After I enrolled for my Master's in Czechia, I heard from my other colleagues that the culmination of our degree is not only composed of our thesis defence but also a final state exam. When I did my bachelor's degree in my home country, we only had a thesis defence, and our studies ended there. However, a final state exam in Czechia comes soon after you finish your thesis defence. So, it is not only crucial that you pass your thesis defence; you must also pass the final state exam to fulfil all requirements to be allowed to graduate.
When I first found out about that, I was clueless about what it was, what it entailed, and what it meant to finish our degree. Finding out that there is also a final state exam for all students made me nervous with anticipation during the days leading up to it since I was afraid I would not be able to recall what I learned during the exam or if I would be the only one to be left behind among my batchmates because of it.
So, in this blog post, I want to give some insights about the Final State Exam from the perspective of a newly graduated international alumni.
What is the Final State Exam?
The Final State Exam, or the FSE, is the last academic requirement you must fulfil before becoming eligible for graduation. In Czechia, it is the legal basis for awarding your degree title, whether for a Bachelor's or a Master's. You must pass this step with flying colours along with your thesis defence. Just having a passing mark on either of those is not enough for a degree to be conferred on you.
The FSE could be given in written or oral format – the choice ultimately depends on your faculty or degree programme. In our degree programme, the bachelor's students have their FSE in a written format. Meanwhile, the Master's students have their FSEs administered orally on the same day (and immediately after) when they finish their thesis defence.
What is the coverage of the FSE?
While the thesis defence primarily has a strong focus towards the topic you chose for your thesis, the coverage of the FSE could be about anything your classes have discussed in your first semester up to the last semester in college. However, most of the exam topics will primarily cover the compulsory courses for your degree program.
Thankfully, our faculty gives us a syllabus of the possible topics that might come up during our FSE, which might also be the case for your faculty. Our syllabus is available on our faculty's official website, so if you cannot find the FSE syllabus on your faculty website, it is best to ask your study advisor about it to be prepared.
While I was nervous and anxious about doing the FSE, I have now realized that it is also an excellent way to synthesize everything you have learned during your whole stay in university. It allows you to refresh important concepts and issues from major courses and summarize the prominent topics you should have learned during your program.
Is there a possibility of failing the FSE?
There is a possibility of failing only if you do not prepare for the FSE or have reviewed the topics given to you in the syllabus. The FSE is a synthesis of what you have studied during your program, so it is only a matter of refreshing what you have already learned.
If you fail the FSE, you have another chance to retake it next semester. The faculty gives students two chances to retake the final state exam in some degree programs.
I wish you good luck on your final state exams in the future!