FAQ: Physics Study

We recommend that you always go to the first meeting of your courses. Often, a lot of organisational matters are discussed there, which are important for the rest of the course. For courses with compulsory attendance, it is also possible that your spot may be given to someone on the waiting list if you do not show up to the first appointment.

We have a very active Discord server for anyone studying Physics and MoBi. Join via this link: https://discord.gg/EQ2n3kR42v

If you have any questions, you can always contact us, the Student Unions for Physics and MoBi. Either via email (physik@oeh.jku.at for Physics and mobi@oeh.jku.at for MoBi), or via Discord.

We also prepared a guide for first-semester students that we would like to recommend to you. Check out the “Studienleitfaden for Physics” and the study guide for AI!

None of our Bachelor studies have any special requirements. As with all Bachelor studies, you have to prove that you are on the same level as an Austrian after high school (Matura, enrollment eligibility exam, language certificates, etc.) - see this JKU page and our Internationals FAQ for more.

For our Master studies, you need to have done a suitable Bachelor study beforehand - you can find more information on this JKU page and some more questions about the topic in your respective Master’s section in the FAQ.

JKU never cares about your grade average etc, there are no quotas and no limits to the number of students that can register for our studies: If you submit the required documents in time, you will be accepted.

On the last page of your Curriculum, you will find the suggested study plan. It is advisable to register for all recommended courses. If it becomes too much for you, you can still drop subjects during the semester. Note that this study plan is only a recommendation, and that you can adjust it to your needs (with some caveats).

Lectures (VO or VL)

give an overview of a subject and its theoretical approaches and present different doctrinal opinions and methods. The contents are predominantly taught in a teacher-centred style. A lecture may never require attendance and is usually graded with a single exam at the end of the semester. Some lectures offer additional ways to get a grade (e.g. Minitests).

Exercises (UE) and Practical Courses (PR)

deepen the material of a lecture. The course instructor determines what must be achieved for a positive conclusion of the course: In most cases, there are regular exercises, but there can also be blackboard presentations, lab reports, or exercise tests. Compulsory attendance is determined by the lecturer.

You always find more information in KUSSS in the Study Guide entry for the corresponding course.

Seminars (SE)

develop your scientific capabilities. They aim to teach the acquisition of in-depth specialist knowledge and competencies, as well as the discussion and reflection of scientific topics. In most cases, students choose a topic, write a seminar paper, and present it to the course participants at the end of the semester. A seminar usually has compulsory attendance.

Combined courses (KV)

are a combination of lecture and exercise. Whether attendance is compulsory, and how the grade is calculated is up to the course instructor.

Other types of courses that are not included in the Physics curricula: Exercise with lecture (UV), lecture with exercise (VU), basic course (GK), excursion (EX), conversational course (KO), proseminar (PS), language course (SK), interdisciplinary project (IP), individual artistic instruction (KE), group artistic instruction (KG)… You can find further information on them in §§ 13f Satzung.

If attendance is compulsory, it should be listed in the KUSSS, specifically in the Study Guide entry of the respective course under ‘Criteria for evaluation’.

You can register for courses during the registration period listed on the JKU website. Be aware that some courses are assigned on a first come, first-served basis, while others don’t take timings into account. Check the Class Allocation Guide to find out more and prioritise accordingly.

We therefore recommend that you consider which courses you would like to register for before the registration period opens. For some courses, multiple time slots exist, so make sure to pick ones that don’t overlap. The course programme is always available at least one week before the registration period starts.

Please consult the KUSSS FAQ for technical questions.

Politely write an email to the course instructor and ask if there is still space for you. If not, make sure you go to the first session of the course you would like to attend. Let them know that you are not registered for the course yet. In this case, you may get a spot from one of the students who are not present.

If the course is mandatory for your curriculum, the university must provide sufficient slots to avoid delaying your study progress (§ 59 Abs. 4 UG) - please get in touch with us in that case!

For emergency cases, JKU has also created a department that will try to get you into courses if necessary.

That depends on the course type. For lectures, attendance is not compulsory, i.e. you can skip them in favour of another course.

If both courses have mandatory attendance and are offered in multiple time slots, try switching to another slot to remove the overlap: See the next question.

If you study according to the suggested study plan, you are guaranteed to be able to study without overlaps.

Write a polite email to the course instructors with your request. Don’t forget the course number and your matriculation number!

Your course instructor will let you know if a change is possible.

If changing is not possible, still go to the first appointment of your desired exercise group and talk to the lecturer, explaining that you would like to change to this group. Often, a solution can be found.

Unfortunately, there is no central record of all email addresses. So if you are looking for an email address of a specific person, search online for their name + JKU. The first hit is usually the institute’s website with all the information you need.

First of all, be polite! Your chances of success are much higher if you are polite and respectful of your lecturer’s time.

Always include the name of the course in case you have a question about a particular one. Also, add the course number (six digits with a dot in the middle - you can find it in the KUSSS).

Always sign with your full name and matriculation number at the end.

Ideally, also include your study code (SKZ): For the Bachelor of Physics this is 033/261, MoBi Bachelor 033/665, Master Physics 066/461 and for Master MoBi 066/865. All SKZs can be found here.

So your checklist before sending an email should be:

• Course number + Course name
• Your name + Matriculation number
• Study code (SKZ)
• Politely worded

Yes. Almost all courses in the technical and natural sciences are only offered annually, not every semester. Keep this in mind when you compile your own study plan. Also, make sure to finish StEOP as quickly as possible since it might limit you in your plans.

It generally makes sense to complete courses in the recommended order. Often a dependency is quite obvious, for example in “Statistical Physics I” and “Statistical Physics II”. It is not checked whether you have already completed the previous course, but the knowledge is assumed.

Feel free to contact us if you need help assembling your study plan!

Subjects are often divided into two LVAs: A lecture for theoretical content, and an exercise for practical implementation. If there are two LVAs, they can always be completed separately and there is a separate grade for each subject.

However, due to the proximity of content, it is recommended that you complete both at the same time - this not only saves you the effort of learning things twice, but the interweaving of theory and practice also helps with understanding.

Special Topics are courses that are not offered every year/semester because they are, as the name suggests, about a special topic, or have changing content.

Special Topics enable institutes to cover current trends in their fields and to offer courses taught by guest lecturers. Courses in this category can be announced without being listed in the curriculum and there is no obligation to hold them regularly.

The designation of Special Topics consists of a main title (“Special Topics:”) and a subtitle that describes the actual content of the course.

Every Austrian university degree program must include “Freie Studienleistungen” - they are intended to allow students to gain an insight into science beyond their subject area. You can therefore complete the ETCS provided for this purpose through any subject at any Austrian university, from language to pottery courses. It is of course also possible (although not necessarily the aim of the program) to use a physics subject for the free credits.

Many voluntary work engagements (e.g. firefighters) also give “free ECTS” - you can exchange information on the best subjects in the #free-electives channel on our Discord server.

If you are doing two degrees at the same time, you can also use subjects from one degree as free electives for the other (see also rules on credit transfer) - in short, you are completely free to choose your subjects.

If you would like to take a subject at another university, read the rules of the respective university regarding “Mitbelegung”.

In principle, studies are designed as full-time studies (30 ECTS). A credit point equates to ca. 25 hours of work, meaning that a normal semester is already more than 40 hours of work each week.

Since you can decide for yourself how many courses you want to take, we recommend doing less than 30 ECTS if you plan to work on the side: Of course, you have to take delays in your studies into account then, i.e. the recommended study time will no longer be possible.

In the Bachelor’s programme, the official recommendation therefore suggests you should start working no earlier than the 5th semester, though we do of course know that this is not possible for everyone financially. If you are struggling to afford your studies, check out our question on financial aid!

Generally, the number of ECTS you can/should do in a semester depends on the number of hours you have available and your previous knowledge.

We are happy to advise you on this: Drop us an email or a message on Discord!

As mentioned above, you are free to do more than the recommended 30 ECTS per semester, but it probably won’t be fun.

If you are primarily studying to get a degree, already have the relevant previous education and are prepared to have very little free time, you can of course shorten the duration of your studies by taking a higher number of ECTS per semester. If you plan on doing so, please take our question about individual study planning into account - we are happy to advise you individually.

However, please be aware that you will not only lose out on the social side but also probably won’t benefit from your study academically as much - after all, many learning processes also happen outside of the courses during discussions with your fellow students and professors.

Yes, courses can be used for multiple degrees, with some restrictions. Notably, the degrees may not depend on each other: If you used the course to get a degree (e.g. BSc Technische Physik), and this degree is a requirement to do another study (e.g. MSc Physics), you cannot use the course in this study. Similar restrictions might be in place for pre-study programs.

If the course is not exactly identical between programmes, accreditation might still be possible. Write us an email if you have concrete questions.

If it is impossible for you to study for one or two semesters, but you do not intend to drop out, you can take a leave of absence. This is possible for a maximum of two semesters in a row. Reasons for a leave of absence and forms can be found here.

There is no maximum study duration, but studying comes with a cost. Every semester you have to pay the ÖH fee (around 25€).

Depending on your citizenship, you will also need to pay tuition fees: EU and EEA citizens are exempted from tuition fees during the minimum period of study + 2 tolerance semesters (e.g. in our Bachelor’s that would be 8 semesters). You can find more information about this here.

Note that for some financial aids (e.g. Studienbeihilfe), the amount of tolerance semesters before funding is cut is lower.

During the Bachelor’s, keep Mindeststudienleistung in mind.

For most courses, you can deregister up until the first meeting in KUSSS. If that deadline has passed and you no longer want to take a course, it depends on the type of course. In the case of lectures, you simply do not sign up for the examination. This will not “cost” you any attempts and you can simply take the course at a later time.

For exercises or practicals, there is either a certain mode (e.g. after two exercises have been handed in, you get a grade) or you politely write an email to the lecturer asking whether they can deregister you from the course.

If this is not possible, and you do not continue the course, you will receive a negative grade. No worries though, you do have several attempts to pass.

Studying comes with stress and a lot of pressure to perform: Your Mental Health is more important than any grade. If you don’t feel well, here are several resources that can help you out.

• Psychologische Studierendenberatung [German only]: The psychological counseling service is located at JKU and can help with study-related issues, but it is also a general point of contact for personal problems as well.
• ÖH Helpline [German and English]: The federal student representation is providing free counseling. You can either talk to a professional over the phone or make an inquiry online to get a consultation in person.
• Upper Austrian Crisis Helpline [German only]: The government of Upper Austria has a service available to call or chat 24/7 if you or your friend is in any psychological crisis.
• Helplines for Women [some in English]: The Department for Women of the government of Upper Austria is providing a list of resources specifically aimed at women who find themselves in a crisis situation.
• Helpline for Men [only in German]: The Männernotruf can be called for free 24/7 for men who experience abuse or other personal problems.

If you take therapy sessions, ÖH also covers parts of your costs via the ÖH JKU Mental Health Fond. You can also pause your study and reduce your ECTS load. Our teacher are usually very understanding if you need to drop a course for mental health reasons - much can be resolved in a chat.

The Student Union has several grants and support services, they can be found here.

Additionally, there are also multiple governmental grants, e.g. for students working on the side.

Please refer to our experts at the ÖH JKU Sozialreferat for questions.

In principle, there are PCs at the university, for example in the library, which you can use. However, because almost all submissions are made electronically, there is regular homework on the PC, etc., a laptop is highly recommended.

Almost any laptop with Windows, macOS or Linux will do; it doesn’t have to be anything fancy or have any particular features. We generally advise against Chromebooks, Android tablets and iPads as main work devices because not all recommended programs are compatible with them.

In some rare cases, programs might require a virtual machine to run on a specific operating system, but this will be the case for all host systems.

For ideal working conditions, we recommend a device with at least 8GB RAM, an SSD, a 1920x1080 screen and a battery life of at least 2 hours: not every room has a power socket. Furthermore, a lightweight laptop is great: you’ll be carrying it around a lot.

If you are looking for a new laptop, there are often special offers for students online, for example at edustore and u:book - but be sure to compare prices. You can usually find devices with the specifications above for less than €400 making use of comparison portals.

Note that JKU also supplies you with a variety of free software.

Of course you can further optimise your device for complex AI operations etc. (the internet is happy to help with guides), but this is not necessary for your studies.

The Institute for Networks and Security has created LaTeX templates that can be used for seminars, technical reports and most importantly, for your thesis. You can always find an up-to-date version on GitHub.

Presentations have their own template that can also be downloaded from GitHub.

Additional templates and guidelines for your thesis can be found on the JKU Website.

To take part in lecture exams, you are required to register via KUSSS in time. Simply follow the link above and search for the respective course. If you can’t find any exams, see below for more.

For exercises, courses and seminars, registration for a course also counts as registration and admission for the course examination. Make sure to check if your course instructor wants any additional sign ups, however.

You can register for course examinations for lectures and combined courses until the end of the second semester following the course, then you should re-register to the main LVA. (§ 27 Satzung)

You are usually able to deregister from an exam until a few days before it takes place. Details can be found on KUSSS and my.jku.at at the respective exam page.

If you missed this deadline, try deregistering via email to your lecturer.

If you don’t participate in an exam you are registered for, you will not lose an attempt: You can’t be graded for something you didn’t do. In some cases, your lecturer can however block you for your next attempt, thus delaying your study progress. This usually doesn’t happen, but it’s generally not a good idea to annoy the person who is grading your exam - save yourself the trouble and deregister in time.

You are entitled to three exam dates per semester for each lecture (VL/VO), even in semesters where the LVA is not offered (§ 76 Abs. 3 UG and § 33 Abs. 2 Satzung). However, usually only two are planned at the beginning of a semester. If you need another one, politely ask the lecturer whether another date is offered, or whether you can take an oral exam. If this is not possible, please contact us (physik@oeh.jku.at or mobi@oeh.jku.at) and we will ensure that another attempt is offered.

Examination dates are usually entered as Examinations on KUSSS, or as a note in the course’s dates. If no dates have been entered, please let us know: We’ll get in touch with the course instructors to make sure they are fixed at the beginning of the semester. Please keep in mind that some professors arrange the exam date(s) of small courses together with the students at the beginning of the semester to find a date suitable for all.

For each LVA, you have several attempts. Either there are follow-up exams, or you repeat the whole course the next time it is offered (you might need to re-register for it).

If it is a compulsory subject, you have to repeat the subject. If it is a specialization or a course from a pool of your choice, it is your decision whether you want to repeat the course.

Negative grades will not show up on your final diploma.

Students may repeat failed examinations taken for the StEOP three times (= four attempts). For all other examinations, students may re-sit them up to four times (= five attempts) - this is a special rule of JKU, see § 53 Abs. 2 Satzung. All examination attempts in the same subject, for all studies at the same university count.

Exam modes differ by course type. For a Lecture, each exam date you take part in counts as an attempt. For Excercises, you only have one continuous attempt consisting of exercise sheets, tests etc.: If you take multiple tests, all of them are still part of the same single attempt. Combined Courses are usually treated like Execises. Each attempt will result in a grade on KUSSS.

Your fourth and all following attempts at a Lecture examination must be conducted by a committee - see What is an examination by committee (“Kommissionelle Prüfung”)? for more.

The last exam of a degree can be repeated one more time (see § 77 Abs. 2 UG).

If you use up your last attempt in a mandatory subject, you will be automatically exmatriculated. From then on, you will no longer be able to enrol in a degree program at JKU that includes this subject as a compulsory subject (§ 63 Abs. 7 UG).

If possible, you should therefore try not to let it get that far: In any case, please contact us in advance so that we can look for a solution together. The following options are available:

1. You ask the LVA instructor whether there are other options for taking the exam.
2. You take a similar subject from a different study at JKU and have it transferred of equivalent courses.
3. You take the subject at another university and have it recognized at JKU: However, this is easier said than done - you can generally only take subjects at other universities if they are not already offered at JKU (§ 63 Abs. 9 UG). The subject must therefore be different enough for co-enrollment, but similar enough for credit transfer - this topic must therefore always be discussed with your study coordinator. This limitation does not apply to a semester abroad.
4. You wait for a change in the curriculum: Sometimes LVAs change (for example due to renaming) and are given a new course number. In this case, your attempts are often reset, so the course is treated as a new course. To be on the safe side, ask the Examination and Recognition Service whether such a change has been made.

Positively graded courses of all course types can be repeated once, and the retake has to happen within one year. In other words, the grade of the retake has to be submitted with a date within 12 months of the original.

If an exercises course (UE) is not available every semester, then this deadline is extended to the next time that exercise course is available. (§ 14 Abs. 3 Satzung)

Retaking a positively graded course will automatically void the previous attempt, meaning that it is completely removed from the records: If you fail the retake, you will have to redo it until you pass. The voided positive attempt does not count towards your number of taken attempts. See § 77 Abs. 1 UG.

It is recommended to get in touch with your Prof beforehand and discuss your situation, sometimes alternative solutions can be found.

Course instructors must grade your LVA within four weeks of your last gradable work (§ 34 Abs. 2 Satzung) - this is usually the exam for a lecture and the last exercise date for exercises.

If this is not the case, please kindly ask the person in charge of the course or contact us.

Within 6 months after receiving a grade, you can request to see the assessment documents with your course instructor - in the case of a lecture exam, this is the graded written exam or, in the case of an oral exam, a record of the questions you were asked.

You are always allowed to make a “memory record” of the lecture exam and share it with others, open questions (i.e. not multiple choice) and your answers may also be photographed or otherwise copied.

For open questions, “electronic inspection” online is also possible (§ 79 Abs. 5 UG).

No, there is no right of appeal against assessments. Only negative grades can be overturned in case of “serious deficiencies” (e.g. if the exam time is significantly shorter than announced), in which case your negative entry becomes null and void. Please contact us immediately if you believe that such a deficiency exists: An appeal must happen within four weeks after the grade has been announced (§ 79 Abs. 1 UG).

If you feel that you have been treated unfairly, you can request an examination by committee for future attempts.

You can also request that you be examined by another person of your choice who is qualified to do so (§ 59 Abs. 13 UG).

In an examination by committee, the grade is no longer decided by a single person. This method should ensure that you are not treated unfairly.

In the case of lecture exams, your exam is checked by several people; in the case of exercises and the like, an attempt is made to concentrate your continuous performance on one moment and to check that in a committee.

From the third repetition of a lecture exam onwards, it is obligatory to have it graded by a committee, but you can also request the procedure earlier (§ 77 Abs. 3 UG). Regardless of the course type, at least the last repetition must be held as an examination by committee (§ 35 Abs. 3 Satzung).

In any case, contact the course instructor in advance to clarify the details!

You can find important documents to download in KUSSS on the left under “My settings” in the “Documents” tab. There you will find the confirmation of registration, study record sheet and transcript of records in the respective tab.

There is no certificate like at school. However, you can print out your grades as a PDF at any time, which is called “Transcript of Records” at the university.

Your curriculum consists of different subjects which in turn contain multiple courses (LVAs) each. Your grade for each subject is the average grade of all of its courses, weighted for ECTS (§ 34 Abs. 4 Satzung).

Your diploma will list these grades for all of your subjects. You finish your degree with distinction if no subject grade is worse than a 2 and at least half of all subjects grade are 1s (§ 34 Abs. 5a Satzung).

Not all subject grades are used for this calculation, your “Free Electives” are e.g. irrelevant for your distinction, as are your “Master’s Thesis” grade and your grades for the “Master’s Thesis Seminars”. Refer to your curriculum for more.

The Austrian Student Union (ÖH) is divided into different levels:

Study Representation (ÖH StV Physics & MoBi)

Your study representatives are your direct contact points for issues concerning your study - in your case, your representatives are StV Physik & Mobi respectively. For more on our work, see What are StV Physics and MoBi about?

Faculty Representation (ÖH TNF)

ÖH TNF is the faculty representation of all students in engineering and natural sciences. All Study Representations from the faculty (including StV physics and mobi) send members to ÖH TNF. There, we coordinate the work of the individual StVs: Many of our biggest events (e.g. the JKU Games) are co-organised that way, and we also work together on many other projects (our study guides for example). You can find out more about ÖH TNF on its website.

University Representation (ÖH JKU / UV)

ÖH JKU coordinates the different faculties and takes care of university-wide matters, it might for example comment on building plans and broader policies. ÖH JKU also has sub-departments (“Referate”) for some topics, such as a department for social services (financial aid, grants, …), a department for migration (visas, supplementary exams, …) and a department for legal questions. An overview of the departments of ÖH JKU can be found here.

Federal Representation (ÖH BV)

ÖH BV coordinates the different universities and comments on laws and governmental decisions on a national level. An explanation of how the Austrian National Union of Students works in general can be found here.

The study representatives are your first point of contact if you have problems with courses or course instructors, or if you have questions about your studies. We are students just like you and do this job voluntarily.

We have three core tasks: representing, networking, and advising. We represent you when there are problems or concerns with institute staff, and sit in committees that organise your study. We host events so you can get to know your colleagues. And we advise you on all university-specific topics, e.g. in the form of this FAQ.

You can also find more information about our work on our website respectively: Website.

Every two years, all levels of the Student Union run for election - usually around May in odd years. In the election of the university and federal representation, political parties (“Fraktionen”) are elected, whereas the study representation is an election of individual candidates.

All members of the Student Unions in the Faculty of Engineering & Natural Sciences (TNF) are independent: To become active in the Student Union for Physics & MoBi, you may not be a member of a university party.

We believe that this rule helps us work a lot more efficiently since we don’t need to constantly fight for your vote in pointless PR stunts.

Naturally, some projects require that we work with the university-wide representation, and we sometimes also cooperate with individual parties if they support our efforts.

ÖH has many different departments and is always happy for your support. If you want to join your Student Union, get in touch with its head or contact us via email at mobi@oeh.jku.at or physik@oeh.jku.at. StV Informatik has also published its Onboarding Procedure to give you an idea of how joining will work.

Course evaluations take place at the end of each semester. You can find them in KUSSS at “My courses”. During the evaluation period, you can anonymously give your feedback, thus helping to continuously improve courses. As Student Unions we can then use this concrete data to more strongly fight for changes. We would like to motivate you to take advantage of this opportunity, which is why we organise an “Eval Day” every semester. There you can evaluate your courses together with your colleagues in a relaxed atmosphere with drinks and snacks.

The Student Unions for Physics and MoBi regularly organise events to help you get to know your fellow students. Descriptions to all of our bigger events can be found on our websites for CS and AI. There, you’ll also find live calendars to always stay up to date.

You will also always be reminded about events on the Discord-Server, as well as on the ÖH TNF Instagram account.

Using parts of your ÖH fee, all students are automatically insured for accidents and damages: If you get hurt at uni or destroy something, you are taken care of and will not have to pay any deductibles. This insurance is very broad and also covers your student dorms, uni excursions, ÖH events or your trip to the next supermarket. Note that ÖH insurance is not health insurance however.

For more information and all contract details, please refer to this help page.

All StVs at JKU have a subpage on the ÖH JKU website and are responsible for their content. Many of the StVs for technical subjects also use Discord: You can find contact details for all of them here.

The StEOP (Studies Introduction and Orientation Phase) comprises compulsory courses that you have to complete at the beginning of your Bachelor studies before you can complete other courses. As long as you have not completed the StEOP, you can only receive a grade for selected courses from the first few semesters (referred to as “Additional courses/exams that could be completed before having passed the StEOP” in KUSSS).

To complete the StEOP, you need to receive passing grades on at least 9 ECTS worth of courses from several options. The pool of eligible courses and more detailed information can be found in the curriculum, KUSSS also shows you the current status of your StEOP (if you are signed in).

For an in-depth explanation of the system and our recommendations, check out the “Studienleitfaden for Physics” and the “Study guide for MoBi”!

It is sometimes possible to do courses that are not included in the pool before you have completed the StEOP - if you are planning to sign up for such courses, please get in touch with your teachers beforehand and ask them to postpone grading you until you have formally finished the StEOP. KUSSS will also warn you about this on sign-up.

Sometimes, not all of your grades from the last semester are finalised yet when sign-up for the next semester starts. In this case, KUSSS might also warn you that StEOP has not been completed yet - you can safely ignore this warning if you know that you have already passed the courses necessary to complete StEOP.

For further information see JKU’s FAQs on the topic here.

There is no time limit to finish the StEOP. At the beginning of your studies, there is however a minimum amount of credits (“Mindeststudienleistung”) you have to do. Since your choice of courses is very restricted during StEOP, you will most likely finish your StEOP courses when attempting to reach Mindeststudienleistung.

Generally, we advise you to complete StEOP as quickly as possible to benefit from additional exam attempts and a more flexible study plan.

In Bachelor’s and diploma degree programmes you are required to complete a total of at least 16 ECTS in the first four semesters in each degree programme to which admission is granted.

The ECTS for achieving the minimum study performance after four semesters have to be completed by October 31st in the winter term and by March 31st in the summer term (§ 59a UG).

More information on exceptions, consequences of non-compliance, etc. can be found here.

For recognition, you will need to submit a recognition request via the AUWEA tool which includes your school report (see more here). The recognition can only be applied for after the start of the degree programme.

In general, we do not recommend starting your studies in the summer semester.

However, if you are only able to start your studies in the summer semester, this is, of course, possible. We suggest that you complete the recommended subjects from the scheduled 2nd semester.

Courses may not count towards both your Bachelor’s and Master’s. In other words, while you may already take some Master’s courses during your Bachelor’s degree, you should not submit them for your Bachelor’s diploma if you plan on using them in the Master’s. Courses you have not submitted for your BSc can then simply be used towards your MSc.

If you submitted a compulsory course from the MSc in your BSc (e.g. as part of your Free Electives), an alternative course must be taken in the MSc instead. Please talk to your study Präses for potential options or ask us for help.

There are three different ways to find a Bachelor’s thesis:

• You approach a suitable institute/professor with your own topic or
• you ask an institute/supervisor what topics are offered. Most institutes have some work advertised on their website. You can get an idea there. Or
• you can write a thesis at a company. However, you always need a supervisor at JKU. This means that you apply for a job at a company and look for a suitable supervisor at JKU. Some institutes will demand payment from the company for supervising a thesis, your supervisor will tell you the rest of the procedure.

The ÖH helps you to connect to potential supervisors and find your topic by organising Bachelor Info Events. See more here: Physics, MoBi.

All detailed information can be found on the JKU website.

To complete the Bachelor’s programme, you first have to pass all mandatory subjects and you must have collected enough ECTS for specialization and free study credits. Once you have fulfilled all these requirements, you have to fill in and sign the examination roster (which can also be found on the website) and send it to pruefung-tn@jku.at.

If no changes to the curriculum occurred during your study, you might be able to fill in your exam roaster automatically using examroster.jku.at. The service is in a beta phase though, so please double-check its work and expect it to break.

If the automatic way does not work, download the examination roster from the JKU website and follow the instructions there. If you are logged in to KUSSS click on the tab “Help Examination Rosters”. On the left, you can download a PDF which helps you to fill in the examination roster. ATTENTION: This filling-in aid has duplicate assignments and it is also possible that some courses are assigned incorrectly or do not exist at all. If this is the case, please refer to the grade information in the KUSSS. You can also look in the course catalogue (tab “Course-Search” - at the top “My curricula” or “All curricula”) to see which courses are in which category.

If you have attended a technical school (HTL in Austria), you can have subjects credited to you, depending on the HTL branch.

For recognition, write an email to the Examination and Recognition Services of JKU with your transcript. This is only possible after starting the degree programme.

Generally speaking, the first year is spent in Salzburg, the second in Linz, and the third year in Salzburg and possibly also in Linz, depending on where you want to write your bachelor’s thesis.

Attendance is not required for lectures, but you must be present for seminars or lab sessions, where attendance is mandatory. Seminars are usually held once a week, and lab sessions typically last a full week. In principle, it’s possible to commute; if that’s not feasible, there are also student dorms in Linz and Salzburg.

Linz: https://www.jku.at/campus/wohnen/studierendenheime/

Salzburg: https://studentenheim.at/studentenheime/

In general, the language of instruction is German. There are a few courses taught in English.

“Übungen” are usually held once a week, such as the physics section. Attendance is required, and there are homework assignments for which students always have one week to complete them. Lab sessions take place in the laboratory. They last from 2 days to 3 weeks. Attendance is also required here; there are usually preliminary meetings and a final exam. Lab reports must be written as the main form of assessment.

Yes, you have to defend your bachelor’s thesis, usually in front of your advisor and the relevant research group.

The Bachelor’s/Master’s Day is held once each summer semester by PLUS and once by JKU. During the event, general information about the bachelor’s and master’s degrees is provided, and the individual research groups present their areas of research.

We are happy to answer any questions. Contact us via email mobi@oeh.jku.at or on our Discord-Server.

If you have attended a technical school (HTL in Austria), you can have subjects credited to you, depending on the HTL branch. (eg: Chemistry Htl -> Chemie für Physiker)

For recognition, write an email to the Examination and Recognition Services of JKU with your transcript. This is only possible after starting the degree programme.

You have to be in Linz at least once, namely when you officially enroll in the degree program.

The Bachelor’s degree in Physics is a face-to-face programme. Particularly in the first few semesters, all modules are taught face-to-face, or there are 2–3 sessions per week with compulsory attendance. Exams may take place at any time during the semester, not just at the end (e.g. mid-term exams)! (although there is usually one exam at the end of the semester)

Not necessarily right from the start, as the degree programme is taught in German. Of course, it is helpful to know English, as it is the language of the discipline and some optional modules, as well as the Master’s programme, are taught in English.

During the Bachelor’s programme, students must complete at least one seminar. The seminar leader sets the topics, and each student is required to give a presentation on one of these topics during the semester. The broad subject area depends on the chosen department. This course serves as initial preparation for the subsequent Bachelor’s presentation.

You must complete several practical works during the course of your studies. These will teach you how to carry out experiments correctly and record the results afterwards.

You can deepen your knowledge in various areas. These areas can be found under ‘Physics Electives’ and ‘Specialisation Subjects’. In some of these areas, you must earn a certain number of ECTS credits; you can find a clearer overview here. The rest can be chosen freely.

In addition, you should bear in mind that you cannot count the same course twice – once towards your Bachelor’s degree and once towards a subsequent Master’s degree. If you plan to take the Master’s in Physics at JKU, you should ensure that you do not count any compulsory or track courses from the Master’s programme towards your Bachelor’s degree.

Yes, once you have completed your Bachelor’s thesis, you must also present it. The thesis itself and the presentation will be marked separately.

Every year, the student representatives organise a Bachelor’s information evening. You’ll receive information on all aspects of the Bachelor’s thesis, from choosing a topic, through the writing process, to the presentation. Afterwards, the departments are introduced and you’ll have the opportunity to take a closer look at two departments of your choice.

If you have any general questions about studying physics, we’re happy to help. Please contact us by email physik@oeh.jku.at or on our Discord server

There are three different ways to find a Master’s thesis:

1. You approach a suitable institute/professor with your own topic or
2. you ask an institute/supervisor what topics are offered. Most institutes have some work advertised on their website. You can get an idea there, or
3. you can write a thesis at a company. However, you always need a supervisor at JKU. This means that you apply for a thesis at a company and look for a suitable supervisor at JKU. Some institutes will demand payment from the company for supervising a thesis. Your supervisor will tell you the rest of the procedure.

No, it is not obligatory to write the Master’s thesis in latex, only the cover sheet must comply with the JKU guidelines (see here for templates) and it must be saved in PDF/A (see here under submission). However, you should talk to your supervisor about whether there are already internal templates or additional requirements.

Sometimes, a latex course is offered, which can be used as a free elective. (“Wissenschaftliches Schreiben und Layouten anhand von LaTeX 1”)

The content of the Master’s examination is formulated with the respective chosen examiner. This should be content from courses taken with the respective examiner.

This exam can be repeated several times, just like any other exam.

The Master’s thesis can be submitted throughout the year. There must be at least four weeks between the submission of the thesis and the final Master’s examination.

You can find a more detailed overview in the Study Guide.

Only when the grade of your commissional final examination has been finalised, your Master’s is formally completed. Until then you need to retain your status as a student and thus need to continue paying your tuition.

If you complete your studies by 31.10 or 31.03, you do not need to pay tuition for the new semester. If you are unsure if you can finish in time, we recommend you pay tuition and then reclaim it. For more on the process, see JKU’s help page here.

More information about finishing your study can be found here.