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 objective of the Bachelor’s Degree Final Project (TFG) is to certify that the student has acquired the skills and knowledge associated with the degree in accordance with the credits assigned. The subject consists in the elaboration and public presentation of an original work in the field of business administration. It is a compulsory subject and has 9 credits assigned, corresponding to 225 hours (25 hours per credit) of effective dedication for its preparation. The TFG is done throughout the fourth academic year of the degree.
The period to formalize the enrolment of the TFG coincides with the period of the ordinary enrolment at the beginning of the 2021-2022 academic year in July/September 2021; exceptionally, the enrolment extension can be done in January 2022 during the first 10 days of the beginning of the second semester through the Secretary office.
Pre-course requirements
The procedure of TFG enrolment is the same as for other subjects of the Degree program. Only those students who have 66 credits left to finish the degree studies, not counting the 9 credits of the TFG can enrol.
Objectives
The TFG topic will be determined by the interest of the student. Two forms 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 within an existing company), or (2) a research project aligned with the research areas of the faculty of the Faculty of Economic and Social Sciences of the UIC Barcelona (available in the Moodle). Additionally, the UIC offers an opportunity to do a TFG 3.0, which consists in the cooperation of students from various UIC faculties in the accomplishment of their final projects. Please, contact the subject head instructor to obtain further information. Once the topic is approved by the TFG coordinator and submitted as a TFG proposal, no significant changes regarding the topic and scope of the TFG are accepted.
The TFG will be directed by a tutor and it is a project where all the knowledge acquired during the Degree is put into practice. The tutor will monitor the student's work on an ongoing basis and evaluate the student's basic skills and behaviours such as proactivity, responsibility and commitment.
In addition, one face-to-face formative session and a series of video material will be offered to facilitate an adequate preparation and presentation of the TFG.
UIC’s Commitment to the 17 Sustainable Development GoalsIn 2015, the UN approved the 2030 Agenda on Sustainable Development, an opportunity for countries and their societies to embark on a new path with which to improve lives of all people, present and future, while taking care of the conservation of the natural heritage.
The Agenda has 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which seek equality among 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 wide variety of educational and learning activities, its teaching, research and social leadership functions. For this reason, in the Abstract part, all students are encouraged to specify the SDG (s) that the TFG helps to achieve and explain how / why. Additionally, the specific SDG should be included into the front page of the TFG report.
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
Presentation of the memory of the TFG:
- The usage of a pre-set template is mandatory (available in the Moodle).
- Format: Arial font, 11, 1.15 spacing, justified alignment, left and right margins 3cm, top and bottom margins 2.5cm (pre-set in the template).
- Language: the final report can be done in Spanish, Catalan or English, depending on what was agreed upon between the student and his / her TFG director. However, students following the English must do the report in English.
- Extension of the work: a minimum of 40 pages and a maximum of 80 pages, bibliography, tables and figures included (annexes apart).
- The TFG index should be numbered at the beginning of the work. Diagrams, graphs, tables, etc. must be numbered and titled, and included in the index. All TFG pages must be numbered.
- Any bibliography or webgraphy used must be referred to in the References section. The references should be limited to the sources used in the elaboration of the work and cited in the text. The citations should be made following the APA style (www.apastyle.org). The TFG must contain academic bibliographical references. It is recommended as far as possible not to resort to generic references to web pages, and to cite specific documents from reliable, accurate and contemporary sources. The quality of information sources is part of the quality assessment of the TFG.
TFGs are protected by Intellectual Property law. Consequently, the rights of the author of these works correspond to their authors. In case if the TFG is based on internship, the company may require authorship.
The TFG must be original and must not contain plagiarism. The information must be properly cited, indicating the sources and the year of publication. Copying sentences or entire paragraphs (even with the reference included) is strictly prohibited, except for literal quotations (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. If a TFG contains a significant percentage of plagiarism (more than 25%), detected by the Turnitin software, an investigation will be opened to verify the nature of the plagiarism, and once confirmed, it will be assigned a grade of zero (0) in both calls and the student must enrol in the subject again. Plagiarism is a very serious offense, punishable under current regulations of the university, and may even imply expulsion from the university.
Teaching and learning activities
In person
The teaching methodology is based on the student's autonomous work, with the support of a tutor.
Functions of the tutor:
- Provide guidance, advice and support to the student during the work.
- Supervise the project and provide as many indications as it deems appropriate to ensure that the initially set objectives are achieved within the set time.
- Authorize the presentation of the TFG and its defence according to the checklist provided by the TFG coordinator.
- The overall dedication of a TFG tutor is 8 hours.
Obligations of the student:
- Prepare the work respecting the format and extension established in this TFG teaching guide.
- Regularly inform the tutor of work development.
- Structure the work taking into account the established objectives.
- Present the work properly and within the deadline to the tutor and the coordinator in each of its phases (see section 9), using the tools offered by the UIC.
The subject of the TFG includes a training session that will take place on October 15th, from 2:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. Students enrolled in this course will receive an email with further information on venue and format. Students will be provided with training video material in the Moodle, which includes the following topics:
- Search in databases and reference managers
- Structure of a TFG research project
- Structure of a TFG business plan /entrepreneurial project
- Introduction to quantitative research
- Introduction to qualitative research
- Public defence of the TFG
- Format and style of the TFG
It is mandatory to familiarize yourself with all the material for the proper preparation of the TFG project.
Evaluation systems and criteria
In person
The Committee assigned by the TFG coordinator is the one that will evaluate the TFG. The Committee will consist of professors from the Faculty of Economic and Social Sciences and / or invited professors or high quality professionals. The grade will be based on the following points:
- 25% - Interest and continued work: Compliance with the deadlines and guidelines established by the tutor, initiative and ability to overcome the difficulties, degree of autonomy and rigor shown by the student is taken into account.
- 60% - Final report: The TFG document 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 research.
- 15% - The TFG Defence of the TFG: The quality of the support material, clarity and synthesis of the information, professionalism of communication, good timing and the defence before the questions of the Committee will be evaluated. The defences will be assigned a time of 25-30 minutes (10 minutes of the presentation, 15 minutes of the defence before the questions of the Committee, and another 5 minutes to deliver the final grade for the TFG).
The evaluation rubric will be used to ensure proper TFG qualification (available in the Moodle). The grade will be communicated after the oral defence.
The maximum final grade that a TFG can obtain 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.
Best Project award
High quality TFGs will be recommended by the tutor and the coordinator for the best TFG award of the 2020/2021 academic year.
Two types of awards will be distinguished:
- Award for the best business plan
- Award for the best research project
The awards are organized by the Faculty of Economic and Social Sciences of the UIC Barcelona to recognize the best works in the academic year 2020-2021 and to promote entrepreneurial spirit and interest in academic research among students of BAM Degree. The awards will be given at the Solemn Graduation Act. The bases of the awards are available in the 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.