minimum of 7.5 credits. 

Independent work may be carried out at other educational institutions. 

The university will provide guidance to students who wish to apply for a self-composed bachelor’s degree with regard to the composition of the degree and the scope of the independent work. 

In connection with an application for the issuance of a self-composed bachelor’s degree, double credit may not be awarded for the same academic content within the same degree, cf. Section 3-5, first paragraph of the Act relating to Universities and University Colleges. The student may be requested to present a diploma issued by other educational institutions. 

Contact 

Questions can be directed to the student adviser at your faculty. 

The applicants themselves must document that the requirements have been met at the time of the application. 

• The application form for a self-composed bachelor’s degree  must be completed and sent to  postmottak@usn.no.

Students admitted to programmes of study where there is supervised professional training involving children and adolescents, or in the healthcare sector, must provide a certificate of good conduct from the police. 

You will find more information about the requirements regarding certificates of good conduct and how to order them here. 

You are entitled to an explanation of the grades that have been set. If you log in to studentweb, you can request an explanation of grades and you can appeal against grades. 

As a student studying at USN, you have many different student organisations you can get involved in. Here is an overview that can help you find the one that best suits you.(Norwegian only)

All students are obligated to be sufficiently informed about the rules and regulations that apply to their studies at USN. For an overview of the relevant areas of consideration – please see:

• Regulations relating to admission, studies and examination
• Regulations relating to the degree of PhD at the University College of Southeast Norway

If you have a disability or health problem that will put you at a significant disadvantage in an exam situation, you may apply for special exam arrangements to be made by 15 September or 15 February.

After becoming a student, an electronic form is available for you on our student intranet (my.usn.no).

Students are responsible for getting acquainted with our instructions for examination candidates. Please note that students may withdraw from their exams. The deadlines for withdrawal are publicised under your course schedules in StudentWeb.
Examination at USN will be conducted in according with your semester plan.

Cheating

The students are obligated to acquire knowledge about rules for examination support material and quotations and reference to sources. Cheating is considered a violation of academic credibility. Academic credibility means that the students should be honest when considering if thoughts and reflections are their own, or obtained from other sources.

The following are considered cheating or attempted cheating:

• Using other examination support material than specified in the course plan.
• Cooperation with other students, except cooperation specified in the course plan.
• Plagiarism, copying, quotation from academic text, websites and the student’s own or others’ work without sufficient references.
• Using already submitted assignments or examinations – both written by the student or other persons.
• If the answer paper lacks independent reflections, is very similar to other answer papers or obviously is written by someone else.
• Contributing to cheating or attempted cheating.
• Compulsory assignments and examinations are considered on equal terms.

How cheating is revealed

• Cheating and attempted cheating is revealed by the invigilator during the examination, by the examiner when grading the assignment/examination or by the lecturer when the student is submitting an assignment.
• A text recognition programme is also used for revealing plagiarism in submitted assignments/examinations. The programme compares the students’ assignments/examinations with text on the internet, various databases and other students’ assignments/examinations.

Consequences

When cheating or attempted cheating is revealed it may have serious consequences for the student.

• Cheating or attempted cheating may lead to annulment of the examination/assignment and expulsion from the University college and all other Norwegian universities and university colleges for up to two semesters.
• The right to annul the examination/assignment does not become statute-barred. Cases regarding cheating or attempted cheating may therefore be reopened later on – also after the student has graduated from the university college.
• The student will have to return his/hers transcript or diploma when a reopened case leads to a decision about annulment of an examination/assignment.

Procedures

The University College of Southeast Norway has stipulated procedures when considering suspected cheating. The procedures also give information about the rights for those students suspected of cheating.

The Appeals Committee at The University College of Southeast Norway makes decisions in cases regarding cheating and suspected cheating. The Appeals Committee determines reactions in each case individually.

Questions?

If you have any questions, please contact Catrine Schøne Brodwall and Synnev Aas Aaby or the examination office. 

To access Canvas, you must have an active student account at USN. Access to course rooms also requires that you are registered for the semester and registered for teaching in the course. If you are in doubt as to whether you are registered for teaching, you can check this in your education plan in Studentweb. 

If the registration deadline has expired, or you are registered for teaching but still have no access, please contact your student adviser. 

You may withdraw from a course examination before the announced deadline for withdrawal, or no later than two weeks before the examination date. You can do this in StudentWeb. 

NB: For bachelor’s and master’s theses, the withdrawal deadline is four weeks and you must inform the faculty in writing of your withdrawal.