What is deliberating?
Failed courses will be tolerated based on your WCD (weighted-credit-deficit), based on how big the point deficit is, for how big of a course. Courses are measured in credits or study points (SP). Make sure to check the conditions on this page, how to calculate your WCD and all other information on when and how failed courses can be tolerated.
Don't feel like calculating everything up front?
No need. You can just wait for your exam results and find the result of your deliberation on your transcript of records.
Who qualifies for deliberation?
Whether you can be deliberated, depends on a few factors:
You can only be deliberated if you have obtained a result for all the courses you are registered for.
If there is an 'absent' on your transcript of records from the first term or you still have to submit a thesis, for example, you will first get the chance to participate in retakes and can only be deliberated after the second term. In this case, you have to retake all failed courses in August (see also 'The basic rules').
Your failed courses can be tolerated if you've taken up all courses in your programme (except exemptions) and taken an exam for each course. This means when you are finishing your:
- first Bachelor year (BA1)
- Preparatory programme (PP)
- full Bachelor programme (BA)
- full Master programme (MA)
- Advanced Master
You also need to meet the conditions (lower on this page) to qualify for toleration.
You do not qualify for toleration if you haven't taken all the courses (except exemptions) of your programme. This means if you haven' taken all study points (or credits) of your preparatory programme, or when finishing your:
- second year Bachelor (BA2)
- first year of a 2-year Master programme (MA1)
- second year of a 3-year Master programme (Medicine)
If a course result is based on a Pass/No Pass you do not qualify for toleration in case you obtain a 'No Pass'.
Deliberation conditions
Do you qualify for toleration? Then your failed classes may be tolerated if you meet the following conditions:
- Your weighted average is 55% or higher. Check you transcript of records, or calculate it yourself (see below). If you don't have a result for each course, your weighted average can't be calculated and you can't be tolerated.
- You have no more than 2 failed courses (everything lower than 10/20 is a failed course), no result is lower than 8/20 and you don't have more than one 8/20.
=> If you score a 7/20 or lower, or you have more than 2 failed classes, your failed courses can not be tolerated and you wil have to retake all failed courses in the next exam period.
- You did not fail a course that doesn't allow failing. See below for an overview of these courses.
- You don't surpass your maximum allowed WCD (weighted credit deficit). See below to calculate this yourself.
These regulations are applied automatically. You don't have to request to be tolerated. If you qualify and you meet all the conditions, you will automatically be tolerated.
The basic rules
- If your failed courses were not tolerated after the first exam sessions (January & June), you need to retake all failed courses in the second exam session. Your results are not transferred to the next exam session and only the most recent result is valid. Not retaking a failed course will result in an 'ABSENT' and means you have to retake the course in the next exam session.
- Credits (study points) and results from external courses (at other universities) are taken into account for deliberations.
- If your failed result was tolerated, it will be marked on your transcript of records as TF for 'tolerated fail'. You don't need to retake this course in your current programme, and you have passed your programme. However it will always be marked on your transcript of records that you did not pass this particular class, so you will have to retake it if you ever change to a different programme.
- Do you wish to retake a failed course that was tolerated in the 2nd exam session (August)? Then you will have to retake all failed courses and only your new/most recent results will be valid. You need to request this with your faculty secretariat within 7 days after your results were published at the end of the second semester.
You can calculate your own WCD. It's impossible for our staff to calculate this for each student individually. There's no need to calculate this up front, because all regulations and conditions are applied automatically on your transcript of records.
Weighted Credit Deficit (WCD)
Calculate your own WCD, and make sure it's not higher than your maximum allowed WCD.
Step 1: Calculate your WCD
E.g.: A 9/20 for a 3 credit course
=> 1 (point deficit) x 3 (credits) = 3 WCD
E.g.: An 8/20 for a 6 credit course
=> 2 (points deficit) x 6 (credits) = 12 WCD
Add the WCD for your failed courses together. This is your total WCD. In this example: 3 + 12 = 15 total WCD.
Step 2: Lower than your maximum allowed WCD?
Is your total WCD lower than your maximum allowed WCD? Then your failed courses will be tolerated and you won't have to retake them.
If your total WCD is higher than your maximum allowed WCD, you won't be deliberated and none of your failed courses will be tolerated. You will have to retake all of your failed courses during the next exam session.
What is your maximum allowed WCD?
Students doing a preparatory programme or shortened programme, will always have to calculate their own WCD, regardless of whether they have exemptions.
Finishing your BA1 - first Bachelor year
Did you take all BA1 courses?
=> max allowed = 18 WCD
Are you not taking all courses because you have exemptions?
Calculate yourself:
(credits taken in your programme x 18) / 60
It doesn't matter if your bachelor programme has less than 60 credits.
Calculation examples
Finishing your full Bachelor programme
Did you take all BA courses?
=> max allowed = 18 WCD
Are you not taking all courses because you have exemptions?
Calculate yourself:
(credits taken in your programme x 18) / 120
If you are combining courses from BA2 and BA3, you can add all credits taken over both years.
Calculation examples
Finishing your Preparatory Programme
Did you take all preparatory programme courses?
=> max allowed = 18 WCD for a preparatory programme of 90 credits
When your preparatory programme consists of less than 90 ECTS credits, you need to calculate your maximum weighted credit deficit yourself. You can use the formula underneath (for exemptions).
Are you not taking all courses because you have exemptions?
Calculate yourself:
(credits taken in your programme x 18) / 90
Does your programme have more than 90 credits? Then the max GPT is capped at 18.
Calculation examples
Finishing your Master or Advanced Master (60 credits)
Did you take all programme courses?
=> max allowed = 12 WCD
Are you not taking all courses because you have exemptions?
Calculate yourself:
(credits taken in your programme x 12) / 60
Calculation examples
Finishing your Master (90 credits)
Did you take all master courses?
=> max allowed = 13.5 WCD
Are you not taking all courses because you have exemptions?
Calculate yourself:
(credits taken in your programme x 13.5) / 90
Calculation examples
Finishing your Master or Advanced Master (120 credits)
Did you take all programme courses?
=> max allowed = 18 WCD
Are you not taking all courses because you have exemptions?
Calculate yourself:
(credits taken in your programme x 18) / 120
Calculation examples
Calculate your own weighted average
Your weigther average is also mentioned on
Your transcript of records
Multiply the credits of each course with the result you scored for the course. Add these for each of your courses.
Example: A 12/20 for a 6 credit course and a 15/20 for a 3 credit course
- 12 x 6 = 72 and 15 x 3 = 45
- 72 + 45 = 117
Divide that number by the total amount of credits taken in your programme. This results in a score out of 20.
- 6 credits + 3 credits = 9 credits taken in total
- 117 / 9 = 13 (or 13/20)
Multiply this result out of 20 by 5, to get a percentage. This is your weighted average.
- 13 x 5 = 65 (weighted average is 65%)
Exceptions to the tolerated fails
There are courses you have to pass. These will never allow a tolerated fail or deliberation; These courses have been approved by the education board and are mentioned in the teaching and examination rules.
Check which courses don't tolerate fails below:
Engineering
Master Fotonica // Master Photonics Engineering // European Master Photonics
- Within this interuniversity program no fail mark is tolerated for any course unit.
All Master programs
- Master thesis
- Compulsory internship(s)
Psychology and Educational Sciences
Enkel de stage en masterproef kunnen niet gedelibereerd worden binnen de opleidingen van de faculteit.
Law and Criminology
Enkel de stage, de bachelor- en de masterproef kunnen niet gedelibereerd worden binnen de opleidingen van de faculteit.
Social Sciences and Solvay Business School
Only the internship, Bachelor's and Master's thesis can never be deliberated within your programme.
Languages and Humanities
Geschiedenis
- Werkcollege status en identiteit in de Klassieke Oudheid (BA1)
- Werkcollege middeleeuwse geschiedenis (BA1)
- Werkcollege Belgen in de wereld (BA1)
- Werkcollege vroegmoderne criminaliteitsgeschiedenis (BA1)
- Heuristiek: bronnen voor de geschiedenis (BA1)
- Bachelorproef, Masterproef en/of verplichte stage(s)
Kunstwetenschappen en Archeologie
- Werkcollege Kunstgeschiedenis (BA1)
- Werkcollege Archeologie (BA1)
- Bachelorproef, Masterproef en/of verplichte stage(s)
Taal- en Letterkunde
- Onderzoeksmethodologie: Taal- en Letterkunde (BA)
- Onderzoeksmethodologie: Letterkunde (MA)
- Onderzoeksmethodologie: Taalkunde (MA)
- Bachelorproef, Masterproef en/of verplichte stage(s)
Toegepaste Taalkunde
- Vertaalatelier Frans (MA Vertalen)
- Vertaalatelier Duits (MA Vertalen)
- Vertaalatelier Engels (MA Vertalen)
- Vertaalatelier Spaans (MA Vertalen)
- Taalatelier Nederlands (MA Vertalen)
- Bachelorproef, Masterproef en/of verplichte stage(s)
Linguistics and Literary Studies
- Research Methodology : Linguistics and Literary Studies (BA)
- Research Methodology: Literary Studies (MA)
- Research Methodology: Linguistics (MA)
- Translation Studies and Research Methodology (MA)
- Interpreting Studies and Research Methodology (MA)
- Bachelor- or Master thesis and/or mandatory internship(s)
Educational Master
- Vakdidactiek II (alle specialisaties)
- Professioneel leraarschap
- Krachtige leeromgeving (alle specialisaties)
- Positief en inclusief leefklimaat (alle specialisaties)
- Bachelorproef, Masterproef en/of verplichte stage(s)
Educatieve Master Talen
- onderzoeksmethodologie: Letterkunde
- onderzoeksmethodologie: Taalkunde
- Bachelorproef, Masterproef en/of verplichte stage(s)
Medicine and Pharmacy
Sciences and Bio-engineering Sciences
Physical Education and Physiotherapy
Did I pass, fail or get tolerated?
To pass your courses you get 2 chances. The first exam session (January & June) and the second exam session (August). When do you pass?
After the first exam session (January & June)
- You scored at least 10/20 for every course = you passed
- You didn't score at least 10/20 for every course, but you qualify for toleration and meet all the conditions = you passed
- You didn't score at least 10/20 for every course, and you don't qualify to be tolerated or meet the conditions = You need to retake your failed courses in the second exam session
After the second exam session (August)
- You scored at least 10/20 for every course = you passed
- You didn't score at least 10/20 for every course, but you qualify for toleration and meet all the conditions = you passed
- You didn't score at least 10/20 for every course, and you don't qualify to be tolerated or meet the conditions = You need to retake your failed courses during the next academic year
=> participating in second session means these results become permanent