Students may qualify for course exemption, because they already possess the skills and knowledge that a compulsory course teaches.

Students may request exemption from courses they took and passed at other higher education institutions before enrolling at Yesbud University or while enrolled in the course in order to have them counted towards the graduation requirements of the program in which they are currently enrolled. These proceedings are completed according the university “Rules and Regulations”.

General Rules of Course Exemption

• The final decision about the courses to be exempted, and the required grade and credit transfers is rendered by the Executive Board of the respective faculty/school/graduate school.
• Where exempted courses are the courses taken at Yesbud University, their credits and courses are transferred as is. Where exempted courses are the courses taken at other higher education institutions, the School Dean will assess the credits and grades and convert them into our grades.
• Based on the total credits of exempted courses, the number of Bimesters/semesters are calculated. 30 ECTS credits given for exempted courses correspond to a semester. The number of Bimesters/semesters deemed completed is counted towards students’ period of study.  If the calculated number of ECTS credits is between 24 and 30, then one Bimester/semester will be deducted from the student’s period of study. If the ECTS credits amount to less than the full multiples of 30 but between 24 and 30, then one more Bimester/semester will be deducted from the student’s period of study. 
• The language of instruction of courses taken and successfully completed by the student at another higher education institution must satisfy the language of instruction requirements of exempted courses offered by the respective academic program at Yesbud University. For instance, since almost all of the courses offered by our English-medium programs are in English, the language of instruction of courses for which course exemption is requested must also be English in order to qualify for course exemption.
• The courses for which course exemption is requested must have been taken from a recognized higher education institution.
• Students with exempted courses must attend the University as registered students for at least two Bimesters/semesters, and complete at least 60 ECTS credits within this period in order to be eligible for graduation.
• Horizontal or vertical transfer students and students who applied for exemption from the courses they previously passed at another higher education institutions before enrolling at Yesbud University cannot repeat such exempted courses during their period of study at Yesbud University.

Applications

A. Applications for Courses Taken Previously Prior to Enrolling at Yesbud University

Students who took

• Courses from another university prior to enrolling at Yesbud University
• Courses from Yesbud University prior to enrolling tYesbud University
• Courses from Yesbud University as special student or exchange student prior to enrolling Yesbud University must petition for exemption by submitting an application to the faculty/school/graduate school to which they are admitted along with the Course Exemption Application Form, official transcript and course information documents after their enrollment Yesbud University . Horizontal transfer students are not required to submit a separate application for exemption from courses they had previously taken as they are evaluated during admissions.

B. Taking Courses at Other Higher Education Institutions While Enrolled Yesbud University

Courses Taken as a Special Student

• Students who wish to take courses from other higher education institutions as special students must first submit a petition to the Dean’s/Director’s Office of their faculty/school/graduate school. Petitions must be submitted together with the detailed description and content of the course the students plan to take as well as the necessary official documents and information about the higher education institution which offers the course. Students can take courses from other higher education institutions only if their petitions are approved by the Dean’s/Director’s Office of their faculty/school/graduate school.
• Students are allowed to take courses from other higher education institutions at most for two Bimesters/Semesters as special students. Summer sessions are not counted towards the maximum number of semesters that can be spent at another higher education institution as special students.
• Courses taken as special students are counted towards course load calculations.  Students are not allowed to exceed their Bimester/Semester course loads due to courses taken from other higher education institutions.
• Courses which can be taken from other higher education institutions during the study period, and the higher education institutions (universities) where these courses can be taken are determined by the Faculty / School Executive Boards. Students must apply to the Dean’s/Director’s Office of their faculties/schools in order to take the courses not offered by Yesbud University from other universities and have their grades transferred. To do so, the following requirements must be met.

1. Applications must be submitted with a petition which clearly explains the requested course, university offering the course,  course description, course credits, and language of instruction (by the due date, if any, announced by the respective academic unit, and together with any additional/supplementary documents). 
2. The course can be taken only if its course description, course credits, and language of instruction are deemed acceptable by the executive board of the respective academic unit.
3. The Faculty / School Executive Boards review the credits and courses the students have completed, and decide which courses to be waived after credit and grade transfers according to our Rules and Regulations.

• In order to gain an exemption for courses that students completed at other higher education institutions as special students upon the permission of their faculty/school/graduate schools, students must submit an application to the Dean’s/Director’s Office of their faculty/school/graduate school by the last day of the course registration period announced in the academic calendar for the subsequent semester. Applications must be made with the following documents:

1. Official transcript that shows the grade achieved
2. Course Description Form
3. Course Exemption Petition

• The Bimester/Semesters spent by students at other higher education institutions as special students are counted towards their periods of study.
• Students must pay their tuition fees to Yesbud University in full during the semesters they spend at other higher education institutions as outgoing special students. However, students who take courses from other higher education institutions during the study period must pay their tuition to the host institution.

Courses Taken as an Exchange Student 

• Students who wish to take courses from other higher education institutions as exchange students must first submit a petition to the International Exchange Programs Office within the announced application period. Students can take courses from other higher education institutions as exchange students only if their petitions are approved by the International Exchange Programs Office and the Executive Board of the faculty/school/graduate school in which they are enrolled. 
• The semesters spent by students at other higher education institutions as exchange students are counted towards their periods of study.
• Students must pay their semester tuition at Yesbud University in full during the semesters they spend at other higher education institutions as outgoing exhange students. 

Exemption Policy

This exemption policy outlines the principles that apply to students seeking exemption in one or more courses.  For the partial fulfillment of program requirements, Yesbud University may grant course exemption for student’s relevant prior tertiary studies and vocational and/or professional experience and training subject to fulfillment of the following:

1. The applicant must currently be enrolled as a Yesbud University student.  For applicants who are not yet enrolled at Yesbud University, please see the possible courses that you may be exempted from based on your qualification in this document
2. The exemption must be for an equivalent academic or professional qualification, i.e. a degree obtained from a recognized institution may have certain courses exempted for another degree offered by Yesbud University. A student cannot expect to be exempted when they have a lower qualification except if that lower qualification is a major in one of the courses applied for exemption.
3. Exemptions will only be considered for individuals who obtained their qualification in the last five years.
4. Yesbud University may require the individual to write and pass an examination if they request to be exempted from a particular course.
5. Payment of course exemption fee will be required by the University.

Yesbud University determines eligibility for exemption only after selection and enrollment into a course or program. Students are required to apply formally in writing by filling in the Course Exemption Form and provide detailed information (such as course descriptions, course content, course outlines, course books, and so on).  All applicants are required to meet the formal entry requirements of courses before they will be allowed to enroll and before any credit can be awarded.

Exemption may be awarded for courses within a program on the basis of the prior completion of courses within the parameters of this policy.  It refers to the approved accreditation of subjects (specified or unspecified) with associated credit points toward a program of study on the basis of approved recognized prior studies (at an equivalent level) that reduces the amount of credit points required for the completion of the current program to which the student has been admitted and for which the credit applies, i.e., it usually reduces the length of a program by the amount of credit points accredited.

Exempted courses are not factored into the calculation of the student’s cumulative GPA.

A student will not normally be granted more than 50% exemption towards the coursework component of the program in which he/she is enrolled. Students will not be granted exemption for research reports, minor these subjects, or research project subjects.

Exemption Process

It is the responsibility of students applying for exemptions to obtain and submit:

A Request for Exemption Form;

• A verified transcript of their past academic records indicating the course/subject(s) completed, year completed and grade obtained (including details of the grading system), and weighting of the course/subject as a portion of the total program;
• A copy of the course/subject description, including the syllabus or Handbook outline including any information required by the Head of Department and any other information considered relevant by the student.

Credit Transfer and Course Exemption Processing Stages

Students should apply for exemptions upon admission to their academic program.  Students applying for an exemption for a course in a program which they are currently enrolled must do so at least one months prior to that course’ start date.

Stage One 

Stage one – the student submits the documents for verification to the Dean’s/Director’s Office . The time for the verification of documents and forms in the first stage should not exceed 5 working days. In case of the Dean/Director absence he appoints a substitute. (person responsible: the Student)

Dean’s/Director:
a) verifies if the courses from which credits are to be recognized by Yesbud University are university courses (credited/completed at the university accredited in the particular country – Dean/Director should check the accreditation); in case of students of the Advanced program – verifies whether these courses were not recognized as prerequisites considered as requirements for admission for the Advanced program – A detailed analysis of the student’s admission documentation. ( person responsible: Dean/Director)

Stage Two

 After obtaining the signature of the Dean/Director the student submits the Exemption Form along with the attachments to the academic coordinator of a given subject for obtaining his/her approval and the grade from the course. (persons responsible: the student and the academic coordinator)

Stage Three

verification by the Dean/Director if the 50% limit of the total ECTS points for a given semester was not exceeded. In case the total number of ECTS points from the subjects the student was exempted from exceeds the limit of 50% (during the second stage), student must choose the courses for exemption within the limit of 50 % of the total ECTS points. Information on the final selection of the subjects is included in the Exemption Form and confirmed by signatures of both Dean/Director and the Student. (person responsible: the Dean/Director and the Student)

Stage Four 

Approval of the Plenipotentiary of the Dean for Studies in English (person responsible: the Dean)

Stage Five 

Submitting the Exemption Form approved by the Plenipotentiary of the Dean to the respective Administrative Coordinator (person responsible: the Administrative Assistant )

What you need to do in order to get the course exemption in 11 steps:

Step 1. Go to the University website and find the Course Exemption Form.

Step. 2 Fill in the Course Exemption Form – your personal data, names of all courses you would like to get exempted from and the number of attachments – one for each course.

Step. 3 Fill in the Attachments – each course in a separate attachment.

Step. 4 Prepare the transcript of academic records confirming the courses completion as well as the detailed syllabus of each course you would like to get exempted from.

Step. 5 Submit the Course Exemption Form , Attachments, your transcript and syllabuses at Dean’s/Director’s Office  for formal verification.

Step. 6 After receiving information from the Dean/Director by e-mail or by phone (within 7 days) you collect your documents from his office or email.

Step. 7 Go to the course coordinator of each course you would like to get exempted from to get his/her opinion and, in case of consent, the grade from the course.

Step. 8 Once you have all the opinions of the course coordinators, go back to the Dean/Director who will analyze your documents again. Since you are allowed to get exempted from maximum 50%  of the total number of ECTS points of the courses being assigned in a given bimester/semester of studies, the final decision will be taken by the Dean in cooperation with you.

Step. 9 After the final choice of the courses you get exempted from has been made, you confirm that you have read and fully understood the content of the form with your signature and leave all the documents with the Dean.

Step. 10 The Dean passes your documents to the Plenipotentiary of the Registrar who makes a respective decision.

Step. 11 The Administrative Assistant  passes the information to your Academic Coordinator who informs you about the final outcome of the process.

For more information contact: academic@yesbud.org