Teaching and working methods

Time consumption

All CBS bachelor and master programmes are full-time programmes. This means you should expect to spend approximately 37 hours on average on your studies each week.  You will spend your time on:

• participating in and preparing for your lectures and exercise classes
• doing individual and group work
• preparing for and taking your exams

The workload and the number of hours you spend studying will vary during the semester and throughout the year. The time leading up to assignment submissions and exams can be hectic, and you can easily work more than 40 hours a week in this period. 

Hours of teaching

You should expect to have 12-14 hours of teaching on average per week scheduled in the daytime from Monday to Friday. You will experience different types of teaching at CBS. The most common are:

• Lectures: usually, a lecturer will review the readings from the syllabus and put them into perspective in an auditorium. Most students take a lot of notes during the lectures.
• Exercise classes: are often scheduled in continuation of lectures with smaller groups of approximately 30-40 students with a lot of dialogue between the lecturer and the students. You often do some exercises based on what has been reviewed during the lecture.

The vast majority of your lectures and classes take place on campus, but you may have a few courses or activities that take place online. It is therefore expected that you show up on campus and participate in classes.

Time table
As you can see in the time table below, the teaching activitites are spread out over the week. So you will have time before, in between and after classes for different things. Most students spend their time on individual preparation, voluntary and compulsory group work or writing assignments. But you could also spend the time relaxing with friends, drinking a cup of coffee in the student cafe Nexus or working at your student job.
 

Participate actively in teaching activities

At CBS, it is your responsibility to show up prepared and participate actively in the teaching activities. You do this by fx asking questions and engaging in academic discussions with your fellow students and lecturers. This creates a good learning environment for you and your fellow students, and ensures you get the most out of your programme.

The number of teaching hours gives you great flexibility to decide for yourself what your everyday life at CBS should look like. This flexibility also means that you must be good at planning and structuring your daily life. It is important that you find a viable balance between your studies and your spare time.

Compulsory activities
At CBS, your lecturers do not check whether you show up for class or how high your absence is. However, it is important that you prioritise coming to your classes. You risk missing out on important information and discussions if you do not show up, and you cannot expect everything to be available online. 

In some courses you have to pass different compulsory activities in order to participate in the exam. This could be a multiple choice test, a submission of an assignment or an oral presentation.

Preparation time for classes and exams

In addition to attending classes, you should expect to spend 20-25 hours per week preparing for classes. You may have to read a few chapters or an academic article as preparation before a lecture. You might also spend time on either taking notes or underlining the most important points while reading. 

Before an exercise class, you will also often have to prepare a case or do various calculation tasks in advance, which will be reviewed during the exercise class. 

As a student at CBS, you have the opportunity to sit at the library in quiet surroundings and read and prepare for your classes and exams. You can also book a group study room if you and your study group are preparing a case for an exercise class or writing an exam paper together.

Group work

In most study programmes assignments and preparation for teaching activities and exams will be done in groups. Many students also choose to form study groups, where they meet and discuss the syllabus, go through assignments and prepare for teaching activities or exams together.

Working in groups has many advantages. You learn a lot from talking with your fellow students about your syllabus and get other perspectives on what you read. You can also help each other out if there are difficult things in the syllabus, and you can share an interest for the courses you find most exciting. You also learn a lot about yourself and how you and other people react in a collaborative setting. It will give you a lot of good tools, you can use, when you later start a job where you have to collaborate with people who may not be similar to you.  

The other students in your group can also become the ones you do social things with outside of class. They are often the ones who help you keep your motivation up and get you through the busy periods.

Teaching and litterature in English

CBS offers bachelor and master programmes taught in either Danish or English. Sometimes you will also find courses taught in English in Danish-taught programmes.

You should expect most of your literature to be in English, even if your programme is taught in Danish. It requires some extra work from you to get used to reading literature in English at first, but you will quickly get used to reading in English and expand your vocabulary.

Considering applying for a programme taught in English?
Before applying for a programme taught in English you might want to consider the following:

• All literature, lectures, exams, projects and group work are in English.
• Academic English differs from the English used in everyday life – so it might be a challenge even if you are used to speaking English in other situations.
• You may have to spend more time on reading and understanding the material in English.
• You may find it challenging to express yourself with the same ease as you would in your mother tongue.
• Some will feel uncomfortable and shy when speaking English – especially when in a crowd or among native speakers.

Practice makes perfect
There is a big difference between reading and understanding texts and expressing yourself in English both orally and in writing. This is a challenge for some students. Even if you are used to reading English texts on your bachelor programme, it is still a good idea to practice your English. Try to speak it on a regular basis, watch the news, movies and TV series in English. You should also read books and newspapers in English, as this will help you read faster and increase your vocabulary. A good command of English is essential for getting the maximum learning outcome of your programme.

Hear a student guidance counsellor explain what it is like to study a graduate programme taught in English.

Teaching and exam periods

See the teaching and exam periods for the autumn and spring semester and the public holidays below: