Analysis of the abilities developed by a practical placement in building engineering at universitat Jaume I

Abstract

Society expects that the knowledge gained during university studies is applicable to professional practice. For this to happen, a greater application of the theoretical knowledge on real production sectors is required in the studies. Spanish regulations include a list of competences for professional study programmes, like Building Engineering 6]. This has led Universitat Jaume I in Castellón (Spain) to plan specific activities for students in the 2nd year of the Building Engineering degree. The intention of these practical activities is to integrate subjects into professional competences by following the academic methodology of project-based learning. Firstly, all the future professional competences specified in the new regulations need to be adhered to. Teachers have then to propose their subject activities in accordance with these competences. For this research, it would be interesting to know whether these activities are related to the proposed competences. A questionnaire analysing the relationship between competences and activities has been carried out for students to evaluate these activities and to define whether the project activities they have previously done coincide with their professional needs. In conclusion, we could say that all the activities in the project dealt with in the subjects of the 2nd study year are related to basic or specific competences, and that the activities which students valued the most are those related to transversal knowledge.