Course Selection

UR's course catalogue is also referred to as "SPUR. It contains information on all courses taught at the university during one semester, and offers information on course titles, name and contact details of instructor, module ID, ECTS credits and time of instruction. For the majority of courses it is possible to do also the course registration through this portal. However, this is only possible after your arrival in Regensburg when you have received your Regensburg computer account.

Where can you find the course catalogue?

SPUR can be accessed by opening the UR home page and then clicking on "Course Catalog". In addition, you can also access the directory in SPUR (after you have been admitted to UR and received your computer account).

⇒ UR Course Catalogue

Do you need to login for using SPUR?

Please note that you only need to log into the course catalogue to use advanced options (course registration, time table…). For getting basic information on course options, a login is not required.

How do you use SPUR?

The International Office offers several information sessions on course selection and the use of SPUR during the orientiation days in Regensburg. However, you may already familiarize yourselves with SPUR with the help of our tutorial.

Where can you find the courses for the next semester?

The course catalogue always lists the current semester first. If you want to see the courses offered in the upcoming semester, please make sure to select the correct semester/term you want to view. If you cannot find the courses for the upcoming semester, it means that the course catalogue has not yet been published.

When will the course catalogue be published?

The course catalogue for winter semester will usually be published mid-July.
The course catalogue for summer semester will usually be published mid- January.

Where can I see the language of instruction?

If you are using the English version of the course catalogue, all courses should be displayed with an English title. This does not mean however that they are also taught in English! You need to look at the course details and check the column "Language of Instruction" to see whether the course is taught in German, English, Spanish etc.

For more information on courses taught in English, please make sure to check the section "Courses taught in English" below.

The University of Regensburg has a large offer of courses for students wishing to learn German.

For exchange students the following two options apply:

• Learning German before the academic lecture period starts (Intensive Language Course, ILC)
• Learning German parallel to the academic lectures

Naturally, both can be combined!

Learning German before the academic lecture period  (ILC)

Exchange students who would like to improve their German skills before the academic lectures start, viz. in September or March, are welcome to participate in the preparatory Intensive Language Course (ILC). Students can sign up for the ILC as part of their general online application for studies as an exchange student.

For details, please see our section on "Orientation and ILC"

Learning German during the Semester

The University or Regensburg offers a large variety of German language courses during the semester for students who wish to improve their German language skills. These courses are free of charge for exchange students and are offered on all language levels up to C2.

On the basis of a placement test during the orientation course, students know which language level is best for them. This placement test is without any costs for exchange students. Students register for their language courses during the orientation program.

⇒ Detailed information on our German language courses

Many departments at UR offer courses taught in English.
Please note that these courses are designed primarly for students in their final year of bachelor studies, and for master students.

There are three types:

•     Regular courses taught in English
  Here, exchange students and German students take a course together that is part of the regular course offerings of the subject area (e.g. international and German students of business take the course "Strategic Business Marketing" together).
   
•     Subject courses that are taught in English but are specifically designed for exchange students
  This is the case, for example, when you want to give exchange students an insight or overview that German students usually already have, such as with the course "The German Economy".
   
•     Courses taught in English and open to exchange students from all subjects
  Exchange students studying different degrees all study a course together, e.g. with the "German and European Studies Program for Exchange Students".

All these courses are academic courses and you get ECTS credits for all of them.
 

Below you will find all courses that are taught in English:

⇒ All courses taught in English

ECTS, the European Credit Transfer System, is a tool to improve the academic recognition for study abroad. It provides a way of measuring and comparing learning achievements and transferring them from one institution to another.

ECTS Credit Points

ECTS credits are a value allocated to course units to describe the student workload required to complete them. They reflect the quantity of work each course requires in relation to the total quantity of work required to complete a full year of academic study at the institution, that is lecture courses, practical work, seminars, independent  work (in the library or at home), and examinations or other means of assessment.

ECTS credits are a relative value. In ECTS, 60 credit points represent the workload of a year of study; 30 credit points are allocated to a semester.

At UR, ECTS is widely used throughout almost all departments and disciplines. It is only the state examination programs such as medicine, dentistry, pharmacy and law that are not using the Bachelor/Master system, and which have not introduces ECTS for their degree seeking students. Exchange students receive ECTS for courses in their course work in these subject areas nevertheless.

See information leaflet on course choice and ECTS in our download section.

⇒ Go to download

How do you find the ECTS credits of a particular course?

The course catalogue includes all pertinant information you may need: course type, contact hours, instructor and credit points. In some cases, credits are only listed for a complete module and not for a course. If you cannot find the number of credits for an individual course, please contact us for information.

How many credits do you need?

The minimum study period for an exchange student coming to Regensburg is one semester. You will be expected to gain 30 ECTS credits per semester. To do so, the average workload will amount to approx. 12 - 16 contact hours per semester, depending on the nature of the classes. A mixture of different types of classes (lectures, seminars, exercise courses, etc.) is recommended.

Please talk to your home institution to find out how many language class credits you will be allowed to import.

Exchange students should decide with the coordinator at their home institution which types of classes (Proseminar, Hauptseminar, Vorlesung) in which subdiscipline they would like to take. Background knowledge and the study programme of the home university should be taken into account.

Once in Regensburg, you can finalize your course choice.

If you have to make any changes to your original study plan, you have to add them to your learning agreement and have these changes signed by the coordinators of your home institution and the UR.

ECTS grades

At UR, ECTS grades are not awarded to non-degree students (exchange and visiting students), and are therefore not indicated on the transcript or records.

A student’s performance is graded on the basis of the German grading system.

The German Grading System

The German grading system is based on a scale from 1 to 5, 1 being the best grade. The pass grade is 4. For a better distinction, grades can be differenciated by either 0,3 or 0,7.

In addition, courses can be graded on a “pass/fail” basis.

Grading System in the Faculty of Law

The Law Faculty uses a different grading scale in which a student's performance is graded on a scale from 0 to 18 points.

Exchange Students need to hand in with their application a so-called learning agreement. On this learning agreement they list all the courses they are planning to do and make sure that these courses will be recognized back home at their home institution.

As soon as we have received your learning agreement, we check whether your courses will be offered (or equivalent courses), and whether there are any restrictions on these courses. We also check whether you have the required language skills for your course choice. In case we foresee any difficulties, we will let you know.

Changes to your course selection should always be taken into account, as there are always last minute changes shortly before a semester begins. It is also possible that you meet time conflicts between courses which will force you to make changes.

The learning agreement should be handed in with the application. However, if you need more time to finalize your course choice, you may hand it in also after the application.

ERASMUS-Students

ERASMUS students have to fulfill several special requirements for their learning agreement as the learning agreement has the character of a formal contract between students, home institution and receiving institution.

You’ll get all information on your learning agreement format by your home institution.

1. The ERASMUS-Learning Agreement consists for 3 parts:

• Before the Mobility
• During the Mobility
• After the Mobility

For your application, the first part “Before the Mobility” is important. “During the Mobility refers to your time after arrival in Regensburg and during your studies at the University of Regensburg. This is also the part where you list the changes to your course choice and get it signed by all parties.

2. Most European partner institutions are using an Online Learning Agreement (OLA). Please get in contact with the International Office at your home university to find out which system you need to use.

3. Should you still use a paper version, you can send us the pdf vis email to get it signed.

Exchange students from overseas countries (Nord- und Südamerika, Asien, Australien)

For students from oversears partners or partners outside the ERASMUS program, we are using a paper version of the learning agreement. Please send us this form with your course choice so that we can go through your intended studies and can advise you best of any difficulties we might foresee.

The learning agreement form for overseas students can be found in our download section. It should be sent to us together with your application.