Permanence rule for university master's degree students

During their first year, students must pass 15% of the credits for which they are enrolled.

Any student who does not fulfil this requirement will not be allowed to continue on the course,although they may be permitted to begin another course leading to another University Master’s Degree. In the event of their once again failing to comply with the requirements outlined in the first paragraph of this article, they will not be permitted to enrol on a course at the UPV/EHU for the following two academic years.

2.1. The following conditions apply to those Master's degrees which result in graduates being eligible to practice a regulated profession:

• Six assessment calls will be issued per subject (two examinations per academic year).
• Students may reject an assessment call. If they do so, they will automatically be awarded a grade of ‘Not Sat’. Assessments classed as Not Sat shall not be taken into account when calculating the number of attempts made.

The grade ‘Not Sat’ will be awarded automatically when students fail to sit the test or exam that carries most weight in the subject.

• Fifth, sixth and any exceptional calls shall be assessed by an examination panel in accordance with the rules established to this effect.
• In all Faculties, and for every subject in which students are sitting fifth, sixth or exceptional examinations, the panel specified in the previous point shall be established and care shall be taken to ensure that, as far as possible, the appointed lecturers are different from those responsible for correcting the previous examinations.
• Once a student has sat all the permitted examinations for a specific subject, he or she may request that a single exceptional examination be called. Said request must be made in writing and addressed to the Vice-Chancellor of the University of the Basque Country. The decision regarding whether or not to call an exceptional examination shall be made by the Vice-Chancellor of the University of the Basque Country, who must, to this end, assess the academic transcript and other circumstances relative to the student in question.

2.2. 2.- The following conditions apply to all other Master's Degree courses:

• Four assessment calls will be issued per subject (two examinations per academic year).
• Students may reject an assessment call. If they do so, they will automatically be awarded a grade of ‘Not Sat’. Assessments classed as Not Sat shall not be taken into account when calculating the number of attempts made.

The grade ‘Not Sat’ will be awarded automatically when students fail to sit the test or exam that carries most weight in the subject.

• Third, fourth and any exceptional calls shall be assessed by an examination panel in accordance with the rules established to this effect.
• In all Master's degrees, and for every subject in which students are sitting third, fourth or exceptional examinations, the panel specified in the previous point shall be established and care shall be taken to ensure that, as far as possible, the appointed lecturers are different from those responsible for correcting the previous examinations.
• Once a student has sat all four permitted examinations for a specific subject, he or she may request that a single exceptional examination be called. Said request must be made in writing and addressed to the Vice-Chancellor of the University of the Basque Country. The decision regarding whether or not to call an exceptional examination shall be made by the Vice-Chancellor of the University of the Basque Country, who must, to this end, assess the academic file and other circumstances relative to the student in question.

2.3. A maximum of one exceptional examination may be called per subject, with a maximum of two per syllabus and per student.

2.4. Composition of Examination Panels

Members of the panels referred to in sections 2.1 and 2.2 shall be appointed during the first term of each academic year by the Board of the Faculty running the Master's Degree course, in response to suggestions made by the Master's Degree Academic Commission.

Panels shall be made up of three lecturers on the Master's Degree course, who, in addition to the examination result, shall also bear in mind the student's academic record and other circumstances.

Panels and their members shall be announced during the first term of every academic year.

2.5. Students who have unsuccessfully exhausted all opportunities to pass a subject will not be permitted to continue with the course of study they have undertaken at this University.

Students of all Master's degrees, regardless of their teaching model (classroom-based, semi classroom-based or distance learning) have a time limit for finishing their studies of two academic years over and above the academic years deemed necessary for earning the degree, which will vary depending on the dedication model selected (part-time or full time). A student is deemed to have selected the part-time model when the number of credits for which they enrol in the first year is lower than that established in the Master’s verified proposal.

Students who have unsuccessfully exhausted all the time permitted to complete their degree will not be permitted to continue with the course of study they have undertaken at this University.

Articles 1, 2 and 3 do not apply to students deemed to be in any of the following circumstances:

• Duly justified prolonged illness lasting more than one study term.
• Other duly justified circumstances of force majeure.

If enrolment is cancelled at the request of the student, the effect on permanence will be same as if the student had never enrolled in the first place.

 Any request stemming from the application of these rules (with the exception of that stipulated in articles 2.1. and 2.2. regarding exceptional calls) should be first addressed to the Dean or Director. Should they so wish, students then have a maximum period of one month in which to file an appeal against the Dean or Director's decision with the Vice-Chancellor.

These permanence rules shall come into effect at the beginning of the 2023-2024 academic year and shall apply to University Master's Degree courses.

The Postgraduate Commission is authorised to establish complementary regulations to develop this rule.

Authority in the matter of any interpretation or resolution issues that may arise during the application of these regulations is delegated to the Pro Vice-Chancellor responsible for Postgraduate Studies.

The Postgraduate Commission is authorised to modify these rules in subsequent academic years.

Any provisions that oppose that stipulated in these Regulations are repealed.