ECTS

European Credit Transfer System

European Credit Transfer System, ECTS, was developed as a pilot project within the Erasmus programme in 1988-1989 and introduced as a means of improving existing common procedures and facilitating full academic recognition of periods of study abroad (within student mobility programmes in the EU and EFTA countries, and the associated states). In the Bologna Process ECTS operates not as a credit transfer system but also a basis for credits accumulation systems in the participating countries. ECTS was developed in order to recognize students’ learning outcomes from foreign higher education institutions/universities. It can also facilitate and develop student mobility and recognition of learning outcomes between institutions in one country. Full academic recognition means that study period (including exams and other crediting forms) at partner institution (either in home country or abroad) covers a comparable study period at home university (including exams and other crediting forms), even if contents of the curriculum accepted in the partner institution are different from the curriculum of the home institution. ECTS application is based on mutual trust of the cooperating institutions. ECTS can function properly only if an institution’s all students and staff know the system’s principles and mechanisms.
ECTS credits


ECTS credits are a numerical value (from 1 to 60) allocated to courses that describes the student workload necessary to complete the course. Each credit value reflects the quantity of work to be done in order to complete particular course in relation to the total quantity of work to be done in order to complete full semester (year) of study programme. All teaching forms are taken into consideration: lectures, classes, seminars, tutorials, fieldwork and examinations or other assessment activities. 60 credits represent the student workload of an academic year of study and normally 30 credits represent the workload of one semester. Institutions themselves are responsible for allocating credits to particular courses. Professional training (internships) and elective courses have credits allocated if they are an integral part of the curriculum. Non-credited courses (e.g. physical education), can also be included in a transcript of records. ECTS credits are allocated to courses and granted to students after they have completed the courses. That means credits are not granted for sheer participation in a course. Students have to complete all courses according to the receiving institution’s requirements. ECTS functions alongside with grades that reflect student’s knowledge. ECTS allows transferring grades achieved in one institution, according to its grading scale, to those in another. ECTS does not replace grades granted by an institution according to its grading scale. The institution itself decides what ECTS criteria are to be applied to its grading scale.


ECTS functioning is based on three documents:

• Course Catalogue, which presents general information about the host institution and its administrative procedures as well as detailed description of its faculties/departments and offer of  courses accompanied by ECTS credits. Course Catalogue is an information package for students and teaching staff from partner institutions. It helps choose appropriate courses and plan the studies’ scheme. It also provides practical information.
• Learning Agreement, a contract between the student and collaborating institutions (both the host and home ones). This agreement has to be signed by all parties before the student goes to the partner institution. A student obliges him/herself to complete the chosen course/s. The receiving institution is obliged to secure to the student a placement in the selected course/s, while the sending institution confirms its willingness to recognize and transfer  ECTS credits earned by the student in the partner institution (LA document often has to be accompanied by the Transcript of Records, which describes the student’s all academic learning outcomes in the sending institution).
• Transcript of Records, a list of the student’s achievements before and after period of study at another institution. All completed courses with ECTS credits and grades are recorded, as well as grades granted in accordance with the receiving institution’s grading scale.

ECTS at PWSZ in Konin

The School has the institutional ECTS coordinator and the faculty ECTS coordinators.

A institutional ECTS coordinator:

• promote the system and create the conditions for its proper realisation,
• inform students about the system, partner institutions and their programmes,
• contact partner institutions,
• monitor the production and distribution of course catalogues.

A faculty ECTS coordinator:

• advise students on courses from the receiving school’s offer,
• approve study programme before the student goes to the partner institution,
• approve learning outcomes achieved in the partner institution,
• assist incoming students,
• inform colleagues on ECTS,
• be the ‘contact-person’ for students and teaching staff.

PWSZ in Konin applies the following transfer criteria:

ECTS grade	PWSZ in Konin grade
A	very good	5.0
B	good plus	4.5
C	good	4.0
D	satisfactory plus	3.5
E	satisfactory	3.0
F	failing	2.0