Study counseling

ASSESSMENT OF PRIOR LEARNING

In general 

We only accept applications for evaluation of previous university studies from students who have been admitted to study at the Iceland Academy of the Arts.  

An assessment of previous studies is requested by filling in the electronic form below.  

Applications for assessment of previous studies are considered twice per school year, once per semester.  

• Applications received before September 1 are normally processed by September 25 at the latest. 

• Applications received before January 10 are normally processed by January 25 at the latest.

The decision of the evaluation committee is binding. If a student has comments on the assessment, he can request a reassessment or explanations to the assessment committee, especially if new information or points of view come to light. Comments must be made within 10 days of the evaluation committee's decision.  

Evaluation by departments 

A study advisor manages the assessment of previous studies. Each department is responsible for the assessment in consultation with the study advisor. The evaluation committee consists of the dean of the department, the head of the relevant department, and a study advisor. You can call the teaching project manager. To promote consistency between departments, the assessment is based on the criteria below. The study advisor receives applications and formally reports on the results of the evaluation committees. The dean of the department confirms the evaluation committee's decision by signing the evaluation sheet and sends it to the student advisor, who formally completes the evaluation and sends the result to the student.  

Completion of applications 

In order for the evaluation committee to be able to process an application for an evaluation of previous university studies, the application must meet the following conditions:  

• The courses that the student considers to be equivalent to their previous university studies must be specified. 

• In the application, it must be stated whether an assessment has previously been applied for the same course at the University of the Arts or other schools. If so, the decision of the previous assessment must accompany the application.  

• Applicants are responsible for ensuring that all of the above information is included in the application so that it can be processed. If the application is not satisfactory, it will be rejected on those grounds.  

• A certified curriculum vitae and course descriptions from the relevant university from the syllabus of the year the courses were taken must be included with the application. 

• Curriculum documents must be in Icelandic or English.  

Processing of applications 

• Once the application has been processed, the student receives an email notification to the LHÍ email address about the result of the assessment. The dean of the department, head of department and department representative also receive a mail about the result of the assessment, and the department representative completes the registration accordingly on the student's academic record. Both the application and the result of the assessment are saved to the student's study history.  

Criteria for food 

• Only university-level courses from an accredited university are evaluated. In general, studies other than formal university studies are not permitted to be evaluated.  

• Previous studies are assessed against a full course, the number of credits (ECTS) must be the same or higher. 

• If a compulsory course is requested to be evaluated, the course must be fully comparable to a course that the applicant is to take at the University of the Arts.  

• To have a chance to have courses evaluated, they must have been completed within the last nine years or later. 

• Final assignments and/or final essays are not graded. 

• Students who start a master's program at the University of the Arts can only have courses that they have completed at the master's level from a recognized university evaluated.  

• A course that has previously been valid for a degree from another recognized university can at most be used once in addition to a degree. 

Registration of assessed studies in the study registration system  

• The study advisor returns a summary document about the evaluated study to the department representative 

• A faculty representative registers the evaluated course in the school's course registration system.  

The University of the Arts can evaluate studies at the bachelor's level for up to 90 credits and up to 60 credits at the master's level. This means that a student who graduates from the Iceland Academy of the Arts has not taken less than half of their studies at the school.  

Applicants for an assessment of previous studies cannot assume that the application will be approved and are therefore advised not to change course registration until the result is known.  

SPECIAL SUPPORT DUE TO ADDITIONAL NEEDS IN STUDY  

It is important to apply for specific support in time so that teachers have time to process the requests and can meet the students in the best possible way.   

• The autumn application period is open from the beginning of the second year up to and including October 1st 

• The spring application period is open from the beginning of the second semester through March 1st

Students can apply for support for additional learning needs due to disabilities, specific learning disabilities or chronic illnesses. The support is aimed at equalizing the status and opportunities for learning and does not in any way imply that the learning requirements are reduced (students must always meet the learning criteria of the program and/or courses).  

Student Counseling oversees specific support resources and offers personal counseling and/or follow-up for students.  

A condition for specific support is that there is confirmation by a relevant specialist of disability, specific learning disabilities or illness, including, but not limited to, the following: 

• Hearing loss and deafness 

• Dyslexia and AD(H)D 

• Tourette's and Autism Spectrum Disorder 

• Mobility impairments, whether long-term or temporary, for example due to illness or an accident 

• Chronic illness, such as cancer, rheumatism, MS, MND or mental disabilities. 

Analyzes must be from a recognized professional in the same field as the student's support needs. They must be on an individual basis and group analyzes are not accepted. In addition, diagnoses must not be older than when the student was in the upper grades of elementary school. It should be noted that a Davis diagnosis is not sufficient to receive specific support as it is not a diagnosis of specific learning disabilities.  

Dyslexia 

A student with dyslexia must present a diagnosis from a specialist, using, for example, one of the following methods: 

• GRP 14 diagnostic test (GRP 14H group diagnosis is not sufficient on its own) 

• Aston Index reading analysis 

• Logos dyslexia diagnosis 

• ICD 10 diagnostic criteria (used by psychologists) 

Applications for specific support due to additional educational needs 

• The student begins by filling out an application for specific support due to additional learning needs 

• The student also submits an analysis/certificate with the application 

• Subsequently, the student books an appointment with a study advisor 

• A study counselor evaluates the requests of students who apply for specific support 

• The academic advisor confirms to the subject director that the student has the right to specific support in studies, but it is the student's responsibility to contact the teacher/subject director regarding the implementation of support, for example increased time for project and test submissions, reading assistance, assistance with academic writing, adaptation of the learning environment.  

It is important to apply for specific support in time so that teachers have time to process the requests and can meet the students in the best possible way.   

• The autumn application period is open from the beginning of the second year up to and including October 1st 

• The spring application period is open from the beginning of the second semester through March 1st 

You can apply for an exemption if illness or accident occurs at other times. Then you always have to submit a medical certificate.   

Those who struggle with disabilities that can be considered temporary and can be worked with, cured or made more manageable, apply for specific support for each semester or for the school year. If the student's disabilities are permanent, the student applies for specific support at the beginning of the program and is enrolled with support for the duration of the program at LHÍ.  

INFORMATION ON ELECTRONIC TOOLS

Audio library 

Students with dyslexia and all those who cannot use printed language have access to a speech synthesizer at the Audio Library. The speech synthesizer is free of charge for students.  

What needs to be done:  

The person concerned must be registered with the Audio Library of Iceland, hbs.is, which sends confirmation regarding the analysis to the Association for the Blind. The student is then sent a link to download a speech synthesizer and a key for voices. Inquiries regarding speech synthesis are sent to afgreidsla@blind.is. 

• Study materials in computerized form: The Icelandic Audio Library, hbs.is, collaborates with foreign electronic libraries. When searching for study materials at the Audio Library for the first time, the student must apply for access (https://hbs.is/leidbeiningar/hverjir-geta-ordid-lanthegar). Contact person is Hafþór Ragnarsson, hafthor@hbs.is and provides him with all information and advice. 

Speech synthesizer in Canvas  

Í Canvas each course's learning management website has a built-in speech synthesizer that students can use to help themselves. A button appears in the top right corner of each course marked Accessible reading environment/Immersive reader. 

• In OneNote, you can upload documents, for example PDF and Word, and have a speech processor read the text from the documents. You can see instructions here: https://support.microsoft.com/en-au/topic/use-immersive-reader-for-onenote-10712138-b4ed-4513-958d-d9a1b3038170 

Atlas Primer is a voice server designed to make learning environments more flexible. More information can be found at Atlas Primer (https://www.atlasprimer.com/). 

Á The smart web you can find knowledge, technical tools and smart device (https://www.snjallvefjan.is/). 

With NatureReader can convert text, PDF documents and other templates to speech (https://www.naturalreaders.com/). 

Central atom is a language technology and artificial intelligence website https://mideind.is/is.