The European Credit Transfer System (ECTS): introduction and practical experience at the Technical University of Denmark

Abstract

The objectives and the core elements of the European Course Credit Transfer System (ECTS) are briefly described. ECTS is a tool to manage student mobility as it facilitates transparency, academic recognition, and commitment of the student and involved institutions. The impact on student mobility and teaching after implementation of ECTS at the Technical University of Denmark (DTU) is reported. The ratio of guest students attending advanced environmental engineering courses at DTU increased from 7 percent of class to almost 50 percent over a three-year period. The number of DTU students studying abroad was also affected by the implementation of ECTS in combination with DTU's additional internationalisation activities. In 1998 DTU achieved balance between the inflow and outflow of students.