The UAB teaching centres to expand their academic offer in English
05/04/2017
The UAB has passed a series of measures guaranteeing a progressive increase in the presence of English in lectures offered at bachelor's and master's degree levels. The teaching centres will receive economic aids to help staff members improve their English for teaching purposes through the university's Language Service. With these aids, the UAB aims to normalise the use of English in teaching in all academic areas. A total of 36,000 euros from the university's yearly budget will be put aside for this training. A pilot project to try out the initiative was implemented this year at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine.
The teaching centres will be asked to present a proposal for the specific lectures in which they aim to use English. At each centre groups of 15 to 30 lecturers will receive specific language training to be used in teaching. The project also includes observation during the classes and tutorials to help them improve their teaching skills in English.
The UAB has thirteen teaching centres. Each year, some three or four centres will be included in the pilot project; in four years, all teaching centres will be participating in the project. The project also aims to offer lecturers the possibility of demonstrating their English level and thus facilitate the recognition and internationalisation of their academic career.
Another initiative within the programme is to invite teachers from the United States to give English classes in one of the teaching centres participating in the pilot project during one semester (extendible to more semesters if deemed necessary).
Degrees taught entirely in English
The UAB's commitment to teaching subjects in English can be seen in the number of bachelor's and master's degrees offered in English. Currently, the UAB offers four bachelor's degrees fully in English (Business Management and Administration, Economics, Primary Education and Tourism) in addition to the bachelor's degree in English Studies and the other combined language degrees which include English (Catalan, Classical Studies, Spanish and French); as well as 35 official master's degrees, nine UAB-specific master's degrees, six graduate diplomas and 14 specialisation courses. Over 100 subjects in some 50 bachelor's degrees from all academic fields are also offered in English. With regard to massive online open courses (MOOC), the UAB offers six in English through the Coursera platform. This summer, the UAB has also organised a new edition of the International Summer Term, an initiative held from June to August which brings together students from all over the world interested in taking intensive courses in English (a total of 13 courses will be offered this year).