a) THREE-MONTH TERMS. A feature of the UPF is the option to have three-month academic terms. This may require a slight effort of adaptation compared to the quatrimester or semester system of the university of origin, with regard to the recognition of subjects by number of credits or in combining, in terms of number of months, a short stay at the UPF with an academic period of the university of origin. Experience has shown that such difficulties are easily overcome.
Academic calendar 2024-2025
b) COMPULSORY CORE SUBJECTS: THEORETICAL CLASSES. Compulsory core subjects in the four years of the degree are always taught in four groups. In the first year, there are usually 80 students per group in theoretical classes, this number falling slightly in 2nd, 3rd and 4th year. Exchange students can choose their preferred group according to timetable or teaching language.
c) COMPULSORY CORE SUBJECTS: SEMINARS AND GUIDED WORK. The work methodology and continuous assessment used by the Faculty of Law are the reason why each group for theoretical classes is then sub-divided into various sub-groups for seminars or practical classes. The Faculty assigns students to each sub-group based on the initial of their surname. However, if so required for timetable reasons, exchange students can be transferred to a different sub-group. In this case, the student can inform the Faculty's academic co-ordinator during the "add & drop" session at the start of the term, of the sub-group which best fits his or her timetable.
d) SPECIAL SUBJECTS. Students wishing to enrol for subjects of the bachelor's (degree) programme in Law such as "Criminal Law: General Part", "Constitutional Organization of the State and Sources of Law", "Tax Law" and "Economics and Analytical Instruments" should bear in mind that these are subjects taught over two terms, so that they can only be taken and assessed if the exchange stay in the UPF lasts at least for these two terms.
e) OPTIONAL ITINERARIES. There are optional subjects noted for a certain cross-curricular nature within the studies of the Faculty of Law and which may also be of interest for exchange students, as they allow them to design their own academic itinerary. At the end of the document reached using the following link, students will find a list of subjects and the itineraries they form part of.
f) ACADEMIC ASSIGNMENTS THROUGH THE GLOBAL CLASSROOM. Once registered, exchange students can access teaching materials and academic guidelines which lecturers published in the Global Classroom, which is the virtual teaching platform used at the UPF and which is essential for information management and the development of the learning process. At the welcome session organized by the OMA (Mobility and Welcome Officers) at the start of each term, exchange students are provided with their UPF student card, and their global campus access code, which is the way to access the Global Classroom, and the way to obtain their password.
g) CONTINOUS ASSESSMENT. Since the inclusion of the UFP in the EHEA, all subjects require continued work by students (continuous assessment), which often involves having to hand in assignments or practicals to the lecturer throughout the term. Depending on the subject, continuous assessment may represent 30%, 40% or even 50% of the final grade. It is important that students read the teaching plan for each subject at the beginning of the term to know exactly what the assessment conditions are the value of continuous assessment. If they have any doubts, students should not wait until the end of the term to ask the lecturer of the specific subject for clarification on this point .
h) EXAMINATION CALLS. Like all other students of the University, exchange students are entitled to one ordinary examination call and one resit call per academic year: the ordinary call takes place at the end of the term in which the subject has been taught; the resit can be at the beginning of the following term or in the month of July. Therefore, exchange students must take into account this resit policy when booking flights or making plans: being back at their home country is not a justified excuse for not taking the resit, neither for applying for a resit "on demand", in case they need the credits of the course failed. It is important that students read the course plan for each subject at the start of the term so that they know exactly what the assessment conditions are and so that they can apply for a resit. Students must bring up any doubts they may have or ask for clarification at the start of the term (never at the end!). The academic system in Spain does not provide students with the possibility of rejecting the grade obtained in an examination even if they think it is too low. It is also not possible to conceal such a grade on a student's academic record at the UPF at the student's request.
Important: the examination calendar for the subjects can be consulted on the Law Faculty Intranet, which can be found on the Global Campus. To consult it, you will need the Global Campus password.
i) LANGUAGE POLICY. Since the adoption of the Action Plan for Multilingualism at the UPF, the UPF has been a multilingual, integrating Catalan university, with a clear international commitment, which has set itself the challenge of creating new spaces of communication in the Catalan university setting and in our society. Catalan - the official and own language of the UPF -, Spanish - co-official language - and English are the languages of communication and academic work par excellence, as well as a vehicle for projection towards other academic settings beyond Europe. Consequently, students have the right to express themselves verbally or in writing in any of these three languages, even during their participations in class or in sitting final tests and examinations. Any students who wish to take the examination in one of the three languages which is not the language in which the subject has been taught in a specific group should notify the lecturer some time in advance of the exam. More information on the UPF's language policy can be found here.
