PD:Entorn Econòmic Espanyol

Teaching plan for the course unit

Català

Castellano

English

General information

Course unit name: Spanish Economic Environment

Course unit code: 363668

Academic year: 2025-2026

Coordinator: Gemma Joaquina Garcia Brosa

Department: Department of Economics

Credits: 3

Single program: S

Estimated learning time

Total number of hours 75

Face-to-face and/or online activities	30
(Face-to-face activities for the GIE group consist of one 2-hour session per week.)

	- Lecture with practical component	Face-to-face and online		25
	- Problem-solving class	Face-to-face and online		5

Supervised project

Independent learning

Recommendations

The subject Spanish Economic Environment is offered in the second year of the bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and Management, once students have completed the more general and introductory course units of the first year.

This subject focuses particularly on applied economics, using the economic concepts, reasoning and models required to analyse a specific context: the Spanish economy. As such, it is important for students to have completed the subjects Introduction to Economics and Microeconomics. Students are also recommended to enrol on this subject at the same time as they study the subject entitled Macroeconomics.

Specifically, students should:

attend class regularly and take part in class activities, in particular, the practical sessions;
check the Virtual Campus as often as possible for available teaching materials and for the dates and content of the assessed activities;
read the recommended texts for each topic in parallel with the lecture programme;
prepare for all practical sessions, not just the assessed activities.

Competences / Learning outcomes to be gained during study

-	To be able to interpret the development and changes in an environment.

-	To identify the economic agents that make up an economy and to understand how they interrelate so as to take economic decisions with full awareness of their effects.

Learning objectives

Referring to knowledge

This subject is intended to provide students with the knowledge and analytical skills to understand the evolution, structure, and dynamics of the Spanish economy. It addresses its key features, the main challenges it faces, and the role of the primary institutions and forces that shape it.

More specifically, on completing the course, students should understand: the main economic transformations witnessed since Spain joined the European Union in 1986, the shocks that made recovery possible from 2013 to 2019, and the impact caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the factors behind the growth of the Spanish economy over recent decades, the key features of the labour market and the Spanish financial system, and the structure and competitiveness of the Spanish production sector.

The knowledge acquired during the course enables students to examine the principal sources of statistical information on the Spanish economy, calculate and interpret standard magnitudes and indicators (in particular macroeconomic indicators and variables related to macroeconomic imbalances) and interpret basic indicators of the labour market and financial system and indicators reflecting industrial specialization and economic competitiveness.

Teaching blocks

1. Economic growth and structural change

Unit 1. Structural growth and change

Unit 2. Recent behaviour of the Spanish economy

2. Markets of factors of production

Unit 3. The labour market in Spain

Unit 4. The Spanish financial system

3. Production structure and business structure

Unit 5. Production structure and business structure

Teaching methods and general organization

This subject uses three types of learning activities:

a) Teacher-led activities. These include lectures, in which the teaching staff present the main concepts and theoretical content of the course and students become familiar with the main analytical tools used in the field. There are also practical sessions for discussion of questions related to the lecture content, practical activities and problem-solving exercises. To guarantee more participatory practical sessions, the group is split in two subgroups, each with their own lecturer.

b) Supervised activities outside class hours. Students are required to obtain, process and interpret statistical information related to the topics covered in class.

c) Independent learning. Students should use this time to work through additional exercises and read texts from the recommended bibliography.

Dedicated spaces for the group taught in the second semester, the English-language group and the remaining groups are available on the Virtual Campus. These are used for communication between students and the teaching staff and to provide access to the course material. Tutorials, during the hours announced by each lecturer, are intended to help students clarify doubts about the course content.

Official assessment of learning outcomes

Continuous assessment

Students must complete two activities to be evaluated by this mode of assessment: an assessed activity and a final examination.

a) An assessed activity consisting of a series of questions that may involve calculations or interpretation of results, both from information submitted by the lecturer or previously worked on by the student. These are multiple-choice questions.The exact date of the assessed activity is announced via the Virtual Campus. This accounts for 40% of the final grade.

b) The final examination is the same for all groups and is held on the date set by the Academic Board, and under no circumstances will an alternative examination date be scheduled for specific groups. The examination contains questions that may include exercises to be solved, calculation of economic variables and application of basic economic concepts to Spanish economic situations.

Continuous assessment students can choose not to answer some of the questions (around 20%) in this final exam.

The mark awarded for the final examination is worth 60% of the final grade for the subject, but students must obtain a mark of 4 out of 10 or higher to be eligible to pass the course. Students who obtain a mark below 4 out of 10 are awarded a final grade of Fail, irrespective of the weighted numerical average taking into account the continuous assessment activities.

Repeat assessment

Students who do not achieve a pass grade can sit a repeat assessment examination, on the date set by the Academic Board. The examination is the same for all groups and contains questions on the content of the entire course. The examination may include exercises to be solved, calculation of economic variables and application of basic economic concepts to Spanish economic situations. The mark for the examination is the final grade for the subject. Students must obtain a minimum grade of 5 out of 10 to pass the subject.

Examination-based assessment

Students who do not achieve the minimum grade of 5 in the continuous assessment are automatically transferred to the single mode. Students with a mark of 5 or higher who wish to opt for single assessment are also entitled to renounce the continuous mode of assessment.

Students sit an examination on the content of the entire course, on the official examination date set by the Academic Board, and must obtain a minimum Pass grade to complete the subject. The examination is the same for all groups and contains questions on the content of the entire course. The examination may include exercises to be solved, calculation of economic variables and application of basic economic concepts to Spanish economic situations.

Repeat assessment

Students who fail to pass the subject can sit the final repeat assessment exam, on the date established by the Academic Board. The examination is the same for all groups and contains questions on the content of the entire course. The examination may include exercises to be solved, calculation of economic variables and application of basic economic concepts to Spanish economic situations. The mark for the examination is the final grade for the subject. Students must obtain a minimum grade of 5 out of 10 to pass the subject.

Reading and study resources

Check availability in Cercabib

Book

GARCÍA DELGADO, José Luis.; MYRO, Rafael. (dirs.). Economía española : una introducción. 8ª ed.: Civitas, 2025

Catàleg UB (7a ed., 2023)