“UNIVERSITY PRACTICUM” AS OPTIONAL SUBJECT IN EXPERIMENTAL SCIENCE DEGREES

University Practicum is traditionally defined as the external training practices carried out by students in a variety of private companies and public institutions, with the aim to acquire professional knowledge needed to supplement the student's university education. These practices offer students varied professional experiences needed for their future carrier once they are graduated. The compulsory nature of these practices is implemented in many specific university degrees such as those related to medicine or law, among others. However, other university degrees do not provide practical courses supporting theoretical knowledge. In Spain, although many universities have signed agreements with different private companies to introduce students to the professional world, few practical opportunities are developed within universities research groups. In this sense, the university degrees should increase their practical offers to students where the university professor play a major role by introducing teaching contents related to his research area. Regarding experimental sciences degrees, students have few opportunities to be informed in a firsthand about the research activities that take place within the university itself. Thus, in the Environmental Sciences degree, a compulsory subject exists, which offers both possibilities: making practices in different private companies or carrying out an experimental research in a specific university department. However, for most other degrees, the possibility for undergraduate students to develop a research work within a university department, in most of the cases, is limited to the few undergraduate research bursaries offered by the University. In addition, these undergraduate grant programs are not well advertised within the students community. In this sense, creating an optional subject known, “University Practicum”, integrated within the planning of university teaching, not only offer students the possibility of carrying out research in a variety of disciplines, but also screen for those with high research motivation. The benefits of the new subject will increase the scientific productions of university research groups and cover several teaching credits required and needed by most of students. Finally, the “University Practicum” could guide students throughout their future professional interests and could give them a starting point for postgraduate studies (Master and PhD), beside the possibility to improve their researcher CV.