Information for the student – Environmental Engineering - Faculty of Chemistry

Final project

The Final Project (TFM) is an individual assignment through which students demonstrate the knowledge and competences acquired during the course of the master’s degree. The TFM must focus on the study of a specific problem in the field of the environment, which must be of short-, mid- and long-term interest to the field. The project may take a variety of forms, from a classic design exercise to an introduction to research, with a wide range of possible topics, such as safety, environmental impact, life cycle, materials or optimization. The TFM can be carried out in university departments, laboratories and research centres, companies and other institutions.

The TFM is carried out under the supervision of at least one tutor, whose role is to facilitate the learning process. Tutors must be PhD holders from a department involved in the teaching of the degree.

Students must select the TFM from a list of options published by the master’s degree Coordination Committee, each of which has been proposed by a PhD holder from a department involved in the teaching of the degree and approved by the Committee. Students must have the approval of their tutor, who must send the Coordination Committee a brief report on the student’s work. If a student wishes to carry out a TFM not included in the list of options, they should contact a member of the teaching staff from a department involved in the teaching of the degree with regard to supervising the project, and submit the corresponding proposal to the Coordination Committee.

The TFM can be carried out in a company directly or indirectly related to the study area of the environment. In this case, arrangements must comply with the Chemistry Faculty regulations governing in-company student placements and a specific placement agreement should be in place between the faculty and the host institution or organization. If a student intends to carry out the whole TFM or a significant part of it at an institution or organization outside the UB, they must also be assigned a tutor at the host institution/organization who will provide support in defining the content and developing the tasks of the TFM.

The Final Project is assessed by a committee formed by two PhD holders from the teaching staff of departments involved in the teaching of the master’s degree. Assessment focuses primarily on the student’s written report and the oral defense of this report. To be eligible to submit the report and proceed to the oral defense, students must obtain the approval of their tutor, who must send the master’s degree Coordination Committee a brief report on the student’s work. This report is sent to the members of the Final Project Assessment Committee. Each Assessment Committee includes two PhD holders from the teaching staff of departments involved in the teaching of the master’s degree. The assessment process encompasses the Final Project proposal, work towards the completion of the TFM, and the Final Project itself. For more information, you can see the teaching plan.

Procedure for the assignment of final projects

The Coordination Committee publishes a list of job offers, specifying in each case the job title, the objectives, and the different tasks the student will perform.

Each student must submit an application indicating three offers in order of preference. If more than one application is received for an offer, the successfully applicant will be chosen at the discretion of the proposal director.

If a student wishes to carry out a TFM that is not published in the list of offers, it must be tutored by a PhD holder from the teaching staff of the University of Barcelona. The student must submit a TFM proposal to the Coordination Committee including the information contained in the standard job offers (job title, objectives and tasks). The proposal must be approved by the Coordination Commission, after which the job will be assigned automatically to the student who proposed it.

If a student is not assigned the first choice of TFM indicated in the application, the second choice will be assigned according to the same procedure, then the third choice if necessary.

If a student is not assigned any of the three choices of TFM indicated in the application, the list of unassigned offers will be published and the application process set out in points 1-3 will be repeated until all students have been assigned a TFM.