Schedule, syllabus and examination date

Course content

This course provides an introduction to technologies for search and information retrieval on a large scale over text. You will receive a presentation of index structures, relevance and ranking of documents, as well as processing of documents and queries. Selected applications of language technology and algorithms relevant to search are reviewed.

Learning outcome

After taking IN4120 you'll:

  • have an overview of the various components of a comprehensive, scalable and modern search system
  • know how an inverted index works and how to effectively use it to evaluate queries
  • be able to explain which factors are included in relevance calculations
  • have a basis for further specialization in advanced search technology
  • have insight into key technologies in compression, and in algorithms and data structures for efficient string processing and know how to apply these
  • be able to measure and quantify relevance

Admission to the course

Students admitted at UiO must apply for courses in Studentweb. Students enrolled in other Master's Degree Programmes can, on application, be admitted to the course if this is cleared by their own study programme.

If you are not already enrolled as a student at UiO, please see our information about admission requirements and procedures for international applicants.

IN2010 – Algorithms and Data Structures or IN2040 – Functional programming

Overlapping courses

Teaching

2 hours of lectures and 2 hours of group exercises each week. Submission of compulsory assignments is required. Read more about requirements for submission of assignments, group work and legal cooperation under guidelines for mandatory assignments.

Examination

4 hours written digital exam. All mandatory assignments must be approved prior to the exam.

It will also be counted as one of your three attempts to sit the exam for this course, if you sit the exam for one of the following courses: IN3120 – Search Technology, INF3800 – Søketeknologi (continued), INF4800 – Søketeknologi (continued)

Language of examination

You may write your examination paper in Norwegian, Swedish, Danish or English.

Grading scale

Grades are awarded on a scale from A to F, where A is the best grade and F is a fail. Read more about the grading system.

Resit an examination

Students who can document a valid reason for absence from the regular examination are offered a postponed examination at the beginning of the next semester.

Re-scheduled examinations are not offered to students who withdraw during, or did not pass the original examination.

More about examinations at UiO

You will find further guides and resources at the web page on examinations at UiO.

Last updated from FS (Felles studentsystem) Oct. 14, 2026 11:09:02 PM

Facts about this course

Level
Master
Credits
10
Teaching
Autumn
Examination
Autumn

Contact

Department of Informatics