FINAL YEAR PROJECT IN PHYSICS´ DEGREE: A NEW CHALLENGE FOR THE SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNICAL TRAINING OF STUDENTS IN THEIR LAST YEAR OF THE PHYSICS´ DEGREE

The main goal of the new European Higher Education Area system (EHEA) is to develop a new teaching model in which the students become more active, encouraging their participation for the success of the learning process. In this new framework, final year project fulfilment was established for the first time in 2014 within the Grade of Physics at the University of Valladolid (Spain).

The incorporation of the final year project to the curriculum of the Physics’ degree introduces new possibilities to enhance the practical learning, usual weak point of the scientific studies in Spain. Proper orientation of the final year project can allow introducing the students to real R&D work, and also developing their technical skills using real laboratory equipment (similar to the ones that they may use in a future work in companies and R&D laboratories). Moreover, the students could develop self-sufficient skills to discern and interpret results by themselves. Furthermore, it is required that the description and results of this project are summarized in a written report composed by the students, and defended in an oral presentation, encouraging the students to improve their communication skills. Finally, the efforts carried out by the students during the final project with a proper orientation and valuable content ideally could lead to different results: broadening formation by Master or Doctorate studying or an immediate incorporation into the labor market.

In this first year of implementation the Condensed Matter Physics Department of the University of Valladolid (Spain) conducted two final year projects within the Grade of Physics in the field of “Materials Science”; incorporating students in leading research lines related to both industrial and basic science. This work describes the methodology used, the evaluation of the results obtained from a pedagogical point of view, and the subsequent incorporation of the students to the national R&D system as a results of this experience. In addition, suggestions for implementation and improvement of such programs are also proposed.