Degree in Economics

List of Teaching Projects of the Degree in Economics

• BACHELOR'S DEGREE ECONOMÍA 2012-13
• BACHELOR'S DEGREE ECONOMÍA 2013-14
• BACHELOR'S DEGREE ECONOMÍA 2014-15
• DEGREE ECONOMÍA 2013-14
• DEGREE ECONOMÍA 2014-15
• DEGREE ECONOMÍA 2015-16
• DEGREE ECONOMÍA 2016-17
• DEGREE ECONOMÍA 2017-18
• DEGREE ECONOMÍA 2018-19
• DEGREE ECONOMÍA 2019-20
• DEGREE ECONOMÍA 2021-21
• DEGREE ECONOMÍA 2021-22
• DEGREE ECONOMÍA 2022-23

The Degree in Economics is the adaptation to the European Higher Education Area of the official title of Bachelor of Economics, taught at the Faculty of Economic and Business Sciences of the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria since the academic year 1994-95 (BOE nº 217, of September 10, 1994), with partial modifications for the 1997-98 academic year (BOE No. 83, of April 7, 1997, and BOE No. 261, of October 31, 1997).

Qualified professionals are required for the study and technical solution of economic problems. This qualification is obtained by taking a set of subjects that provide the specific knowledge and skills of the profession of general economist. The combination of these subjects will make up the study plan for the Degree in Economics.

The academic, scientific, and professional interest has been analyzed and revealed in the White Paper on the Degree in Economics and Business, published within the ANECA European Convergence Program. The experience accumulated at the ULPGC through the Bachelor's degree in Economics allows us to face the design and implementation of the new degree with guarantees. The most recent data show that, despite the decrease in the number of students enrolled in Economics studies for the nation as a whole, at the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, the degree of acceptance of Economics studies maintains at an acceptable level with the incorporation of more than 100 new students in each of the last four years. In this way, the academic organization for a group of more than 500 students on average per year is undoubtedly an important and relevant figure in the whole of the ULPGC.

For the design of the study plan for the Degree in Economics, references external to the University have been used, and internal consultations have been carried out.

For the design of the Degree in Economics study plan, references external to the University have been used that allow it to be endorsed. In this sense, the degrees in the field of Economics in Spain have been analyzed, both in public and private universities, throughout Europe and in the OECD countries. In addition, the White Paper of the ANECA European Convergence Program for Economics and Business Studies, the Technical Sheet of the University Degree Proposal, according to RD 55/2005, of January 21 - Teaching of Degree in Economics-, the reports of professional associations and colleges, as well as the state, regional and University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria regulations applicable to the preparation of the Bachelor's Degree in Economics.

The studies of the ULPGC and those referred to in the technical file and the white paper of ANECA reveal high activity rates of graduates in Economics. These rates, close to 90%, indicate a high level of employability. Regarding the period of insertion in the labor market of the graduates, it is remarkable the fact that more than half of the students find a job before finishing their studies and that close to 90% of the graduates in Economics obtain their first job in less than six months after completing the training at the University.

The proposed Degree in Economics aims to provide primary and general training that allows access in the best possible conditions to any of the various professional opportunities for which Economics studies qualify. Based on this commonly available training, which occupies most of the student's training effort, groupings of optional subjects are offered in two possible itineraries, which, subsequently and as far as possible, will be adapted to new demands that may exist in the future. The two possible itineraries aim to order homogeneous subjects based on the strengths of the two most essential departments taught in the curriculum: Quantitative Methods in Economics and Management and Applied Economic Analysis. In this way, it is intended to cover as a first step the various professional opportunities, significantly reinforcing the most common employability profiles for this type of study in our environment:

Consulting and economic planning. This profile represents one of the leading professional opportunities for graduates in Economics. Particularly noteworthy are the advice and consultancy on urban and land-use planning issues, the environment, and tourism-related issues. For this reason, it is desirable to incorporate elements of these areas of the economy in the design of the title. The treatment of surveys and the knowledge of the regulation and competition of the markets contribute to a solid formation with which to face the challenges of this professional choice.

Public administration. Both public administrations and private companies with high levels of activity linked to public administrations offer jobs to graduates with Economics studies. Knowledge of the public sector, regulation, public policies, and the specifics of the health, labor, educational, and environmental economy, allows them to have the knowledge and tools to approach the professional career with more excellent guarantees of success. A supplement with aspects of contractual, administrative, and public management procedures puts them in an advantageous position for these critical occupations.

International Organizations and jobs related to foreign trade. The professional opportunities for Economics graduates in international organizations and relationships with them are increasing in a globalized world. Preparation on aspects of the development and international cooperation, public policies, and foreign trade, as well as knowledge of European organizations and the world economy, are essential and complementary to the basic skills acquired in the first years of the degree within these organizations.

The central objective of the Degree in Economics is to train professionals capable of carrying out tasks of management, advice, and evaluation in economic matters in general. These tasks can be carried out in the private or public sphere, the company, or any other institution of economic and social relevance. The graduate must know the operation and consequences of financial systems, identify the different alternatives for resource allocation, wealth accumulation, and income distribution, and be in a position to contribute to its proper functioning and improvement. Specifically, they must know how to identify and anticipate the relevant economic problems in any specific situation, and they must discuss the different alternatives that facilitate the resolution of the problem posed; they must order the other solutions seeking the most appropriate depending on the objectives and, finally, they must evaluate the results of the chosen solution.

Following the classification indicated in the White Paper, the objectives of training and knowledge learning are divided into three blocks: those that focus on the nature of the economy and the immediate and immediate national and international economic environment; the models and techniques that contribute to the representation of economic activity; and instrumental knowledge. Next, the specific objectives indicated in the White Paper for the degree in Economics are grouped based on the subjects of compulsory knowledge for a graduate in Economics.

1. Microeconomics

• Knowledge and understanding of the economic concepts of scarcity and resource allocation, as well as the operation of the price system.
• Knowledge and ability to analyze the essential elements of consumption and production theory, competitive equilibrium, the functioning of non-competitive markets, and economic efficiency.
• Understanding and critical capacity of the theoretical foundations of decision making. Knowledge of the main microeconomic models, industrial economics, the functioning of imperfectly competitive markets, and the implications of economic regulation.

2. Macroeconomics:

• Knowledge of the operation and basic interpretation of the income determination model in an open economy.
• Knowledge and ability to interpret the macroeconomic concepts of money, inflation, unemployment, public deficit, external deficit, growth, and the different economic policy instruments.
• Knowledge of the main macroeconomic models and the theories of economic growth and development. Public sector economics.

3. Public sector economy:

• Knowledge of public sector economic intervention's nature, justification, and objectives.
• Analytical capacity, mastery of economic theories and basic concepts of public finance and taxation, and knowledge of the economic peculiarities in the provision and results of social services, health, education, etc.
• Ability to prepare and evaluate economic policies and knowledge of welfare theory.

4. Spanish and international economy:

• Knowledge of the operation and description of the characteristic elements of the Spanish economy and world economies' distinctive features.
• Knowledge of the main theories of international economics and international exchanges as a conditioning element of resource allocation and macroeconomic stability.
• Ability to analyze and describe the national and international economic reality.

5. Quantitative economic methods:

• Knowledge and application to the field of economics of mathematical elements: linear algebra, differential and integral calculus, and mathematical optimization.
• Ability to apply and interpret economic problems through the instruments of descriptive statistics, probability, statistical inference, simple regression models and explanatory variables, and econometric models.
• Knowledge of the basic concepts of econometrics and the estimation of economic models, among others, those of time series.

6. Economic History and Law

• Knowledge and ability to analyze the main determinants of economic history.
• Knowledge of the evolution of economic institutions.
• Knowledge of public and private law concepts and elements: the primary legal system and institutions of Civil, Administrative, and Fiscal Law.

7. Business environment:

• Knowledge of the basic theory of the company, as well as the organization of companies and their functional areas.
• Knowledge and ability to interpret the essential elements of accounting.
• Analytical capacity and knowledge of the economy and financial institutions.
• Business management skills.

It can be concluded that the general objective of this bachelor's degree is for graduates to reach an adequate level in the development of the essential competencies listed below, taking into account that to develop these competencies adequately, it is necessary to work on the set of generic competencies and specific. To ensure the achievement of the competencies, they will be evaluated as specified in the description of each subject. Determining the degree in Economics competencies has been done by referencing the White Paper for the Degree in Economics and Business of ANECA. In general, the graduate in Economics must have acquired the character of a professional in economics, a practical person with clear skills, experienced in their field, who can address economic problems with professional criteria and manage technical instruments. For this, he must achieve a series of competencies that we have differentiated between specific (CE) and general (CG). All of them are inspired by the skills and abilities proposed by the White Paper for the Degree in Economics to achieve the objectives of the proposed title. In addition, core competencies (CN) have also been taken into account to develop more comprehensively. Through acquiring these competencies, graduates can achieve the five essential competencies (CB) listed in RD 1393/2007, Annex I, 3.2, some of which are specific and others generic. These competencies are detailed below:

• CB1. Possess and understand the knowledge of economics from the foundation of general secondary education at a level that, while supported by advanced textbooks, also includes some aspects that imply knowledge from the cutting edge of the economy.
• CB2. Know how to apply knowledge of economics to their work or vocation professionally and have the skills that are usually demonstrated through the development and defense of arguments and problem-solving within economics.
• CB3. Have the ability to gather and interpret relevant data from the area of economics to make judgments that reflect on relevant social, scientific, or ethical issues.
• CB4. Being able to transmit information, ideas, problems, and solutions regarding the economy to both specialized and non-specialized audiences.
• CB5. To have developed the necessary learning skills to undertake further studies in economics with a high degree of autonomy.

However, it must be considered that these basic skills are achieved by taking advantage of the different training modules the student has to take. They are not worked exclusively on some of the subjects of the Degree in Economics. Likewise, the establishment of the competencies of the Bachelor's Degree in Economics complies with the current norms and regulations regarding the principles of equal opportunities, non-discrimination, and accessibility, contemplated in Law 51/2003, of December 2, on equality of opportunities non-discrimination and universal accessibility for people with disabilities. To this end, the Department of Psychosocial Care of the Office of the Vice President for Students and University Extension of the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria has established different programs and measures to integrate students with disabilities fully. For all of the above, the competencies of the Bachelor's degree in Economics from the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria have been organized around four fundamental blocks: (1) nuclear, alluding to a set of competencies specific to the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria with which it is pursued that the people who study and finally obtain the degree corresponding to their degree present a graduate profile that reveals an authentic sense of professionalism; (2) general, which are those that refer to the training of a university student in a generic sense; (3) specific, which are those that refer to those that graduate in Economics must develop in a particular way, and (4) specific to the subjects, which are those that will be developed in the different training modules that make up the curriculum. Studies. Below is a detailed description of the set of competencies of the first three blocks of the Bachelor's Degree in Economics students.

NUCLEAR COMPETENCES

• CN1. Communicate appropriately and respectfully with different audiences (clients, collaborators, promoters, social agents, etc.), using the most appropriate supports and means of communication (especially the new information and communication technologies) so that they can reach understand the interests, needs, and concerns of people and organizations, as well as clearly express the sense of the mission entrusted to him and how he can contribute, with his professional skills and knowledge, to the satisfaction of those interests, needs, and concerns.
• CN2. Cooperate with other people and organizations in effectively performing functions and tasks of their professional profile, developing a reflective attitude about their professional skills and knowledge and an understanding and empathetic attitude towards the skills and knowledge of other professionals.
• CN3. Please contribute to the continuous improvement of their profession and the organizations in which they develop their practices through active participation in research, development, and innovation processes.
• CN4. Actively engage in the development of professional practices that respect human rights and the ethical norms of their professional field to generate trust in the beneficiaries of their profession and obtain the legitimacy and authority that society recognizes.
• CN5. Actively participate in multicultural integration that favors full human development, coexistence, and social justice.

GENERIC COMPETENCIES

• CG1. Regularly use information and communications technology in all their professional performance.
• CG2. Read and communicate professionally in English.
• GC3. Apply professional criteria based on the management of technical instruments to analyze problems.
• GC4. Communicate fluently in their environment and work as a team.
• GC5. Analyze problems with critical reasoning, without prejudice, and with precision and rigor.
• GC6. Defend a point of view, showing and appreciating the bases of other dissenting points of view.
• GC7. Synthesis capacity.

SPECIFIC COMPETENCIES OF THE DEGREE IN ECONOMICS

• CE1. Contribute to the good management of the allocation of resources in both the private and public spheres.
• CE2. Identify and anticipate relevant economic problems about allocating resources in general, both in the private and public spheres.
• CE3. Bring rationality to the analysis and description of any aspect of economic reality.
• CE4. Given the objectives, evaluate the consequences of different action alternatives and select the best ones.

aking into account the historical data obtained and considering that students in the new university framework will have to increase their work time considerably, we propose the following estimate as foreseeable:

•  Graduation rate: 20%
• Dropout rate: 35%
• Efficiency rate: 75%

Following RD 1393/2007, of October 29, which establishes the organization of official university education, the indicators above will be calculated as follows:

• Graduation rate: percentage of students who complete their education within the time stipulated in the study plan or one more academic year about their entry cohort
• Dropout rate: percentage relationship between the total number of students in a new admission cohort who should have obtained their degree the previous academic year and who have not enrolled in that academic year or the previous one.
• Efficiency rate: percentage relationship between the total number of credits in the study plan that the group of graduates of a given academic year should have enrolled in throughout their studies and the total number of credits they had to enroll in.