Universitat Internacional de Catalunya
Final Degree Project
Other languages of instruction: English, Spanish
If the student is enrolled for the English track then classes for that subject will be taught in the same language and also in Catalan.
Teaching staff
Upon request
Introduction
The purpose of the Final Degree Project (TFG) is to certify that the student has acquired the skills and knowledge associated with the degree in accordance with the assigned credits. The subject consists of preparation and public presentation of an original work in the field of business administration. It is a compulsory subject and has 9 credits assigned, which correspond to 225 hours (25 hours per credit) of effective and required dedication for its preparation. The TFG is carried out throughout the academic year of the fourth year of the degree.
Pre-course requirements
The TFG is enrolled as another subject within the curriculum of the Degree program. Only students who, at the end of the 3rd year, have 66 credits left to complete their degree studies can enroll, not counting the 9 credits of the TFG.
Objectives
The topic of the TFG will be determined by the student's interest. Two types of content are accepted: (1) development of a business plan (which can be a start-up company or a plan to launch a new product/service/project in an existing company), or (2) a research project aligned with the research areas of the teaching staff of the Faculty of Economics and Social Sciences of the UIC (available on Moodle).
In addition, the UIC proposes the TFG 3.0 modality, which consists of the collaboration of students from different faculties in the preparation of the TFG. For more information, contact the coordinator of the TFG subject. Once approved by the subject coordinator, the TFG topic proposal cannot be substantially modified.
The TFG will be directed by a responsible teacher and is a job where all the knowledge acquired during the Degree is put into practice. The tutor will continuously monitor the student's work and evaluate the student's basic skills and behaviors such as proactivity, responsibility and commitment.
In addition, an in-person training session and a series of training videos will be offered to facilitate the proper preparation and presentation of the TFG.
UIC's commitment to the 17 Sustainable Development Goals
In 2015, the UN approved the 2030 Agenda on Sustainable Development, an opportunity for countries and their societies to embark on a new path to improve the lives of all people, present and future, while caring for the conservation of the natural heritage.
The Agenda has 17 sustainable development goals (SDGs), which pursue equality between people, protect the planet, ensure prosperity, promote peace and establish alliances. The UIC, together with other Catalan universities, has committed to the 17 SDGs through its extensive variety of educational and learning activities, its teaching, research and social leadership functions. For this reason, each TFG must have a brief report that analyzes how the project helps achieve one or more of the 17 SDGs. This report must be made in the section indicated in the pre-established template.
Competences/Learning outcomes of the degree programme
- 04 - To understand and know how to use financial terms within a business framework.
- 19 - To analyse quantitative financial variables and take them into account when making decisions.
- 22 - To be able to identify the nature and behaviour of producers, consumers and investors.
- 26 - To comprehend and use the basic concepts of marketing and the main sectorial policies and understand the commercial environment in which these companies operate.
- 32 - To acquire problem solving skills based on quantitative and qualitative information.
- 33 - To be able to search for, interpret and convey information.
- 39 - To acquire the ability to solve problems and make decisions based on relevant information, applying the appropriate methods and situating the problem within the organisation as a whole.
- 48 - To be able to identify the information needs in order to manage the main departments within organisations.
- 51 - To develop decision making skills.
- 52 - To develop interpersonal skills and the ability to work as part of a team.
- 53 - To acquire the skills necessary to learn autonomously.
- 54 - To be able to express one’s ideas and formulate arguments in a logical and coherent way, both verbally and in writing.
- 64 - To be able to plan and organise one's work.
- 65 - To acquire the ability to put knowledge into practice.
Learning outcomes of the subject
The student will be able to:
- Relate concepts and perform analysis and synthesis exercises.
- Develop skills in decision making.
- Develop skills in interpersonal relationships.
- Acquire skills for autonomous learning.
- Express ideas and arguments with order and coherence orally and in writing.
- Establish time management mechanisms.
- Make arguments that favour critical and self-critical reasoning.
- Acquire skills in the use of computer media and ICT.
- Develop capacities to adapt to new situations.
- Analyse business behaviours and decisions in a business context and assess them from an economic, social and ethical point of view.
- Plan and organize the work.
- Acquire the ability to apply knowledge in practice.
- Have tools to process information.
Syllabus
Communication between the director and the student will be done through e-mail, in addition to some personal meetings, during the completion of the TFG (the total hours of tutoring and review of the work per student should add up to approximately 11 hours of teacher dedication ).
Presentation of the TFG report:
Use the pre-established template (available in Moodle).
Format: Arial font, 11, line spacing 1.15, justified alignment, left and right margins 3cm, top and bottom margins 2.5cm (preset in the template).
Language: the report can be in Spanish, Catalan or English, depending on what is agreed between the student and their TFG director. However, students on the English Program route must complete and present it in English.
Length of the work: a minimum of 35 pages and a maximum of 50 pages in the case of research TFG, and a minimum of 40 pages and a maximum of 80 for business plan TFG, bibliographies, tables and figures included (separate annexes) .
The index of the TFG must be numbered and paginated at the beginning of the work. The figures, tables etc. Diagrams, graphs, tables, etc. They must be numbered and titled, and a paginated index must be included. All pages of the TFG must be numbered.
Any bibliography or webography used must be referred to in the documentation sources section. The references consist of the sources used in the preparation of the work and conveniently cited in the text. Citations will be made following APA style (www.apastyle.org). The TFG must contain academic bibliographic references. It is recommended, as far as possible, not to resort to generic references to web pages, and to cite specific documents from reliable, precise and current sources. The quality of the information sources is part of the quality evaluation of the TFG.
Copyright and plagiarism
The TFG are works protected by the Intellectual Property law. Consequently, the copyright of these works corresponds to their authors. In the event that the TFG is based on practices, the company may require its authorship.
The TFG must be original and must not contain plagiarism. Texts can and should be cited, but indicating the sources, as will be explained in the TFG Training Sessions. Copying entire sentences or paragraphs (even with the reference included) is strictly prohibited, except for literal quotes (in quotation marks, indicating the exact page), which must be minimal. The final document will be delivered through the Turnitin software to detect possible plagiarism. Any document containing more than 25% similarity is considered plagiarism. It is a very serious offense and may result in expulsion from the university.
Teaching and learning activities
In person
The teaching methodology used is based on the student's autonomous work, with the tutoring and accompaniment of the TFG tutor.
Tutor functions:
Provide guidance, advice and support to the student during the completion of the work.
Supervise the project and provide as many indications as deemed appropriate to ensure that the initially set objectives are achieved within the set time.
Authorize the presentation of the TFG and its defense.
The dedication of the TFG tutor is 11 hours per student in total.
Student Obligations:
Prepare the work respecting the format and length established in this TFG teaching guide.
Regularly inform your tutor of the development of the work.
Structure the work taking into account the established objectives.
Present the work adequately and within the deadline before the tutor and the coordinator in each of its phases (see p.9), making use of the tools offered by the UIC.
The TFG subject includes an in-person training session that will take place on October 3 from 2:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. Students enrolled in this subject will receive an email with more information about the in-person session. In addition, starting in mid-October the UIC will provide training material on Moodle, which includes the following topics:
- Database search and reference managers
- Structure of a research TFG
- Structure of a business plan TFG
- Introduction to quantitative research
- Introduction to qualitative research
For the proper preparation of the TFG project, it is highly advisable to familiarize yourself with the training material.
Evaluation systems and criteria
In person
The tribunal assigned by the TFG coordinator is the one that will evaluate the TFG. The panel will be made up of professors from the Faculty of Economic and Social Sciences and/or invited professors or managers. The grade will be based on the following points, giving significant weight to the continued work in the elaboration of the work:
75% - Continuous work: Each of the three partial assignments will have a weight of 25% in the final grade, the details of which are shown in the rubrics available in the course's Moodle. Compliance with the deadlines and guidelines established by the tutor, initiative and ability to overcome difficulties, degree of autonomy and rigor shown by the student, and work done throughout the course will be evaluated. The role of the tutor will therefore be key to the final evaluation of the TFG.
10% - Written work: The final document of the TFG will be evaluated according to the following criteria: quality of presentation and language, rigor and reliability of information, creativity and innovation, soundness of the project, viability of the entrepreneurial project or usefulness of the work of research
15% - Defense of the TFG: The quality of the support material (transparencies), clarity and synthesis of the information, technique and professionalism of communication, adjustment to the established time and defense before the questions of the court will be evaluated. The defenses will be assigned a time of 25-30 minutes (10 minutes of the presentation, 15 minutes of the defense before the questions of the court, 5 minutes of the deliberation of the note) which will be fulfilled scrupulously.
Assignments will be graded using the same grading system in force as the rest of the degree subjects. A rubric will be used for grading (available in Moodle). The grade will be communicated after the oral defense.
The maximum final mark that can be obtained by a TFG in the second call is 70/100.
In the event that a part of the copied work is detected, it will be automatically suspended. If this causes the suspension of the TFG in the first call, the student must repeat (and therefore improve) the work and present it in the second call.
Awards for the best TFG
High-quality TFGs will be recommended by the tutor and the coordinator for the award for the best TFG of the academic year.
Two types of awards will be distinguished:
- Prize for the best entrepreneurial project
- Prize for the best research project
The awards are organized by the Faculty of Economic and Social Sciences of the UIC with the purpose of recognizing the best work in the current academic year and to promote the entrepreneurial spirit and interest in academic research among the students of the Business Administration Degree . The works nominated for the best prize will be called in the same session and will be evaluated by the same tribunal. The awards will be presented at the Graduation Ceremony. The bases of the prizes are available on Moodle.
Bibliography and resources
- Cómo realizar un estudio de mercado
- Pareras, L. (2008) Redactando el Plan de negocios I
- Pareras, L. (2008) Redactando el Plan de negocios II
- Osterwalder, A., Pigneur, Y. (2011) Generación de modelos de negocio. Deusro, Barcelona
- Ejemplo BP español (Educator S.L)
- Ejemplo BP inglés (Business plan of an online store exclussively for cats)
- Lárazo, J. Guia complementaria Business Plan. Recursos didácticos.