Frequently asked questions (FAQs)

In principle, any student can deregister from registered exams within the 5-week registration period without giving reasons (withdrawal). You can deregister online via the self-service portal - similar to the examination registration phase. After this, it is no longer possible to deregister independently. In this case, a cancellation must be requested immediately, if necessary, stating and substantiating reasons.

As a general rule, you must notify the Central Examination Office immediately, i.e. without undue delay, in writing and provide plausible evidence of the reasons for withdrawal. To do this, submit the signed, informal request for withdrawal in writing, including proof, to the Central Examination Office.

If you are unable to take an exam due to ill health, you must immediately, i.e. without undue delay, submit a doctor's certificate to the Central Examination Office.

A (usually yellow) certificate of incapacity for work does not fulfil the requirements. It is not the doctor who decides whether you are fit to take the examination or not, but the examination authority. For this reason, you are obliged to disclose your symptoms and, if necessary, to release the doctor treating you from the duty of confidentiality. This does not mean that the doctor must disclose the diagnosis as such, but only the physical or psychological effects caused by the illness. Please use the form for proof of illness (doctor's certificate) for this purpose.

An official medical certificate only needs to be submitted if you withdraw from the same exam again due to illness or if it is the last resit of examination. The fees for the medical officer will not be reimbursed, as the submission of a medical certificate is an obligation of the candidate.

Cancellations of written examinations and oral examinations can be made up to 10 days before the examination date without giving reasons.

Please note: There must be at least 10 calendar days between the application process and the examination date. The day of the exam does not count in the calculation. The following also applies: if the 10-day deadline ends on a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday, the deadline is postponed to the previous working day. So if the deadline ends on Saturday, for example, the request would have to be submitted by Friday at the latest.

Here, too, the standard of immediacy must be observed. Before taking an exam, you will be asked by the examiners or invigilators whether you feel fit to take the exam. If you answer this question in the negative or are not asked, but do not feel fit to take the examination, you must proceed immediately as described in question 4. If you take the exam and then wait for the assessment, you cannot withdraw.

Resits of examinations should be repeated at the latest in the semester in which they are offered again. It is therefore not necessary to attend the corresponding lectures. From the winter semester 2021/22, you must also register for the resit of examination independently. This means that if you want to repeat a lecture that is only offered at a later date, you must also register for the exam at a later date.

No. If you de-register during the current semester, only the legal student relationship ends. The legal examination relationship continues until the end of the respective semester, i.e. all registered exams must still be taken. Otherwise, you would have to explicitly request a withdrawal from the registered exams.

There are certain performance limits for a positive BAföG notification. It is therefore stipulated by when a certain number of credits must be achieved. If you withdraw from an exam, you may not reach these boundaries. However, there are also special cases here, such as withdrawing from an exam due to illness. You should therefore clarify this with Student Services as early as possible.