Since its foundation, Pompeu Fabra University has implemented a policy for the normalized use of Catalan in the areas of teaching and administration, and in the light of this, it established in its By-laws that Catalan is the University's own, official language, notwithstanding the provisions of article 3.2 of the Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia.

Recently, Law 1/1998, dated 7 January, on Language Policy was enacted, with the aim of consolidating the process driven by the Law on Linguistic Normalization in the field of public administration and teaching and to make progress in other areas, such as the media, the culture industries and the socioeconomic world, in order to achieve the generalization of the knowledge of the normal use of the Catalan language. The Law also seeks to achieve full equality insofar as linguistic rights and duties and especially the rights and duties to know the two official languages, Catalan and Spanish, and use them.

The Law establishes that the public administrations and institutions of Catalonia must generally use Catalan, notwithstanding citizens' right to address such administrations and institutions in whichever official language they choose. With regard to teaching, the Law distinguishes between non-university and university levels. At the non-university level, the Law guarantees the entire population full knowledge of both languages and that students shall not be discriminated against or split into groups due to reasons of language. In university teaching, the Law incorporates measures to promote university teaching in Catalan, and it establishes the right of teaching staff and students to express themselves in each case, orally or in writing, in their language of preference.

Universities, given their dual role as centres of higher education and of public administration, must see that the Law is fulfilled and guarantee the linguistic rights of the university community. This university community is comprised of three interest groups: students, teaching staff and administrative and service staff. The different situations in which these interest groups find themselves in respect of the provisions of the Law, to the extent that their association with the University or the functions they carry out at the University are also different, obliges the definition of the use of the language by sectors of activity: in the institutional or administrative sphere, on the one hand, and the area of teaching and research, on the other.

In addition, the University, in accordance with the provisions of the Law and within the scope of its competencies, shall establish measures to ensure and promote the use of the Catalan language in all areas of teaching activity, non-teaching activity and research, including the reading of theses, and hence, the two official languages are treated asymmetrically, with the aim that Catalan should advance in these sectors of University activity. The University shall provide courses and other means to improve comprehension and knowledge of the Catalan language and must establish the mechanisms and schedules to ensure that the teaching staff, with the exceptions provided for by the Law, should have sufficient knowledge of the two official languages.

Thus, in compliance with the Law on Language Policy and in implementing article 6 of UPF By-laws, the Governing Board approves the following measures:

 

CHAPTER ONE

General principles

Article 1. Object of these regulations

The object of these regulations is to implement article 6 of the By-laws of Pompeu Fabra University and fulfil the provisions of article 9.3 of Law 1/1998, dated 7 January, on Language Policy, to regulate the use of Catalan at Pompeu Fabra University.

Article 2. Catalan, UPF's own, official language

1. Catalan is UPF's own, official language, notwithstanding the provisions of article 3.2 of the Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia and the Law on Language Policy on official languages in Catalonia.

2. As the University's own language, Catalan is the language that should be used, preferably, in all areas of activity of the University.

Article 3. Competent bodies

The Governing Board is the organ of the University that is authorized to approve or amend the rules governing regulation and promotion of the use of Catalan at UPF, at the proposal or upon receipt of the Language Policy Committee report.

Article 4. The use of language by the university community

1. Students, as users of the University, in the scope of their official relationship with it and in teaching, enjoy all linguistic rights granted to the citizens of Catalonia via article 4 of the Law on Language Policy, including the right to express themselves and be attended to in either of the two official languages, orally and in writing, to freely use either of the two official languages in all areas and not be discriminated against due to reasons of the official language they use.

2. The teaching staff, when performing teaching functions, may use either of the two official languages, although they must have sufficient knowledge of the two, in accordance with the requirements of their task as teachers and with the provisions set out herein. The teaching staff holding academic positions shall preferably use Catalan when acting as officers of the university's administrative bodies, notwithstanding citizens' rights as provided for in the Law and notwithstanding the provisions set out herein. (1)

3. Administrative and service staff must use Catalan in performing their functions as public employees, notwithstanding citizens' rights as provided in the Law and notwithstanding the provisions set out herein. (2)

Article 5. UPF's fundamental principles of action

Pompeu Fabra University must guarantee compliance with the provisions in article 2.2 herein; the linguistic rights of the university community and of the citizens related with it; the normal and official use of Catalan and of Spanish in the terms set out herein; the training of the members of the university community; the language training and proficiency of the administrative and service staff; sufficient knowledge of the two official languages by the teaching staff, and the non-discrimination of any member of the university community due to reasons of the language they use.

Article 6. System of guarantees

1. No member of the university community may be discriminated against due to using one or the other official language in the terms set out herein.

2. The members of the university community who consider that their linguistic rights are affected due to an internal action or omission may notify as to this in writing to the dean or director of the centre or study, when teaching is affected, and to the rector or the vice-rector for the university community in all other cases.

3. All of the above notwithstanding the formulation of a complaint before the UPF Ombudsman's Office, in the terms provided for in article 117 of UPF By-laws and in the regulations governing the Ombudsman, or any other legal action that may be taken.

4. The members of the university community may submit their observations, concerns or proposals concerning language matters they deem relevant to the Language Policy Committee.

5. The rector may sanction, when applicable, as a disciplinary infraction, all actions that lead to discrimination due to reasons of language in accordance with current law.

 

CHAPTER TWO

The institutional use of Catalan at UPF

Article 7 (3)

Article 8. The language of university administration

The administration of Pompeu Fabra University and the concessionaries of its services must use Catalan for internal purposes and when relating to other public administrations in Catalonia. Catalan must also normally be used in communications and notifications addressed to natural and legal persons residing in the geographical area in which Catalan is spoken, notwithstanding citizens' rights to receive such in Spanish if they so request.

Article 9. Administrative procedures

1. In administrative procedures processed by the University, Catalan must be used, notwithstanding citizens' rights to submit documents, to express themselves and, should they request, to receive notifications in Spanish.

2. The University shall provide those parties who so request, in the official language in Catalonia in which they so request, a translation of all that affects them. The request for translation shall not involve any detriment or expense to the party requesting, delays in the procedure nor the suspension of the processing and of the established lead times.

3. University documents that are to take effect outside the territory of Catalonia, if not originally issued in Spanish, shall be translated into Spanish at the request of the interested party or of another public administration outside Catalonia, barring when dealing with entities or institutions whose head office is in an Autonomous Community in which Catalan is a co-official language. (4)

Article 10. Verbal dealings          

When dealing with users and citizens verbally, either face-to-face, by telephone or via telematic media, the public employees of Pompeu Fabra University shall address them in Catalan, except when their interlocutor expressly requests to be attended to in Spanish or if the public employee deems there is a need to do so in order to facilitate communication. The interlocutor shall be understood to tacitly exercise the option to use Spanish when his/her reply to the public employee is given in Spanish.

Article 11. Legal actions and public documents

1. All documents that the University must submit to the law or arbitrational courts based in Catalonia or within the geographical area in which Catalan is spoken, shall, whenever  possible, be drafted in Catalan.

2. The public documents that the University grants before public notary based in Catalonia shall be drafted in Catalan. In the event that there is more than one grantor and that one of them wishes to resort to the Spanish language, the public document shall be requested, in accordance with the provisions of the current legislation, in the two official languages of Catalonia. (5)

Article 12. Private civil and mercantile documents

1. Private documents, whether contractual or not, that the University formalizes with natural or legal persons based in Catalonia or within the geographical area in which Catalan is spoken shall be drawn up in the Catalan language. Should the other grantor party, when applicable, wish to resort to the Spanish language, such documents shall be drawn up in both official languages. (6)

2. Documents that are formalized with institutions and companies based in a territory other than that mentioned in the previous section shall be drawn up in the official language agreed to.

3. Documents that are formalized with foreign companies shall be drawn up in the language agreed to, notwithstanding that a translation into Catalan may be considered necessary.

Article 13. Agreements

1. The agreements into which the University enters with legal persons registered in Catalonia or in territories in which the official language is Catalan shall be drawn up in the Catalan language. Should the other party wish to resort to Spanish, such agreements shall be formalized in the two languages. (7)

2. Agreements formalized with companies, institutions or universities located outside Catalonia or outside the territories in which Catalan is an official language shall be drawn up in the official language agreed to.

3. The agreements signed by the University with foreign entities, institutions or universities shall be drawn up in the language agreed to, notwithstanding that a translation into Catalan may be considered necessary.

Article 14. Collective agreements

Work-related collective agreements shall be drawn up in Catalan. If the other party does not agree to this, they shall be drawn up in the two official languages and in separate copies. (8)

Article 15. Administrative concessions

1. In the administrative concessions of services that the University awards to companies, there shall be a need to specify in the conditions applicable that said companies must be in a position to attend to users in Catalan and in Spanish, both orally and in writing, and they must respect the provisions set out in these regulations.

2. These companies shall use Catalan for their signage, in their notifications to users and in the documentation offering their services, doing their best to ensure that information regarding the products or services they offer is in Catalan. (9)

Article 16. Nomenclature, signage and language of material and of office automation tools

1. The official name of the University is Universitat Pompeu Fabra, and this is how it shall appear in all written material, publications, acts and the like of the University or of the members of the university community, and it may not be translated into any other language.

2. The denomination of the centres, courses, departments, institutes and other research entities, as well as the names of the university or administrative services and other denominations of the University campus, shall be in Catalan.

3. Official qualifications that are valid throughout Spanish territory shall be issued in the two official languages, in accordance with the provisions of current law, and UPF qualifications and diplomas shall be issued in Catalan.

4. Indoor and outdoor signposting of the University buildings shall be at least in Catalan. (10)

5. The orthographic features of the office material and of computer programmes shall be appropriate for writing in the Catalan language. Software applications shall be in Catalan when a Catalan version exists. (11)

6. The applications for the implementation of information and management programmes shall preferably be in Catalan. Applications for teaching that are implemented in two or more languages, systems and programmes must boot up in Catalan by default.

Article 17. Personal names

The members of the university community have the right to use the legally established correct form in Catalan of their names and surnames, provided they submit to the University the official documents that accredit their linguistic correctness, and the right to include the conjunction "i" between surnames. To this end, the University shall use the conjunction "i" if the interested party has so specified when registering, in the case of students, or in the document that associates said person with the University, in the case of teaching staff and administrative and service staff, or if they so request expressly at any time.

Article 18. Publications and advertising

1. The institutional publications of Pompeu Fabra University, in any medium, shall be published in Catalan, notwithstanding their publication at the same time in other languages when their scope or objectives so require. In the case that a publication is addressed especially to certain interest groups or is to promote the University, this may be done in one or several foreign languages, as well as in Spanish.

2. Publications by teaching staff published by the University shall be written in the most suitable language in accordance with the purpose of the publication, and if they are not originally in Catalan, every attempt shall be made also to produce editions in Catalan. The University shall promote the use of Catalan in publications by teaching staff, providing them with advice regarding (the) language and participating in calls for promotion of the publishing of manuals and text books in Catalan, as well as with the annual call for UPF aid for the production of publications in Catalan.

3. Pompeu Fabra University advertising in the communications media shall be done, generally speaking, in Catalan when carried out in Catalonia or in the geographical area in which Catalan is spoken and in Spanish or in other languages when carried out in other territories.

Article 19. Public acts

1. Institutional acts of Pompeu Fabra University shall take place in Catalan, notwithstanding that speakers' participation may, in accordance with the scope and objectives of the act and the audience present, be in Spanish or any other language.

2. Congresses and scientific events shall take place in the most suitable language in accordance with the scope and those participating thereat. At conferences and other similar events, simultaneous translation, when applicable, should include translation into Catalan.

3. At public acts held within the Catalan linguistic domain, institutional representatives shall express themselves normally in Catalan.

Article 20. Language training for administrative and service staff

1. The administrative and service staff must possess a suitable and sufficient level of the two official languages, both insofar as written and oral expression, to be able to perform the functions their work post involves.

2. The University shall guarantee the teaching of Catalan to the administrative and service staff and shall promote ways for these staff to recycle. The Training Programme for the administrative and service staff shall include the necessary actions to maintain and increase the degree of knowledge of said personnel's Catalan language.

3. In accordance with the provisions of the legislation governing public servants in Catalonia, in the selection process for access to public servant scales, candidates must accredit a knowledge of the Catalan language, both orally and written, to the level in keeping with the functions carried out in the position in question.

4. Generally speaking, in order to hold a position designed to be filled by a public servant from groups A, B, C and D, level C awarded by the Junta Permanent de Català, or equivalent for oral and written knowledge of the Catalan language must be accredited. In addition, in order to hold a position designed to be filled by a public servant from group E, level B awarded by the Junta Permanent de Català, or equivalent must be accredited.

5. In order to hold a position designed to be filled by contracted personnel, their level of knowledge of the Catalan language must be accredited which, in each case, shall be set out in the rules governing each selection process. In the case of positions reserved for contracted workers included in the list of jobs, the respective profiles of knowledge of language shall be specified therein. In all cases, the minimum level required shall be level B of the Junta Permanent de Català, or equivalent.

6. Equivalent qualifications as established by the Generalitat de Catalonia and certificates and qualifications issued by public universities are recognized.

 

CHAPTER THREE

The language of teaching and in research

Article 21. The use of the official languages in teaching

1. Catalan is the normal means of expression in the University's teaching activities.

2. The teaching staff and the students have the right to express themselves in each case, orally and in writing, in their official language of preference.

3. No student may be discriminated against or encounter prejudice due to the fact of using Catalan in classes or examinations. The departments shall ensure that examinations are marked in Catalan even though the teaching may have taken place in Spanish or another language. Philology subjects are not affected by this rule as they specify different criteria in their programmes.

4. Documents related with teaching, such as syllabuses, subject programmes, grade transcripts and so on, shall be written in Catalan. (12)

5. The University shall offer courses and self-learning systems and advice regarding (the) language and terminology so that the student community and the teaching staff can improve their comprehension and knowledge of the Catalan language for the purposes of increasing its use in teaching.

Article 22. Students from outside the Catalan linguistic domain

1. In order for attendance to classes by students coming from outside the Catalan linguistic domain not to involve altering the use of Catalan in teaching, the University shall inform such students previously as to the use of languages in teaching, using all methods within reach, electronic or written. It shall also inform as to the offer of Catalan language courses that the University provides specifically for this interest group. These courses shall extend, subject to demand, up to the level necessary for the normal use of the language at university level, subject to availability.

2. The University shall offer active guidance tutorials to such students. At each centre or study the dean or director shall appoint a coordinator, who shall receive all students that are spending a study period at their centre, shall advise them as to which subjects they can take and shall solve or refer the matters that may arise during the time they spend at the University. Students shall receive, together with the information set out in the section above, the name of this coordinator, so that they may pose questions to him/her before travelling.

3. Prior to the start of the term, the coordinator shall dispose of a estimation of the language in which the subjects will be given in order to inform students so that they may register with the group or subject they deem most appropriate.

4. Pompeu Fabra University shall promote the creation of the Language Volunteering Programme, with the participation of the different interest groups comprising the university community, to act as a network for language support and for integration to the Catalan culture for students coming from outside the Catalan linguistic domain.

Article 23. Teaching staff proficiency in the official languages

(See: Regulations on accreditation of sufficient proficiency in Catalan for teaching staff and the rector's decision of 7 May 2012 regarding the issue of the certificate of sufficient language proficiency for teaching)

1. The teaching staff of Pompeu Fabra University shall have sufficient knowledge of the two official languages in accordance with the requirements of their teaching task.

2. The services of UPF shall inform the teaching staff when joining the University as to the provisions of these regulations, and as to the Catalan courses and other systems or support mechanisms provided so that they may improve and increase their understanding and use of Catalan.

3. After one year following access to a teaching post, lecturers on the teaching staff and contracted lecturers, barring visiting lecturers who are at UPF for short periods, shall be understood to have sufficient knowledge of the two official languages as to attend to teaching requirements. Those lecturers who consider that they do not have sufficient knowledge shall request that University should provide them with the necessary language support and advice for the purposes set out in sections 2, 3 and 4 of article 21 herein.

4. UPF shall provide the necessary means so that the teaching staff may gain sufficient knowledge of the Catalan language in accordance of the provisions of these regulations.

Article 24. Monitoring the use of Catalan in teaching

1. The University shall implement a system each term to monitor the use of the Catalan language in teaching.

2. Data shall be in reference to the different groups of all subjects taught at the University and also in aggregated form and in percentages for each centre or study. When a lesser presence of Catalan is detected, department directors shall analyze the causes and shall study the possible solutions in order to remedy the situation.

Article 25. The use of Catalan in research

1. The University must promote the use of Catalan in lecturers' research activities, providing means of promotion and technical support to correct doctoral theses and other research documents drafted in Catalan.

2. Pompeu Fabra University shall provide the technical means necessary so that those students who so request may read their doctoral thesis in Catalan before the assessment boards, which may, when applicable, include a simultaneous translation service.

 

CHAPTER FOUR

The structure of linguistic normalization

Article 26. The Language Policy Committee

1. The Language Policy Committee of Pompeu Fabra University, created by agreement of the Governing Board of 17 July 1996, is the body through which the University's language policy is designed, which plans strategies of action and the necessary resources, monitors them and evaluates the results in such matters.

2. The Language Policy Committee is composed of:

The rector or lecturer in whom he/she may delegate, who shall act as chairperson.

One lecturer per department.

Three students appointed by the UPF Student Council.

One representative of the administrative and service staff.

The person responsible for the Language Office shall act as secretary. (See: Agreement of the Governening Board of 15 December 2008)

3. The functions of the Language Policy Committee are:

To participate in defining the language policy of Pompeu Fabra University (general approaches, scope, objectives) and the mechanisms to implement it.

To analyze permanently the needs and shortcomings with regard to language matters of the different interest groups comprising the university community, and to echo the proposals, observations or concerns regarding language that may be posed by any member of the university community.

To propose the most suitable means for each situation and each interest group in order to increase the levels of knowledge, use and quality of the Catalan language in all areas of university life.

To promote the adoption of measures or the creation or the consolidation of support structures with a view to strengthening the actions implemented concerning language matters.

To ensure that the technical bodies that are most directly entrusted with solving language matters have the suitable structure and resources to carry out their tasks, and to propose changes, expansion or improvements whenever it considers them necessary.

To ensure that the University's language policy is complied with and that the uses and practices generally established therein are respected.

To evaluate on a regular basis the data and results concerning any action or measure regarding language matters and duly follow them up.

To inform the Governing Board as to the aspects related with its scope of action.

To draw up the functional rules and regulations of the Committee.

Article 27. The Language Office

1. The Language Office of Pompeu Fabra University is the administrative unit entrusted to implement the tasks of advising the university community with regard to language and terminology matters and to correct, when necessary, documents in the Catalan language related with teaching, management and institutional matters that it receives, as well as managing the correction of other types of documents or of documents written in other languages and the translations that may be requested, to monitor the evolution of language use at the University and to propose, when necessary, measures that aim to favour the normalized use of the Catalan language, as well as all other tasks that the rector may ask of it.

2. The Language Office shall provide advice to the teaching staff and offer technical support in order to increase the use of the Catalan language in the writing of doctoral theses and other research documents.

 

CHAPTER FIVE

Collaboration with other entities

Article 28. Collaboration and exchange

1. Pompeu Fabra University shall promote collaboration on all levels with all other universities in the Catalan linguistic domain. Within the framework of such collaboration and in exchanges with other universities and institutions, the University shall promote the knowledge and external presence of the Catalan language and culture.

2. Pompeu Fabra University participates actively in the Joan Lluís Vives Institute (IJLV) as an entity of collaboration and exchange of all of the universities of the Catalan linguistic domain.

UPF shall give its full support to the activities of the IJLV, especially those aimed at promoting the presence of the Catalan language in the fields of the university and science.

  

CHAPTER SIX

Centres associated with or affiliated to UPF

Article 29. The use of Catalan at associated or affiliated centres

1. Centres associated with UPF, when carrying out UPF functions, shall be subjected to the provisions of these regulations.

2. Higher education centres affiliated to UPF shall apply the provisions of the Law on Language Policy with regard to language in teaching, and all other provisions of the Law if they answer to a public administration. In affiliation agreements, UPF shall establish requirements concerning the use of Catalan in the areas subject to affiliation.

ADDITIONAL PROVISION

Each year, a report shall be published on the data concerning the monitoring of the use of the Catalan language in teaching and in the writing of doctoral theses. This report shall also refer to the support measures that have been implemented for these purposes.

REPEALING PROVISION

The agreement of 17 July 1996 of the creation of the Language Policy Committee is invalid.

 

(1) The drafting of this clause is a result of the amendment approved by agreement of the Governing Board of 27 February 2001.

(2), (4), (5), (6), (7), (8), (9) and (11) Declared null and void by sentence of the Court for Contentious-Administrative Proceedings (Section Five) of the High Court of Catalonia on 3 December 2003.

(3) This point remained empty by agreement of the Governing Board of 27 February 2001.

(10) The drafting of this clause is a result of the amendment approved by agreement of the Governing Board of 27 February 2001.

(12) Declared null and void by sentence of the Court for Contentious-Administrative Proceedings no. 13 in Barcelona, on 5 December 2002.