Assessment and grading

Exam format

To test the students' knowledge and understanding of the subject matter discussed in lectures or seminars, courses are assessed in various ways. Exam formats include the testing of both written and oral skills. In most cases, use of the books or course documents is allowed during the preparation time. Written exams may take the form of open, multiple-choice or essay-type questions. You find more information in the course descriptions in the study programme. By clicking on a specific course, you will find info on, amongst other, the content and the evaluation form.

Exam period

First session exams are held at the end of each semester (second and third week of January and end of May until mid-June).

Students who do not pass one or more exams in the first session, will be invited to register for second session examinations (i.e. retakes). These take place at the end of August and the beginning of September.

Degree

As a general rule, you are able to graduate as soon as you have obtained a credit for all the components of your study programme. If you have not obtained the required credits for all components, graduation is only possible if you meet the deliberation criteria set out below.

Deliberation criteria for the Master of Laws programme 2022-2023:

• Overall final result of at least 60%

• No more than one deficit for maximum 6 credits

• No more than one deficit grade point (9/20)

• Credit for Master's dissertation and Legal Clinic

In short, this means that provided your overall average is not less than 60%, you can still graduate with one deficit of 9/20 for a course of 3 or 6 credits. You cannot graduate with a deficit for your dissertation or legal clinic.

This degree is equivalent to the Flemish degree of ‘master in de rechten’. For admission to the legal profession in Belgium, holders must also have a Belgian degree of Bachelor of Laws or qualify under the admission requirements for holders of a non-Belgian law degree. For more information, go to www.advocaat.be or www.avocats.be.

Degree class

The examination commission of the programme awards a degree class based on the final grade given to a graduate; the class will be mentioned on your degree. Students following a bridging programme will not receive a degree, but a certificate, and can therefore not be awarded a degree class.

Students whose course programme consists of more than 50% exemptions will also not be awarded a degree class.

The following degree classes can be awarded:

• pass with credit (sufficient): final grade between 50 and 67 out of 100
• cum laude (satisfactory): final grade between 68 and 76 out of 100
• magna cum laude (good): final grade between 77 and 84 out of 100
• maxima cum laude (excellent): final grade of minimum 85 out of 100

European Credit Transfer System (ECTS)

All courses at the University of Antwerp are assigned a number of credits, equal to the credits in the European Credit Transfer System (ECTS). Credits are awarded to a course on the basis of contact hours and workload.

As recommended by the Bologna declaration, a semester counts for 30 credits and a full academic year for 60 credits.

Grading scales of exams and assignments