Faculty of Science

Important information - FAQ

FAQ Graduation

Questions about the Master's degree

What do I have to do to have my Master's thesis grade appear in my CTS profile?

Please ask the directorate of studies of your subject to enter the grade of your Master's thesis in CTS. At the same time, submit the corrected Master's thesis and the assessment electronically to the Dean's Office. After a referendum period of one week (mon. - mon.) (approval by the Study Committee of the Faculty of Science, according to Art. 53, RSL Phil.-nat. 18), the Dean's Office transfers the Master's grade to your CTS profile.

What do I have to do to apply for the Master's degree?

  1. Your Master`s major program must be set to "requirements fulfilled" in CTS. To do so, you must press "Request graduation" in CTS. At the same time consult the major's website. If necessary, the directorate of studies will request further documents from you. The directorate of studies will check whether you have fulfilled all requirements for the degree according to the respective curriculum. Afterwards your status will be set to "requirements fulfilled", and the dean's office will be informed. See here.
    (Please do NOT press "Request completion" in the top row in CTS! This wont work and you will get an error message)
  2. The dean's office reviews whether the standard duration of study according to Art. 12, RSL Phil.-nat. 18 was met and then prepares your degree documents. You will receive an e-mail as soon as your documents are ready and you will be requested to submit the following documents to the dean's office; form "Master's degree" and confirmation for your money transfer for the performance assessment fee (Art. 40, RSL Phil.-nat. 18) of CHF 300.- . See here.
    If your degree program has already been set to "requirements fulfilled" in CTS for several weeks and you have not received an e-mail from the dean's office, please contact us personally.

When I apply for a degree in CTS, I receive the message "Please apply for a degree personally in the dean's office". Do I really have to come by in person?

If this message appears, you have made the request for graduation in the wrong place in CTS. Please try one line below, in the Master's Major.

Here you will find detailed instructions:
https://www.philnat.unibe.ch/studies/graduation/index_eng.html

I have already paid the performance assessment fee of CHF 300 for my Bachelor's degree. Do I have to do this again for the Master's degree?

Yes, the performance assessment fee must be paid for each course of studies.

Can I also pay the performance assessment fee of CHF 300 in cash at the dean's office?

No, you have to show the confirmation of payment already made at the dean's office (e-banking statement or receipted payment slip).

How is the matriculation requirement for a Master's degree regulated?

The final, corrected Master's thesis, including the assessment of the supervisor, must be submitted to the dean's office by the end of calendar week 7 or 37 at the latest.

 

Procedure for a Graduation at Master's degree

 

Questions about the PhD completion

Do I have to be registered at the time of my defence?

Yes, you must be registered during your defence. We use the academic year as a basis: autumn semester: August 1st to January 31st, spring semester: February 1st to July 31st.

Why do I have to hand in my dissertation and assesments 3 weeks before the defence at the dean's office?

You will only be admitted to the doctoral examination after the faculty has reviewed and approved your assessment and grade (PromR Phil.-nat. 19 Art. 20 Abs. 6).

Submission of the doctoral thesis to the Dean’s Office

The final and corrected doctoral thesis (1 copy) must be handed in at the Dean's Office. This copy will be signed by the Dean and returned to you.
After the doctoral examination you are obliged to publish your dissertation via BORIS Theses on the server of the University Library.

In which language can dissertations be written?

Dissertations may be written in German, French or English. Exceptions can be approved by the faculty upon request.

How many examiners must be present at my defence?

The doctoral examination is conducted by at least two examiners. One examiner chairs the examination. She or he must be a professor or full professor at the Faculty of Science. She or he cannot be the supervisor of your dissertation.

How is the grade of the doctoral thesis calculated?

The unrounded arithmetic mean of the two individual grades is determined as the grade for the doctoral thesis by the supervisor and the co-referees (PromR Phil.-nat. 19 Art. 20 Abs. 1+7).

How is the total grade of my doctoral examination calculated?

The overall grade is calculated from the unrounded mark of the doctoral thesis and the unrounded mark of the doctoral examination. You will find the weighting regulations in the curriculum of your subject.

Can I view the assessments of my dissertation in the dean's office?

We at the dean's office are not entitled to show you the assessments. It is up to your supervisor to decide whether she or he wants to show you the assessments.

 

Procedure for the completion of a PhD