Deadline Extensions and Withdrawal from Exams

Term papers and Course-Related Exams

For valid reasons, you can request an extension of the submission deadline for term papers or other course-related exams (portfolios, presentations, etc) of up to four weeks. In order to do so, you must submit an informal request for an extension of the deadline to the Examination Office via the contact form or by mail before the original deadline expires and no later than three days after the occurrence of the valid reason and prove the existence of said valid reason, which could, for instance, be the inability to take the exam due to illness. Please also attach the respective examination form to your request. If you choose to submit your request by mail, please send the relevant documents to the following address:

Universität Bonn
Philosophische Fakultät
Prüfungsamt
(Geschäftsstelle des Bachelor-/Master-Prüfungsausschusses)
Poppelsdorfer Allee 31-33
53115 Bonn

If the valid reason is an inability to take an exam due to illness, this must be proven by submitting a medical certificate confirming the existence of the inability to take the exam and its duration. In this case, the requested extension period must correspond to the dates noted on the medical certificate. An individual is considered unfit to take an exam for health reasons if their performance is significantly impaired due to an acute/temporary health condition. If the impairment is not temporary, an extension of the submission deadline must be effected within the scope of compensation for disadvantages. If other valid reasons apply, please provide supporting documentation with your request when possible.

If the valid reasons are not recognized, the exam must be submitted by the original submission deadline; otherwise, it will be graded as "unsatisfactory" (5.0).

Bachelor's or Master's Thesis

Upon a justified request, the Examination Authority (the Examination Board, represented by the Examination Office as its administrative body) may grant an extension of the submission deadline for your final thesis of up to six weeks, provided that your first examiner agrees, too. However, the procedure slightly differs from that for term papers and other course-related exams.

In order to request an extension of the submission deadline for your final thesis, please fill out the form “Extension of the Deadline for the Bachelor‘s-/Master’s Thesis”, have it signed by your first examiner, and submit it to the Examinations Office via the contact form or by mail to the address provided above before the original deadline expires. Please provide supporting documentation with your request.

As with term papers and other course-related exams, the exam must be submitted by the original submission deadline if the valid reasons are not recognized; otherwise, it will be graded as "unsatisfactory" (5.0).

Important: An extension of the deadline beyond four or six weeks respectively is not possible, even if the inability to take the exam due to illness persists for a longer period. In such cases, the only option is to withdraw from the registered exam. Please consult the Examination Office for advice and note that extension and withdrawal usually cannot be used cumulatively.  

Whether and until when you can withdraw from an exam without it being counted as a failed attempt depends, in particular, on the form of the exam:

Written and Oral Exams

Without reasons up to a week before the exam:

Withdrawal from written and oral exams (so-called "scheduled exams") is possible without stating reasons, either in writing or online via the electronic study portal BASIS, up to one week before the respective exam date. Please note that withdrawal via BASIS is only possible within the registration phase for written and oral exams due to technical reasons. After that, withdrawal requests can only be submitted to the Examination Office via the contact form up until the deadline (so up to one week before the exam).

Withdrawal requests must include the following information: matriculation number, module, form of exam, date (day & time), and the examiner(s).

With valid reasons within a week before the exam:

Withdrawal requests received after the deadline can only be accepted with valid reasons. Otherwise, it will be considered a failed attempt. “Valid reasons” may include illness-related inability to take the exam, which must be proven by a medical certificate. Please note that to confirm the inability to take the exam due to illness, a doctor must be consulted on the day of the written or oral exam itself if you want to withdraw after having started the exam. The withdrawal must be reported to the Examination Office within three days via the special form for withdrawal from exams. However, we strongly recommend to notify the Examination Office on the day of the exam itself. In case of an illness-related inability to take the exam, this inability must be certified by a medical professional on the second page of the form. A separate medical certificate (sick note) is no longer required. If the Examination Board accepts the evidence for the withdrawal due to illness or other “valid reasons,” the exam attempt is considered not taken.

Term Papers and Course-related Exam Formats

Withdrawal from term papers and course-related exam formats (project work, presentations, reports, internships, or portfolios) is not possible without stating reasons after registration and topic assignment. In these cases, you can only withdraw subsequently for “valid reasons,” especially due to illness-related inability to take the exam. The withdrawal must be reported to the Examination Office within three days via the form for withdrawal from exams. In case of an illness-induced inability to take the exam, this inability must be certified by a medical professional on the second page of the form. A separate medical certificate (sick note) is no longer required. If the Examination Board accepts the evidence for withdrawal due to illness or other "valid reasons," the exam attempt is considered not taken. Please note that when withdrawing from a term paper, you must choose a new topic if you register for a new attempt.

Bachelor's or Master's Thesis

Within a month or two months without stating reasons:

Withdrawal from a registered Bachelor's or Master's thesis is possible as follows: The topic of the thesis can only be returned once and only within the first month (Bachelor) or the first two months (Master) after it has been issued without stating reasons for doing so. This does not count as a failed attempt. The topic subsequently issued when re-registering for the thesis must differ substantially in content from the original one.

After a month or two months with valid reasons:

After one month (BA) or the first two months (MA) after issuance, withdrawal is only permitted for valid reasons. Otherwise, the attempt will be considered a failed attempt. "Valid reasons" may include, for example, an extended illness-related inability to take the exam, which must be substantiated by a medical certificate. If the illness-related inability to take the exam lasts up to six weeks, it is generally possible to request an extension of the writing period of up to six weeks instead. For further details, refer to the information about the writing period in the handouts for the bachelor’s thesis or master’s thesis.

The withdrawal must be reported to the Examination Office immediately, within three days of the occurrence of the valid reasons, using the designated withdrawal form. To provide evidence of illness-related inability to take the exam, the medical certificate included on the second page of the withdrawal form must be completed by the physician. In the future, please refrain from submitting a medical certificate in the form of a standard sick note (Arbeitsunfähigkeitsbescheinigung, AU). If the examination committee accepts the evidence for the illness-related withdrawal or other valid reasons, the examination attempt will be considered as not undertaken. When registering again for the final thesis at a later date, the newly issued topic must differ significantly from the original one in terms of content.