DTU has laid down rules on disciplinary measures. These rules are established for BSc, MSc and master's students in accordance with section 14, subsection 9 of the University Act. For BEng and diploma students, the rules are laid down in accordance with institutional conditions.
DTU's disciplinary rules apply to all students at DTU, also students in continuing education, and at 'DTU Adgangskursus'. The rules also apply to PhD students who violate the exam rules (cheating at exam/plagiarism) in master's or PhD courses. See sections 7 and 8 below.
Students must comply with the rules and other regulations governing students’ conduct and behaviour at DTU. Violation of the rules will have consequences ranging from a reprimand to permanent expulsion from the DTU programme, depending on the nature of the violation.
Furthermore, students must comply with general ethical norms laid down for students and staff at all universities and higher education institutions,. Deliberate acts violating such standards which will not be spelled out in the rules and regulations may have the same consequences as mentioned below.
Students should behave in a considerate and orderly fashion during their studies, to ensure the smooth running of the University’s activities. Students thus must consider the needs of other students and staff, as well as the University’s property, buildings, and belongings, when they are on the University’s premises. That means, for instance, that noisy behaviour, eating, drinking, smoking, etc., is prohibited if it causes inconvenience to others in any way. Students must observe the rules for good behaviour and safety regulations posted on signs, notice boards, etc., in laboratories, libraries, classrooms, exam rooms, conference rooms, corridors, canteens, and the surrounding areas.
Specifically, the following is prohibited at DTU:
a) Offensive behaviour, cf. DTU Guidelines regarding harassment
b) Smoking indoors or in the immediate vicinity of the buildings at DTU
c) The use of psychedelic drugs, including other drugs which may have psychedelic effects such as nitrous oxide ('laughing gas')
d) Alcohol consumption during lectures
e) Staying overnight at DTU
f) Violation of DTU's politic of alcohol during the study start. See here.
Any violation of criminal law, the law of illegal substances, and other legislation committed by students in connection with activities at DTU are reported to the Head of Study Division (studiechef@dtu.dk), who will decide whether to report the case to the police. In addition to the police's processing, violations of legislation will also be handled as a disciplinary case and sanctioned by DTU.
Procedure in the event of violations of the disciplinary rules
If suspicion occurs regarding breaches of the disciplinary rules, it must be reported to the Office for Study Programmes and Student Affairs via AUS-Sekretariat@dtu.dk.
Cases involving a violation of the exam rules must be reported to the Office for Study Programmes and Student Affairs via www.eksamenssnyd.dtu.dk. Find more information at DTU Inside on ‘Study rules'/Exam'/'Cheating at exams and other forms of assessment’.
The Office will obtain a statement from the student and maybe other parties on the matter, and then decide on the case. The student can submit a complaint about the disciplinary decision to the Danish Agency for Science and Higher Education following section 34 of the Danish University Act in case the complaint concerns legal issues. The complaint must be filed within two weeks of the announcement of the decision. The complaint should be sent to AUS-Sekretariat@dtu.dk.
Cases involving a minor violation
Cases involving a minor violation of the disciplinary measures (except cases of violation of exam rules) are generally handled by the manager/lecturer responsible for the relevant room or activity, i.e. the lecturer in connection with teaching-related problems, the departmental management in connection with problems with department rooms, or a supervisor in connection with special activities, for example in data bars and workshops.
The manager/lecturer may invite students to an interview to discuss the case and issue an oral warning against repeating the violation. The manager/lecturer does not have the authority to sanction the students in other ways than the two options mentioned above. The manager/lecturer must ensure that the provisions set out in the Danish Public Administration Act are observed, including that students are given the opportunity to make a statement before an oral warning is given.
If the manager/lecturer deems that the violation justifies more severe sanctions than an oral warning, or if the student fails to change the behaviour that leads to the oral warning, the case will be reported to the Office for Study Programmes and Student Affairs through aus-sekretariat@dtu.dk.
If the violation concerns exam cheating, the rules relating to 'Cheating at exams and other forms of assessment' should be followed.
Disciplinary measures
The following sanctions may be imposed if DTU’s rules are violated:
- Reprimand
- Issuing an oral or a written warning against repeated violation of the rules
- Expulsion from courses, workshops, etc. for a maximum of one semester
- Expulsion from exam
- Temporary or permanent expulsion from the University.
The above sanctions may be combined. The sanction depends on the severity of the breach, prior violations, the risk of reoccurrence, the need to ensure the smooth running of the University’s activities and to maintain respect for the work done at the University and whether the University’s interests can be sufficiently safeguarded if a less serious sanction is imposed.
1. A reprimand is the mildest reaction in a disciplinary case and it is not considered an actual sanction but underlining of applicable rules. In cases of violation of the examination rules, a reprimand can be regarded as a pedagogical reprimand. The reprimand can also instruct the student on how they should act in a similar situation in the future. In the event of a subsequent disciplinary case, it may be emphasized that the person in question has previously been made separately aware of the rules and the importance of compliance with them.
2. A warning is a tightening of the rules that apply in the area and a recommendation to the student not to repeat the violation. A warning means that a subsequent violation of the rules will be treated as a repeated violation. Repetition is an aggravating circumstance that can lead to more severe consequences/sanctions for the student.
3. Expulsion from a course, workshop, etc. for a semester, is a sanction that is merely relevant for the Office for Study Programmes and Student Affairs to consider if the student previously has been given one or several oral or written warnings because of the student's behaviour in the relevant course/workshop. The lecturer/manager also has the authority to decide on an immediate expulsion from a course/workshop. Read more on ‘Academic prerequisites for course participation’. The lecturer can also immediately expel a student due to his or her behavior or disruptive behavior according to the disciplinary rules.
4. Expulsion from an exam can be used both before, during, and after the exam, and the sanction is only used in cases regarding violation of the rules of the exam (cheating). Expulsion from an exam means that the student will have used an exam attempt, and their exam performance will be cancelled. If the exam performance has already been assessed, the assessment will be cancelled. The sanction includes the relevant course in its entirety, including all part exams in the course. Under exceptional circumstances, only a part exam in a course may be cancelled. If the sanction only includes one of the part exams, it is up to the manager/lecturer to decide if the student is to be given the opportunity to do the part exam in the same course period and therefore give the student the opportunity to continue on the course. The student can resit the course/project according to the general rules for re-exams (see ‘Re-exams’ under ‘Exam’). The student will lose the right to a quick re-exam according to the rules regarding re-exam in the same exam period or in immediate continuation thereof when students lack only one course to finish their programme.
5. Expulsion from the University may be exercised in the event of gross or repeated violation of the rules and norms above, and if the University deems it necessary to impose this serious sanction to ensure the smooth running of the University or to ensure continued confidence on the part of the outside world in the University.
Expulsion from the DTU means that the student is withdrawn from the study programme and is excluded from all participation in courses and exams. Expelled students are not entitled to have any tuition fees reimbursed for the period of expulsion. Students expelled for a limited period are automatically readmitted at the end of the expulsion period.
In case of expulsion of a PhD student, the expulsion will always be permanent, and the enrollment at DTU will cease. The employment will automatically cease if the PhD student is employed at DTU.
DTU’s IT security rules for students
The following rules apply to all students at DTU, also for students in continuing education, and at DTU Adgangskursus.
Purpose of the IT security rules
In drawing up its IT security rules, DTU wants to establish a framework for maintaining a stable and well-functioning IT system with minimal disruption to operations while simultaneously protecting user privacy, email privacy, and personal data as stipulated by law. The Executive Board has issued the guidelines in cooperation with the IT function.
DTU’s rules for students on the use of DTU's systems are to make sure that DTU does not experience:
- Unauthorized use of DTU’s IT systems
- Illegal use and copying of software and data
- Breach of confidentiality, i.e. unauthorized persons gaining unauthorized access to data
- Data corruption, i.e. unintentional deletion or modification of data
- Operational disruptions, i.e. the use of DTU’s IT systems in a manner that prevents normal operation or leads to unwanted use of resources.
Who is subject to the IT security rules?
The rules apply to all students who use DTU’s systems or networks, whether at DTU or accessing DTU’s systems from outside. All users of DTU’s systems must keep themselves informed about the applicable rules at all times. Questions about IT use or problems can be emailed to AIT at itsupport@student.dtu.dk. Help can also be given if students use Helpdesk in the DTU Library at Lyngby campus.
User IDs and passwords
The assigned user ID is strictly personal and must only be used by the person to whom it is issued.
The corresponding password is personal and strictly private and must not be disclosed to anybody else. You must force a password change if you suspect that your account has been compromised.
If you suspect your username/password has been misused by others, it must be reported immediately to AIT via e-mail itsupport@student.dtu.dk.
Copying and protecting data and software
DTU has purchased software licenses for the IT systems, which are available to DTU's students. The programmes must not be used in a way that violates the licensing terms. The licensing terms vary for the different software packages. The specific rules are available by contacting your local IT support for the relevant licensed programme/system and will, in so far as possible, be published on the website where the software is downloaded.
As a general rule, the software must not be copied or installed on equipment that does not belong to DTU. That also applies even though copying the software without breaking DTU’s security system is technically possible. That is only permissible if it is specifically stated that this is legal or after obtaining prior approval from the local IT support (alternatively, the AIT ServiceDesk).
Data and software in other users’ data fields must be considered their private property. Attempting to access such data without prior agreement with the data owner is not permitted. That also applies even though data can be accessed without breaking DTU’s security system.
Rules for using DTU’s IT systems as well as external systems or services that DTU may provide access to.
- All IT resources in the form of computers, servers, licenses, printers, disk space, network traffic, etc. must only be used for study-related purposes. If a project includes personal data, the data must be processed following applicable legislation. Read more at DTU Inside under ’Students' use of data’.
- DTU’s IT systems must not be used for your own commercial purposes or the purposes of others. Almost all of DTU's systems and programs are only allowed to be used in connection to research or teaching.
- The use of DTU’s IT systems must not violate Danish legislation.
- It is not permitted to publish defamatory or generally offensive material.
- The use of DTU’s IT systems must not damage DTU’s reputation.
- Copyright rules must be observed. For example, DTU’s network and servers must not be used for sharing copyrighted material in a way that does not comply with the applicable rules.
- It is not permitted to overload IT systems unnecessarily, for example, through excessive disk usage, computer power, and network traffic, without prior agreement with the local IT support (alternatively, the AIT Service desk).
- All users are allocated a disk quota that must not be exceeded. Excessive use may result in files being deleted at any time to keep the total disk usage within the quota. Unused quotas may not be transferred to other users. DTU makes backup copies of user files to a limited extent.
- It is not permitted to disconnect or refrain from using any security software which is installed (antivirus, etc.).
- DTU reserves the right to examine the content of data and software on user areas in connection with operational disturbances, suspected unlawful acts, or rules violations.
- Please note that DTU collects and registers information on the use of DTU’s IT systems and networks (logging). The collection of information happens primarily with a view to fixing errors and capacity planning. Still, it can also be used as part of investigations regarding violations of the present set of rules. Further, the information can also be passed on to relevant authorities according to Danish law. Information collected by DTU will only be used and passed on anonymized (statistically) unless they relate to an investigation of abuse.
Procedure in the event of violations of the IT security rules
If suspicion occurs regarding breaches of the IT security rules or rules regarding personal data, it must be reported to the Office for Study Programmes and Student Affairs via AUS-Sekretariat@dtu.dk.
Violation may cause disciplinary sanctions for the student. See DTU Inside under ‘Study rules'/'Disciplinary measures towards students’.
Following a consultation procedure with the student and other relevant parties suspected of violating the rules, the Office for Study Programmes and Student Affairs decides on the matter. If the student maintains that there are legal discrepancies in the decision, the student can appeal to the dean of the relevant study programme within two weeks of receiving the decision.