Compensation for disadvantages

The conditions under which an examination is taken must be the same for all examinees. There must be uniform rules for the form and course of examinations. However, uniform examination conditions are also likely to violate the equal opportunities of those examinees whose ability to demonstrate their existing performance is significantly impaired due to a chronic illness or disability.
According to Section 3 Paragraph 5 Sentence 2 HG NRW, universities take appropriate precautions into account the special needs of students (…) with disabilities and chronic illnesses (…).
Compensation for disadvantages is regulated in Section 17 of the examination regulations.

The decision on whether to grant compensation for disadvantages and on its specific content depends heavily on the individual case. In order to be able to make an appropriate decision about the respective disadvantage compensation, the chairperson of the Joint Examination Committee is therefore dependent on the submitted certificates setting out in sufficient detail and substance which specific impairment needs to be compensated for. Appropriate compensation requires, taking into account the principle of equal opportunities in accordance with Article 3 of the Basic Law, that the measure is fundamentally suitable to compensate for the specific impairment present with regard to the examination. At the same time, it must be ensured that the specific design of the compensation for disadvantages does not result in overcompensation.

If you are affected, please submit a corresponding informal application to the examination office of the Faculty of Economics and Social Sciences at the beginning of your studies, if possible, and submit it using the contact form of the WiSo Student Service Point https://uni.koeln/TXZWV. With your application you must explain the disadvantage you are suffering from and substantiate it with a medical certificate. The chair of the examination board will then decide whether and what type of compensation for disadvantages will be granted to you. Since consultation is usually required, we ask you to provide a telephone number in your application where we can reach you, if you have not already stored this in KLIPS.

Further information and advice as well as a Word template for an application for disadvantage compensation can be found at the Inclusion Service Center https://uni.koeln/87CGD