When do I need to submit my External Activities CDO form? Is there a deadline?

Our advice is always to submit your form as early as possible so you have time to add further activities if required. The deadline in the past has been 1st May - but this is not a deadline for submitting your form, it is the deadline for having obtained all of the credits required by your course. From May everyone is busy with exams, so there is no futher time to mark forms.

 

How do I know how many EC credits I need for CDO?

You can see this on your SVO in Osiris, or by checking the curriculum for your course which can be found on the koncon website.

If you are still not sure please contact the CDO.

 

How many activities do I need to submit? 

External Activity CDO credits are not based on the number of activities submitted, but on the quality and nature of the projects you have done and the hours of work involved. Large high status or long-term projects with many hours of work will gain you the most credits, but there are also upper limits to the amount of ECTS you can earn with one activity. For instance, a teaching job in a music school for the whole year with many hours of work will usually give you a maximum of 4 ECTS. We are also looking for variety in your activities, and during the COVID-19 period you should also look at all of the online things you have been doing.   

 

How do I know how many credits I will receive?

As with all academic activity, 1 ECTS is based on 28 hours of work for CDO, so this is your guide. Remember that hours spent organising and rehearsing your ensemble, making publicity for a concert and other relevant activities all count toward the total work hours. Hours spent travelling are not included, and also your normal practise routine will also not normally count unless there are particular reasons why these should be considered (learning special techniques etc.). 

 

When will I hear how many credits I have earned?

With the system in MS Teams your form will initially be checked by the CDO. The CDO will can you an approximate indication of how many ECTS you can expect from the activities you have filled in, but will only forward your form for marking when a pass mark is expected. If this is not the case your form will be returned with instructions for what is required to achieve a pass for that year. You will be able to see in MS Teams when your form has been marked, and how many credits have been given for each activity.   

 

What is the point of filling in the External Activities CDO form?

External Activities CDO gives academic value to the work you do beyond the lessons and classes that are part of your curriculum, so this can be freelance work with orchestras, concerts you've set up with your own ensemble, time spent promoting your concerts through online media, making recordings, teaching... basically all of that stuff that you will need to be doing to make a living as a musician once you've graduated, but done before you graduate so you're always finding out more about what's involved: laying some of the foundations for your future. In order to do this you are asked to provide information on this work, and this gives you the opportunity to look back on those activities and reflect on your experience – what you gained with regard to your professional contacts, how you interacted with other musicians or conductors or whatever audience was there, and anything that you might have done better with regard to each event. This is all time well spent, so don't see filling your External Activities CDO form as a chore; take it as an opportunity for learning and sharing.