PAUL glossary for web client users

Students and members of teaching staff access PAUL in a Web browser. Other users use what is known as a rich client. In both the Web browser and the rich client, some terms in PAUL and the underlying software CampusNet are used in a very specific way that can sometimes differ from general usage.

The following glossary has been created to facilitate communication between PAUL users.

In particular, this glossary can help members of teaching staff and students to understand the concepts they are faced with in PAUL.

Begriff	Definition
Final module offering	See Module offering
Final examination	Final examinations complete a course of study, that is, they are taken at the end of a degree course or period of study (e.g. a final oral examination, a bachelor’s thesis or a written examination). Students can register for final examinations upon request in the Web portal after consulting the supervisor/examiner. The Central Examinations Office will check that all necessary prequisites are met before verifying admission.
AM	AM (e.g. AM05/11) is the abbreviation for “Amtlich Mitteilungen,” official notices posted by the university, which are published at "UPB Official Notices".
Registration period	During the registration period, participants can register for module offerings/courses and examinations in PAUL and also deregister at any time during this period. Registration periods are defined by the university and the faculties. In cases where examination registration is implicit (only in the Faculty of Business Administration and Economics), students are automatically registered for examinations when they register for a module offering.
Unit	The term, “unit” (also “module unit” or “study unit”) is used in different ways in PAUL. It refers to a class as part of a module or a course as part of a module offering. Modules or module offerings can consist of one or more units (= classes or courses). “Study units” can be not only modules, module offerings, classes and courses, but also learning resources, e-learning units and final module offerings.
Area	Areas (e.g. course areas, examination regulation areas) are used to organise a degree course or to provide structure to examination regulations that are depicted. They can have more than one hierarchical level (subareas etc.).
Grading system (BWS)	Grading systems define the entry and publishing of grades for examinations and conform to the requirements of the relevant examination regulations. In PAUL it is possible to convert any grading system into a different one; different grading systems can be defined for entry and publishing, e.g. a points system and a grade system.
CampusNet client	Various university employees use the (CampusNet) PAUL client (also known as a rich client). They use a Windows application to access PAUL from their PC to manage data within their areas of responsibility.
CampusNet-Webportal	Students and members of teaching staff use the (CampusNet) PAUL Web portal. They use a browser to access the portal via the internet or intranet to manage their study-specific or teaching-specific data (e.g. courses, examinations, assessments, material, etc.).
Credits/credit points	Credits/credit points/ECTS are awarded for the workload of a module or a course. Students must complete all compulsory units and examinations to be awarded the credits/ECTS for a study unit (module/course). The allocation of credits/credit points/ECTS is stipulated in the relevant examination regulations or module catalogues. In general, students are awarded 180 credits/ECTS over the whole duration of a bachelor’s degree and 120 for a master’s.
Diploma Supplement	The Diploma Supplement is a document which provides standardised information about German university qualifications, explains the German education system and classifies the student’s qualification. The Diploma Supplement provides information about the content of the course and the academic and vocational qualifications obtained. It contains the salient contents of the course, the course of study, the competencies attained and the name of the university.
Lecturer	A lecturer is someone who holds a course. In PAUL, we differentiate between the following roles: Main lecturer, small group lecturer, course assistant.
Grade Point Average (GPA)	Your GPA in PAUL shows you your current grade point average (GPA). You can check your GPA by choosing “Studies” > “Examination Administration” > “Transcript of records” in PAUL. When calculating your GPA, PAUL weights your credits in accordance with your examination regulations. Only full credits (e.g. modules passed in full) are included in the calculation. Any partial credits/modules not yet completed are not included in this calculation. Modules that have been started, but not yet successfully completed constitute a special case. These are included in your GPA if a status (Passed, Incomplete or Failed) is shown in the “Credits” section. Modules with no status (e.g. modules for which credits have been recorded, but no assessments taken or modules which have been only partially completed, without all partial components having been assessed at least once) are not taken into account when calculating your GPA. Your current GPA is for information purposes only. Only your final grade, as specified on your degree certificate, will be legally valid.
Auditing student	Auditing students are participants in a course who have registered using the Auditing Registration function in PAUL (in the Web client) (e.g. for language courses with the Centre for Language studies at Paderborn University) or who have been explicitly registered as auditing students by rich client users (course managers). In contrast to participants, auditing students cannot register in PAUL for examinations.
Internal notification system/system messages	The internal notification system/system messages are available to members of teaching staff and administrative staff for the purpose of informing students. System messages can be forwarded automatically to Uni e-mail addresses by configuring this in the Web client under “Configure system messages.” Students can respond to messages for a specific course.
Small groups	Small groups allow you to split a course into multiple groups (e.g. parallel tutorials or exercises).
Class	A class is a study unit that serves as a template for a course. In a class, you can define general settings without reference to a specific semester. These settings are then used as standard values for all courses that are based on this class. This includes, for example, class contact hours per week, possible lecturers, examinations and credits. You can adjust the standard values for a particular semester in each course.
Course offering	See Course
Class area	See Area
Assessment	An assessment serves as a template for an examination. It is defined in classes, modules and courses. You can define general settings for an assessment. These settings are then used as standard values for all examinations that are based on this assessment. This includes, for example, the type of examination, duration and whether or not participation is mandatory. For an examination you can add specific information such as dates and times, participants and grades to the standard values.
Course	A course is a study unit based on a class. The abstract standard values for a class are specified for a particular semester in a course (e.g. lecturer, times, type of examination etc.). For example, if the class stipulates literary interpretation, the course can cover Goethe, Schiller, Kafka or the like. One or more courses form a module offering. Courses can be lectures, seminars, small groups, exercises, tutorials, field trips, colloquia, work placements, projects, etc.
Course manager	Course managers are employees in the subject areas, in the faculties’ offices of student affairs, in PLAZ, in the administration etc. who enter the course catalogue in PAUL using the CampusNet client (rich client) and who supervise the module and course offering.
Modelling	Modelling is the (electronic) display of degree courses and examination regulations in PAUL (CampusNet). In case of doubt, the published examination regulations apply.
Module	A module collects a number of study units into a common subarea and consists of classes and e-learning units, for example. A module serves as a template for a module offering. In a module, you can define general settings without reference to a specific semester. These settings are then used as standard values for all module offerings that are based on this module. This includes, for example, the grading system for publishing overall performance, credits, contents and examinations. You can adjust the standard values for a particular semester in each module offering.
Module offering	A module offering denotes the actual availability of a particular module (to be attended by students) for a specific number of semesters (=> Module duration). Depending on the frequency and duration of a module, different (chronologically overlapping) module offerings can exist simultaneously for the same module. Furthermore there are continuous module offerings which do not need to be created separately for each semester. They are continuously valid. A module offering contains one or more courses.
Module unit	A class is a module unit. One or more module units form a module.
Module duration	The duration of a module shows how long a module offering lasts. If students do not complete a module offering within its duration, they can only try again when the module is offered again. At Paderborn University, module durations are taken from the study schedule or the examination regulations. The duration of modules is usually 1 - 2 semesters.
Module frequency	The module frequency indicates how often the module offering is created (e.g. every second semester).
Org. unit	The org. unit denotes the organisational unit that is offering a module (e.g. Chemistry, German Studies, Mathematics, etc.).
Parallel groups	See Small groups
Examination	An examination is the concrete instance of an assessment. Examinations are taken continually throughout the duration of a degree course and always relate to a module offering or a stand-alone course.
Type of examination	Type of examination refers to the type of the examination which students must take in order to complete a module offering or course (e.g. written examination or assignment). The examination type “assessment” can be modelled to represent a type of examination to be chosen freely by the lecturer within the scope of the examination regulations.
Examination attempt	Sitting an examination counts as an examination attempt. Examination attempts may be repeated according to the rules stated in the relevant examination regulations.
Study unit	See Unit.
Form of study	A form of study is, for example, a first degree and postgraduate studies. Forms of study are required for reporting combinations of form of study and qualification to the regional office for statistics.
Study status	Study status is the status that students pass through between applying to the university and leaving it. It includes the statuses “matriculated” “on leave” “de-registered”. Study status can denote a status valid on a particular day, or the status for a semester.
Degree course manager	Degree course managers liaise between the modellers and the office of the dean.
Studium Generale	The Studium Generale, or General Studies, is intended to provide students with the opportunity to take courses from a broad range across faculties, within the scope of the rules of their examination regulations, to allow them to develop an additional individual profile.
Participants	Participants are students who are registered for a course. Participants can have already been admitted to the course, or may be on the waiting list. In contrast to auditing students, participants can register in PAUL for examinations.
Transcript of Records	The transcript of records is an annexe to the degree certificate which lists the student’s complete academic performance and the duration of studies. Before their studies have been completed, students can obtain an overview of grades (printed or uploaded to PAUL) from the Central Examinations Office (https://www.uni-paderborn.de/zv/3-2).
Exercise groups	See Small groups.
Teaching unit	A teaching unit (UE) is one teaching period and normally lasts for 45 minutes.
Event	See Course.
Event offering	The event offering covers all events at a university. There are two types of event: Courses and other events. Courses are usually based on classes. Other events include all events that are not courses (e.g. Faculty council meetings, opening ceremonies and university open days).
Event type	The event type describes the type of class for a course, for example, lecture, seminar, field trip.
Attemp	See examination attempt.
Elective	An elective is a an optional class that students choose to complete within a module.
Workload	Workload is the total expected amount of work for a student expressed in hours. It consists of contact hours and personal study. The workload forms a basis for assigning credits/credit points/ECTS to module offerings and courses. In general: Workload = ECTS x 30. A bachelor’s degree programme usually equates to 180 ECTS credits, i.e. an average of 30 ECTS credits per semester. In principle, however, students can take modules/courses totalling a maximum of 44 ECTS credits per semester (Faculty of Business Administration and Economics - 45 ECTS credits).