But it never came to that. On Wednesday evening, the students received another email, this time with the subject line \u00bbAnnulled exam \u2014 decision reversed\u00ab.<\/p>\n
In the email, Associate Dean J\u00f8rgen Kurtzhals writes that, \u00bbafter long and difficult deliberations\u00ab, management has decided that, instead of being annulled, the exam will now be graded based on the one question that had not been reused.<\/p>\n
This means that students will now get a grade based only on the one-quarter of the paper that was legitimately part of the exam \u2014 and not on the three-quarters that had been mistakenly copied into the assignment during a file merge.<\/p>\n
This is only possible because the specific question was worded in a very particular way, explains J\u00f8rgen Kurtzhals in the email:<\/p>\n
The whole thing about that one special question sounds a bit like a post-rationalisation<\/p>\n
Valdemar R\u00f8mer, spokesperson for more than 200 medical students<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
\u00bbThe board of studies, in collaboration with the exam coordinator and the Department of Clinical Medicine, has therefore reviewed the exam question very thoroughly. They have collectively assessed that this particular question, which was not reused, is so extensive and covers such a broad spectrum of medical specialities that it is academically fully defensible to assess the students based on this one question alone,\u00ab the email states.<\/p>\n
When the University Post speaks with the associate dean, he elaborates:<\/p>\n
\u00bbIf it had been any of the three other questions, it wouldn\u2019t have been possible. But because this specific one actually tests such a wide range of topics, it has been deemed sufficient to document the students\u2019 proficiency in the whole subject.\u00ab<\/p>\n
This sounds very fortunate, J\u00f8rgen Kurtzhals?<\/em><\/p>\n\u00bbYes, it really was fortunate.\u00ab<\/p>\n
It also sounds a bit like a loophole?<\/em><\/p>\n\u00bbIt isn\u2019t.\u00ab<\/p>\n
Could it be that you were surprised by the pressure \u2014 from students, media, the open letter, 77-page complaint, and legal threats \u2014 and found this workaround as a response?<\/em><\/p>\n\u00bbNo. The last time we were in this situation (in 2023, when another medical exam was annulled, ed.) we also faced significant attention,\u00ab says the associate dean, referring to articles in the University Post and national media, as well as a student-organised demonstration.<\/p>\n
\u00bbBut in that case, we had no option to revise our decision. This time, we do \u2014 because of the specific exam question,\u00ab the associate dean insists, adding:<\/p>\n
\u00bbWe have also documented all this very carefully. Because clearly, we can\u2019t allow this to set a precedent for other cases.\u00ab<\/p>\n
So you can\u2019t promise that medical students won\u2019t have their exam annulled again in future, if something similar happens?<\/em><\/p>\n\u00bbNo, unfortunately not,\u00ab says J\u00f8rgen Kurtzhals.<\/p>\n
\u00bbI still believe the right decision would have been to annul the exam.\u00ab<\/p>\n
The associate dean emphasises that the students themselves have described the selected solution as desirable \u2014 even though it is still, in principle, a worse deal than if they were being assessed on all four exam questions.<\/p>\n
\u00bbWhat matters to me is that more than 200 students have written to say they accept being graded on this single question,\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n
\u00bbIt\u2019s the lesser evil in a situation where there wasn\u2019t a truly good solution. The only good thing would have been if the mistake hadn\u2019t happened in the first place.\u00ab<\/p>\n
Everyone turning themselves inside out<\/h3>\n
Student spokesperson Valdemar R\u00f8mer is convinced that both the open letter and the 77-page complaint played a key role in the decision.<\/p>\n
\u00bbI have no doubt this is the result of our persistent efforts and pressure. J\u00f8rgen Kurtzhals even refers in his email to our 200+ signatures,\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n
He reckons the faculty mainly changed its stance to avoid a full-blown PR crisis:<\/p>\n
\u00bbThe whole thing about that one special question sounds a bit like a post-rationalisation,\u00ab he says, adding:<\/p>\n
If you knew how many people have turned themselves inside out over the past week<\/p>\n
J\u00f8rgen Kurtzhals, Associate Dean for Education at the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
\u00bbLike a way to explain that they\u2019ve now found a good argument they didn\u2019t have to begin with.\u00ab<\/p>\n
Although he\u2019s pleased with the outcome, he\u2019s frustrated it had to go this far and cost him and his fellow students so much time and energy.<\/p>\n
\u00bbYou don\u2019t have to search long for \u2018reused exam sets\u2019 to find that other universities have dealt with similar issues without annulling exams. There are quite a few examples of this.\u00ab<\/p>\n
\u00bbSo you kind of wonder \u2014 did they even try<\/em>?\u00ab<\/p>\nAssociate dean J\u00f8rgen Kurtzhals insists that they did:<\/p>\n
\u00bbIf you knew how many people have turned themselves inside out this past week to scrutinise the issue from every angle …\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n
\u00bbIt\u2019s just been insanely difficult.\u00ab<\/p>\n
Now the medical students can breathe a sigh of relief and move on with their summer plans.<\/p>\n
Students who are not satisfied with being assessed on just one part of the exam will be offered a resit on 13 August.
\n<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
After a week of intense clashes between students and management, the latter appears to have changed its mind.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":100,"featured_media":179235,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[42],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-179282","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-education","expression-news_article"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"yoast_head":"\n
Victory for medical students as exam ruling reversed \u2014 University Post<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/victory-for-medical-students-as-exam-ruling-reversed\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Victory for medical students as exam ruling reversed \u2014 University Post\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"After a week of intense clashes between students and management, the latter appears to have changed its mind.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/victory-for-medical-students-as-exam-ruling-reversed\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"University Post\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/uniavis\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-07-03T08:13:41+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-07-04T08:57:50+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/eksamen7.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1600\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1066\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Mathilde Meile\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@Uniavisen\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@Uniavisen\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Mathilde Meile\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/en\\\/victory-for-medical-students-as-exam-ruling-reversed\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/en\\\/victory-for-medical-students-as-exam-ruling-reversed\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Mathilde Meile\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/65426f96d50cb624faa90a21753339d8\"},\"headline\":\"Victory for medical students as exam ruling reversed\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-07-03T08:13:41+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-07-04T08:57:50+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/en\\\/victory-for-medical-students-as-exam-ruling-reversed\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":1162,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/en\\\/victory-for-medical-students-as-exam-ruling-reversed\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2018\\\/02\\\/eksamen7.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Education\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/en\\\/victory-for-medical-students-as-exam-ruling-reversed\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/en\\\/victory-for-medical-students-as-exam-ruling-reversed\\\/\",\"name\":\"Victory for medical students as exam ruling reversed \u2014 University Post\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/en\\\/victory-for-medical-students-as-exam-ruling-reversed\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/en\\\/victory-for-medical-students-as-exam-ruling-reversed\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2018\\\/02\\\/eksamen7.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-07-03T08:13:41+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-07-04T08:57:50+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/65426f96d50cb624faa90a21753339d8\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/en\\\/victory-for-medical-students-as-exam-ruling-reversed\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/en\\\/victory-for-medical-students-as-exam-ruling-reversed\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/en\\\/victory-for-medical-students-as-exam-ruling-reversed\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2018\\\/02\\\/eksamen7.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2018\\\/02\\\/eksamen7.jpg\",\"width\":1600,\"height\":1066,\"caption\":\"Eksamenssituation, tid til at se op under eksamen (UA-arkiv)\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/en\\\/victory-for-medical-students-as-exam-ruling-reversed\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/en\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Victory for medical students as exam ruling reversed\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/\",\"name\":\"University Post\",\"description\":\"Independent of management\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/65426f96d50cb624faa90a21753339d8\",\"name\":\"Mathilde Meile\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/f273040465f07e12ea8b68d0a840654e3628b7bbbfcd4c99903f24a8b165bc6f?s=96&d=identicon&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/f273040465f07e12ea8b68d0a840654e3628b7bbbfcd4c99903f24a8b165bc6f?s=96&d=identicon&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/f273040465f07e12ea8b68d0a840654e3628b7bbbfcd4c99903f24a8b165bc6f?s=96&d=identicon&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Mathilde Meile\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uniavisen.dk\\\/en\\\/author\\\/mathilde-meile\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Victory for medical students as exam ruling reversed \u2014 University Post","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/victory-for-medical-students-as-exam-ruling-reversed\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Victory for medical students as exam ruling reversed \u2014 University Post","og_description":"After a week of intense clashes between students and management, the latter appears to have changed its mind.","og_url":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/victory-for-medical-students-as-exam-ruling-reversed\/","og_site_name":"University Post","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/uniavis","article_published_time":"2025-07-03T08:13:41+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-07-04T08:57:50+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1600,"height":1066,"url":"http:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/eksamen7.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Mathilde Meile","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@Uniavisen","twitter_site":"@Uniavisen","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Mathilde Meile","Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/victory-for-medical-students-as-exam-ruling-reversed\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/victory-for-medical-students-as-exam-ruling-reversed\/"},"author":{"name":"Mathilde Meile","@id":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/#\/schema\/person\/65426f96d50cb624faa90a21753339d8"},"headline":"Victory for medical students as exam ruling reversed","datePublished":"2025-07-03T08:13:41+00:00","dateModified":"2025-07-04T08:57:50+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/victory-for-medical-students-as-exam-ruling-reversed\/"},"wordCount":1162,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/victory-for-medical-students-as-exam-ruling-reversed\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/eksamen7.jpg","articleSection":["Education"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/victory-for-medical-students-as-exam-ruling-reversed\/","url":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/victory-for-medical-students-as-exam-ruling-reversed\/","name":"Victory for medical students as exam ruling reversed \u2014 University Post","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/victory-for-medical-students-as-exam-ruling-reversed\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/victory-for-medical-students-as-exam-ruling-reversed\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/eksamen7.jpg","datePublished":"2025-07-03T08:13:41+00:00","dateModified":"2025-07-04T08:57:50+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/#\/schema\/person\/65426f96d50cb624faa90a21753339d8"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/victory-for-medical-students-as-exam-ruling-reversed\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/victory-for-medical-students-as-exam-ruling-reversed\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/victory-for-medical-students-as-exam-ruling-reversed\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/eksamen7.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/eksamen7.jpg","width":1600,"height":1066,"caption":"Eksamenssituation, tid til at se op under eksamen (UA-arkiv)"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/victory-for-medical-students-as-exam-ruling-reversed\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Victory for medical students as exam ruling reversed"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/#website","url":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/","name":"University Post","description":"Independent of management","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/#\/schema\/person\/65426f96d50cb624faa90a21753339d8","name":"Mathilde Meile","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f273040465f07e12ea8b68d0a840654e3628b7bbbfcd4c99903f24a8b165bc6f?s=96&d=identicon&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f273040465f07e12ea8b68d0a840654e3628b7bbbfcd4c99903f24a8b165bc6f?s=96&d=identicon&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f273040465f07e12ea8b68d0a840654e3628b7bbbfcd4c99903f24a8b165bc6f?s=96&d=identicon&r=g","caption":"Mathilde Meile"},"url":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/author\/mathilde-meile\/"}]}},"advancedCustomFields":{"expression":{"term_id":15,"name":"News Article","slug":"news_article","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":15,"taxonomy":"expression","description":"","parent":0,"count":11489,"filter":"raw"},"enable_comments":true,"align_content":"alignleft","feature_color":"","article_updated":"","layout_group":[{"acf_fc_layout":"Headline","use_post_title":true,"headline":"","style":"default","highlighted_words":"","text_size":"small"},{"acf_fc_layout":"Image","image":{"ID":63714,"id":63714,"title":"Eksamen 7","filename":"eksamen7.jpg","filesize":116667,"url":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/eksamen7.jpg","link":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/de-klagede-og-nu-skal-medicinstuderende-alligevel-ikke-til-omproeve\/eksamen-7\/","alt":"Eksamenssituation, tid til at se op under eksamen (UA-arkiv)","author":"8","description":"Eksamenssituation, tid til at se op under eksamen (UA-arkiv)","caption":"","name":"eksamen-7","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":179229,"date":"2018-02-14 10:56:32","modified":"2025-07-03 07:39:16","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":1600,"height":1066,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/eksamen7-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/eksamen7-480x320.jpg","medium-width":480,"medium-height":320,"medium_large":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/eksamen7-768x512.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":512,"large":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/eksamen7-1280x853.jpg","large-width":1280,"large-height":853,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/eksamen7.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1023,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/eksamen7.jpg","2048x2048-width":1600,"2048x2048-height":1066,"featured-soft":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/eksamen7-290x193.jpg","featured-soft-width":290,"featured-soft-height":193,"featured-hard":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/eksamen7-290x180.jpg","featured-hard-width":290,"featured-hard-height":180,"narrow":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/eksamen7-700x466.jpg","narrow-width":700,"narrow-height":466,"extended":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/eksamen7-990x660.jpg","extended-width":990,"extended-height":660}},"style":"extended","text_placement":"metadata-below","image_link_url":"","image_link_title":"","caption_prefix":"","enable_alternative_caption":false,"alternative_caption":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"Standfirst","subject":"U-turn","text":"After a week-long dispute with students, management has now reversed its decision. 250 medical students who last week had their exam annulled after parts of the assignment turned out to be recycled will now be spared a resit.","use_post_excerpt":false},{"acf_fc_layout":"Byline","is_author":true,"contributors":false},{"acf_fc_layout":"Content","content":"<p>Valdemar R\u00f8mer has popped open a bottle of champagne to celebrate that his hard work over the past six days has paid off.<\/p>\n<p>Since 26 June, when he learned that the exam he just did had been annulled, he\u2019s been working harder than ever \u2014 even harder than when he studies for exams \u2014 in his capacity as student spokesperson.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>It struck me right in my sense of justice<\/p>\n<p class=\"quotee\">Valdemar R\u00f8mer, spokesperson for more than 200 medical students<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>\u00bbI\u2019ve spent practically every waking hour on it for six days straight. I\u2019m normally a night owl, but this past week I\u2019ve been up early and gone to bed late every day fighting this case,\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n<p>After sitting a six-hour exam on 22 June in internal medicine, surgery, pathology, anaesthesiology, and patient safety, 278 medical students received an email four days later informing them that, due to a \u00bbdeeply regrettable error\u00ab, parts of an old exam set had been reused in their assignment.<\/p>\n<p><strong>READ ALSO:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/third-time-in-five-years-medical-students-handed-recycled-exam-at-ucph\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><em>Third time in five years: Medical students handed recycled exam at University of Copenhagen<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Management decided the exam would have to be retaken. Students were offered a resit on 8 August \u2014 right in the middle of the university summer break.<\/p>\n<p>And while it might seem easier for Valdemar R\u00f8mer to just accept it and take the resit \u2014 considering all the hassle that followed \u2014 he couldn\u2019t bring himself to accept it:<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbIt struck me right in my sense of justice. I don\u2019t think it\u2019s right that they don\u2019t explore every possible alternative before annulling an exam for so many students over something that was clearly the University of Copenhagen’s (UCPH) own error.\u00ab<\/p>\n<p>He rallied his fellow students behind a 77-page complaint and an open letter, which was sent to university management and <a href=\"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/aabent-brev-fra-medicinere-til-ku-vi-vil-ikke-boede-for-jeres-broeler\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">published in the University Post<\/a>. The students also teamed up with a lawyer, who was ready to support them if their complaint was rejected.<\/p>\n<p>But it never came to that. On Wednesday evening, the students received another email, this time with the subject line \u00bbAnnulled exam \u2014 decision reversed\u00ab.<\/p>\n<h3>A lucky coincidence<\/h3>\n<p>In the email, Associate Dean J\u00f8rgen Kurtzhals writes that, \u00bbafter long and difficult deliberations\u00ab, management has decided that, instead of being annulled, the exam will now be graded based on the one question that had not been reused.<\/p>\n<p>This means that students will now get a grade based only on the one-quarter of the paper that was legitimately part of the exam \u2014 and not on the three-quarters that had been mistakenly copied into the assignment during a file merge.<\/p>\n<p>This is only possible because the specific question was worded in a very particular way, explains J\u00f8rgen Kurtzhals in the email:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>The whole thing about that one special question sounds a bit like a post-rationalisation<\/p>\n<p class=\"quotee\">Valdemar R\u00f8mer, spokesperson for more than 200 medical students<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>\u00bbThe board of studies, in collaboration with the exam coordinator and the Department of Clinical Medicine, has therefore reviewed the exam question very thoroughly. They have collectively assessed that this particular question, which was not reused, is so extensive and covers such a broad spectrum of medical specialities that it is academically fully defensible to assess the students based on this one question alone,\u00ab the email states.<\/p>\n<p>When the University Post speaks with the associate dean, he elaborates:<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbIf it had been any of the three other questions, it wouldn\u2019t have been possible. But because this specific one actually tests such a wide range of topics, it has been deemed sufficient to document the students\u2019 proficiency in the whole subject.\u00ab<\/p>\n<p><em>This sounds very fortunate, J\u00f8rgen Kurtzhals?<\/em><\/p>\n<p>\u00bbYes, it really was fortunate.\u00ab<\/p>\n<p><em>It also sounds a bit like a loophole?<\/em><\/p>\n<p>\u00bbIt isn\u2019t.\u00ab<\/p>\n<p><em>Could it be that you were surprised by the pressure \u2014 from students, media, the open letter, 77-page complaint, and legal threats \u2014 and found this workaround as a response?<\/em><\/p>\n<p>\u00bbNo. The last time we were in this situation (in 2023, when another medical exam was annulled, ed.) we also faced significant attention,\u00ab says the associate dean, referring to articles in the University Post and national media, as well as a student-organised demonstration.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbBut in that case, we had no option to revise our decision. This time, we do \u2014 because of the specific exam question,\u00ab the associate dean insists, adding:<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbWe have also documented all this very carefully. Because clearly, we can\u2019t allow this to set a precedent for other cases.\u00ab<\/p>\n<p><em>So you can\u2019t promise that medical students won\u2019t have their exam annulled again in future, if something similar happens?<\/em><\/p>\n<p>\u00bbNo, unfortunately not,\u00ab says J\u00f8rgen Kurtzhals.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbI still believe the right decision would have been to annul the exam.\u00ab<\/p>\n<p>The associate dean emphasises that the students themselves have described the selected solution as desirable \u2014 even though it is still, in principle, a worse deal than if they were being assessed on all four exam questions.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbWhat matters to me is that more than 200 students have written to say they accept being graded on this single question,\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbIt\u2019s the lesser evil in a situation where there wasn\u2019t a truly good solution. The only good thing would have been if the mistake hadn\u2019t happened in the first place.\u00ab<\/p>\n<h3>Everyone turning themselves inside out<\/h3>\n<p>Student spokesperson Valdemar R\u00f8mer is convinced that both the open letter and the 77-page complaint played a key role in the decision.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbI have no doubt this is the result of our persistent efforts and pressure. J\u00f8rgen Kurtzhals even refers in his email to our 200+ signatures,\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n<p>He reckons the faculty mainly changed its stance to avoid a full-blown PR crisis:<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbThe whole thing about that one special question sounds a bit like a post-rationalisation,\u00ab he says, adding:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>If you knew how many people have turned themselves inside out over the past week<\/p>\n<p class=\"quotee\">J\u00f8rgen Kurtzhals, Associate Dean for Education at the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>\u00bbLike a way to explain that they\u2019ve now found a good argument they didn\u2019t have to begin with.\u00ab<\/p>\n<p>Although he\u2019s pleased with the outcome, he\u2019s frustrated it had to go this far and cost him and his fellow students so much time and energy.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbYou don\u2019t have to search long for \u2018reused exam sets\u2019 to find that other universities have dealt with similar issues without annulling exams. There are quite a few examples of this.\u00ab<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbSo you kind of wonder \u2014 <em>did they even try<\/em>?\u00ab<\/p>\n<p>Associate dean J\u00f8rgen Kurtzhals insists that they did:<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbIf you knew how many people have turned themselves inside out this past week to scrutinise the issue from every angle …\u00ab he says.<\/p>\n<p>\u00bbIt\u2019s just been insanely difficult.\u00ab<\/p>\n<p>Now the medical students can breathe a sigh of relief and move on with their summer plans.<\/p>\n<p>Students who are not satisfied with being assessed on just one part of the exam will be offered a resit on 13 August.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"ArticleEnd"},{"acf_fc_layout":"Newsletter","lang_select":"en","identifier":"Newsletter","headline":"Get an email with upcoming events and top University of Copenhagen stories","button_text":"Sign up here","class":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"OtherStories","headline":"","hand_picked_posts":false,"references":false,"category":false,"theme":false,"number_of_posts":"4","style":"default"}]},"taxonomyData":{"category":[{"term_id":42,"name":"Education","slug":"education","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":42,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":661,"filter":"raw"}],"post_tag":[],"post_format":[],"expression":[{"term_id":15,"name":"News Article","slug":"news_article","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":15,"taxonomy":"expression","description":"","parent":0,"count":11489,"filter":"raw"}],"translation_priority":[{"term_id":5468,"name":"Optional","slug":"optional-en","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":5468,"taxonomy":"translation_priority","description":"","parent":0,"count":672,"filter":"raw"}]},"featured_media_url":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/eksamen7-1280x853.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/179282","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/100"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=179282"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/179282\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":179307,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/179282\/revisions\/179307"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/179235"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=179282"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=179282"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uniavisen.dk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=179282"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}