Article 1: Statement of approval & definitions
Statement of approval
The examination regulations apply to all students of the Centre for Distance Learning. Every student who registers for a course agrees with these regulations.
Definitions
Centre for Distance Learning vzw: Part of the Ondernemersschool bv, located at Marksingel 2A, 4811 BREDA NV, with telephone number 03 / 292.33.30 and with VAT number NL853617582B01, hereinafter referred to as “the school”.
Student: (i) The person or legal entity who registers with the school or receives a quote for professional training. This entity has a professional goal in mind, namely enrolling in a course. (ii) The private individual/consumer who does not exercise a profession and follows a hobby course for non-professional purposes.
Course: A professional (home) study, course or any form of education provided by the school that leads to a profession. a professional course can be divided into one or more training module(s)and can be spread over several training periods/years.
Article 2: Certificates
For courses where an exam is provided, students can obtain a diploma or certificate if they pass said exam. The type of certificate that one obtains depends on the course. This information is available to the student on the website at all times. The student declares that he/she is aware of this when registering for a course.
Each exam is organized according to the rules and regulations set out below in such a way as to give students the opportunity to prove they have the required competences for the professional purpose they have in mind.
Article 3: Time and place of the exams
The student themselves decide when to take the online exam and can schedule it via their online student profile. This should be done at least a week in advance. The application will be processed within 48 hours and becomes final when the student receives confirmation from the school. In the confirmation, they’ll find the details of the exam: date, time and any relevant information.
Up to 5 years after registering for the course, the student retains the right to take an exam. Within that time, no exam fees apply.
Article 4: Examinations for a protected profession
If the course relates to a government-regulated profession in the Netherlands, the student will take an exam at the Central Examination Board in Brussels. This is the case with:
Regulated professions: In that case, the student takes an exam at the Central Examination Commission in Brussels, in order to obtain the certificate with which one is entitled to practice said profession.
Secondary education: The student takes the exam at the Examination board of Secondary Education of the Flemish Community in order to obtain an official secondary education diploma. The student can take a mock exam at the school in preparation. The same conditions apply to the mock exam that apply to standard exams at the school.
Article 5: Conditions for taking exams
Students can only participate in an exam if they’ve paid their tuition fees
Participation in an exam may be subject to certain conditions, such as the timely submission of papers. The school can determine that students who do not meet the conditions set receive a “fail” for the relevant course unit.
During the exam, students must be able to prove their identity. Students must use a valid ID. If the student cannot provide a valid ID, the student will be marked absent for the exam.
Article 6: Catch-up exams
Students who registered for an exam but cannot take it must let the school know at least one working days in advance with a valid medical certificate or the necessary supporting documents in case of force majeure. Subsequently, the student can schedule a catch-up exam with the school at a later date. This can be done via the online student platform.
Article 7: Assignment submission deadline
If a specific deadline has been set for the submission os a paper, but students believe they can’t meet said deadline for a good reason, they must contact the school before the specified submission date.
The school may determine that, if the submission deadline is not respected, the paper will be considered not submitted and the student may receive a zero score on it.
Article 8: Examination format and duration
The student is informed about the details of the exam in advance. These are determined based on the competences to be assessed. Besides digital questions, the exams can consist of written and oral questions, or of completing a practical assignment, depending on the specific program. Unless specifically stated otherwise, each exam takes place without the help of any written or digital references or aids.
Article 8.1: Guessing correction
In the case of digital questions (online examination), the answers are automatically evaluated by the system using an application of guessing correction. In this process, each correct answer is awarded 1 point. Not answering questions results in no points. For an incorrect answer, the score is reduced based on the number of answer options at a rate of 1/ (number of answer alternatives – 1). This means that randomly guessing answers is penalized. For instance, if a student answers a question with four answer options incorrectly, -1/3 point is deducted. For a question with three answer options, it's -1/2 point. In the case of a true/false question, 1 point is deducted.
Article 9: Audio and video recordings of the exam
The student agrees that video and audio recordings will be made during the exam in order to provide evidence in the event of a complaint or appeal procedure. The school can also use the recordings for internal quality purposes.
Article 10: Irregularities
Any student behavior that prevents correct evaluation of the planned competence goals(e.g cheating, plagiarism) is considered irregular behavior and entitles the school to stop the exam and automatically give the student a zero score. The student also loses the right to retake the exam in question.
Article 11: Mobile phone
During the exam, the student must switch off their mobile phone, smartphone or other electronic device, unless the use of said device is explicitly permitted by the subject teacher of the course the exam pertains to. If the student does not comply with this rule, the school retains the right to stop the exam and automatically give the student a zero score. The student then loses the right to retake the exam in question
Article 12: Grading scale
A full course unit is graded at 100%, and the result of an exam is expressed in percent only. The school may decide that a course unit or part of one will be graded in a pass/fail format. Any partial marks are converted by the subject teacher or by agreement between different teachers.
Article 13: Passing criteria
Students pass a course if they achieve a score of at least 60% during the competency examination. If the training program consists of theory and practice, then the student needs to score 60% on both components.
Article 14: Passing criteria for an all-round course
An all-round course consists of several courses. To pass an all-round training course, the student must achieve at least achieve a score of at least 60% during the competency examination. The student receives a diploma for each course unit, provided that they passed the exam. If the student has passed all courses, they also obtain an all-round diploma.
Article 15: Non-participation in an exam
If students fail to participate in an exam, they would be graded as “not present”.
Article 16: Loss of an exam
In the very exceptional scenario that the educational institution or the teacher loses the exam and the school is responsible for the loss of the exam, a new exam time will be scheduled in consultation with the student or the class. The details of the new exam are discussed with the student or class concerned.
Article 17: Announcing results
The members of the evaluation committee and all persons present at the evaluation are bound by absolute secrecy regarding the voting process. The subject teachers communicate the results as soon as possible after the exam via the student platform. You can immediately review your results and grade via the student profile. The diploma itself is mailed as soon as possible. The school is not responsible for any delay in mail carrier services.
Article 18: Discussion of results and right to feedback
The student has the right to review their exam alongside the teacher. They must request a feedback appointment at the school secretariat, if they have a valid reason. Nothing from the exam may be copied or taken out of the inspection room.
The school can decide to schedule a feedback appointment if the student has failed to pass the exam several times.
Article 19: Appeal period
If the student does not agree with their final grade, they have an appeal period of 14 calendar days(starting from the moment the exam results became available to them) to submit a registered complaint to the school. This complaint is then presented to a jury consisting a member of management, administration, and a senior lecturer. The decision of the jury may lead to the appeal being denied, a confirmation or the original decision, or a revision of the original decision.
Article 20: Re-examinations
Students can retake an exam as many times as they want, as long as they do not exceed the 5 year period (counted from the date of registration) and unless the school has determined that the student has cheated or failed to comply with exam regulations. If the student has not passed after 2 retakes, the school can consult the student and help them by adjusting their learning method.