The catalogue of FREE CREDITS is published in the Curriculum. In the catalogue you will find many different types of courses. You can choose among these courses, bearing in mind the rules mentioned here below.  

1- Specific features of each course
 
When  you choose a course from the general catalogue, you should pay attention to potential specific features illustrated in the footnote of the Curriculum (for instance, maximum number of students – if foreseen, campus where the classes take place, video lessons, etc.) or in the course syllabus (prerequirements, class structure, etc.)
You shall make your choice following the procedure for the definition of the Personal Study Plan- Annual Personal Study Plan, available on your personal page of the Teaching Portal.
When a course is oversubscribed, it will be assigned to students on the basis of a merit ranking list(*), prepared by the Division of Student Affairs.

OTHER LEARNING ACTIVITIES

You can request the recognition of the competencies that you have gained while undertaking some learning activities outside the university in substitution of the Free credits planned by your Curriculum. An external activity can be recognized even if it exceeds the total number of credits required for graduation, but within the limit of 10 extra credits. The external activity will be registered on a pass/fail basis (i.e. there will be no grade, it will simply be registered with a “pass”).

1-Other foreign languages (3 CFU)
Politecnico can recognize this competence only one time during the Bachelor’s degree programme
If you have a certificate of a foreign language other than the compulsory languages of your degree programme, you can ask for its recognition at any time of your academic career. The request shall be made through a specific procedure called “Approvazione attività esterne”/Approval of external activities, available under the Segreteria on line section of your personal page.
You will have to upload a copy of your language certificate. If your request is approved, you will have to show the original certificate to the staff of the Language Centre (CLA). The table of the foreign languages and the certificates accepted by Politecnico is available on the CLA’s website.

2-Competitive Sporting Activities (3 CFU)
Politecnico can recognize up to a maximum of 3 academic credits, only one time during the entire duration of your studies  (Bachelor’s or Master’s degree programme). 
If you achieve outstanding results in competitive sporting activities while you are studying at the university, you can ask for the recognition of this activity at any time of your academic career. The request shall be made through a specific procedure called ‘Approvazione attività esterne’/ Approval of external activities, available under the Segreteria on line section of your personal page.     As a general rule, the term “outstanding results in competitive sporting activities” refers to: 
a)athletes called into the Italian national team of disciplines which have a federation approved by CONI and are recognized as Olympic sports.
b) absolute champions or champions of division in Italian championships, or medalists in European /World championships  in one of the disciplines that have a federation approved by CONI and are recognized as Olympic sports.  
c) athletes, couches or referees who have participated in top level national and international championships 
d) students who have won the open competition for the Agon project promoted by CUS Torino

3-Student Team Activities
Politecnico can recognize 3,6, or 12 academic credits, only one time during the Bachelor’s degree programme and only one time during the Master’s degree programme. 
If you are actively involved in a student team, you can ask for the recognition of this activity. The request shall be made through a specific procedure called ‘Approvazione attività esterne’/Approval of external activities, available under the Segreteria on line section of your personal page. The team leader will have to certify the nature of your collaboration and the amount of time that you have dedicated to it. On the basis of such information the Faculty member in charge of your Personal Study Plan (referente del piano carriera)  will decide whether to accept your request and how many credits you will be granted. 
Further information on Student teams is available on: https://didattica.polito.it/team_studenteschi.html

4-Other Learning Activities Outside the University

Universities can recognize external activities and competences acquired outside the university, in compliance with the restrictions foreseen by law (Law No. 240/2010, Article 14).  
Politecnico can recognize 3,4,5,6,8,10 or 12 academic credits (ECTS) depending on the kind of activity. Politecnico can recognize more than one activity during the course of your studies.       
If you are going to participate or have participated in external learning activities (training courses, workshops, Summer or Winter Schools,…) which are relevant and coherent with your educational path, you can ask for the recognition of this activity. The request shall be made through a specific procedure called ‘Approvazione attività esterne’/ Approval of external activities, available under the Segreteria on line section of your personal page. You will have to upload the activity supporting documents  (agenda, contents and  duration).  The Programme Academic Coordinator  will decide whether to accept your request and how many credits you will be granted.  

5-Internship
In the Curriculum and on the website of the Office of Career Services you can find the information and rules about the internships: how to insert an internship into your Curriculum, how to activate, perform and register it.

Credits offered by the University of Turin
It is possible to choose one course offered by the University of Turin (Università degli Studi di Torino) in substitution for a course listed in the catalogue of free choice credits. In a.y. 2017/18 this opportunity is reserved to maximum 50 students from Politecnico, with a limit of 3 students admitted to the same course. If there are not enough places, the course will be allocated to students on the basis of a merit ranking list (*) created by the Division  of Student Affairs.
If you are admitted to a course offered by the University of Turin, you will have to register on the University’s website (www.unito.it) to get the access credential for their online services (such as the registration for an exam date) Further information and instructions on how to register are available at:  
https://www.unito.it/servizi/servizi-line/istruzioni-e-supporto/istruzioni-la-registrazione-al-portale.  
Other useful information and the course syllabi  are available on the website of the degree programme which offers the course.
You can find the list of Bachelor’s and Master’s degree programmes offered by Unito in a.y. 2017/18 at: https://www.unito.it/didattica/offerta-formativa/corsi-di-studio

(*) MERIT RANKING LIST AND ALLOCATION OF COURSES WITH RESIDUAL SEATS

The ranking list is created on the basis of students’ scores. Every student is assigned a score, which is calculated by multiplying the number of credits by the grade obtained in the exam. Pass-or-fail exams (without a grade) will be assigned the average grade of the other exams. The sum of these products is divided by the number of semesters (starting from the first semester of enrolment in the university system). In case of credits deriving from other careers, the semesters will be calculated as follows: number of validated credits divided by standard time (1 semester = 30 credits).
For the creation of the ranking list Politecnico takes into account the exams passed by every student before 28^th July 2017.  

Second allocation of courses
If, for any reason, you haven’t chosen your Optional courses  before the deadline, you will be offered the possibility to choose a single preference among the courses with residual seats.