09 - Iceland - Organisation of the academic year
In most institutions of higher education, the academic year is formally defined as lasting from August or
September to the same time the following year. The teaching year usually lasts from September to
May and is divided into two semesters, autumn and spring. The autumn semester starts at the
beginning of September and lasts until approximately December 20. The spring semester lasts from
the beginning of January until the end of May. Some institutions have summer sessions that last from
May to August.
The holiday periods in higher education institutions are usually the following:
Christmas holiday approx. two weeks
Easter holiday approx. one week
Summer holiday approx. three months for students.
In addition to this there is no teaching activity in most higher education institutions on December 1 and
other official holidays.
Each institution at the higher education level organises its own timetable. The timetable can vary
depending on the structure of the course. In Iceland, the Higher Education Institutions are bound by
law ro use the ECTS system, in accordance with the Bologna process. Studies are organised in course
units each requiring a specified number of credit units, 60 credit units constituting one academic year
of full-time studies, 30 credit units constituting one semester of full-time studies.
Eurydice - the information network on education in Europe
Date: 2009
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