The learning activities are organized into four components: theory classes, problem-based classes, variable-topic seminars, and laboratory practicals, each with its own specific methodology. These activities may be complemented by tutorial sessions if necessary.

Theory classes

The teaching staff will explain the course content using audiovisual material, which will subsequently be made available to the group on the course Virtual Campus. This supporting material will be written mainly in Catalan, while figures extracted from the bibliography may be in English. Lectures will constitute the most important part of the theory component.

Problem-solving classes

A total of 8 hours will be devoted to problem-based sessions throughout the course.

The group will be divided into two subgroups, whose lists will be made public at the beginning of the course. Students will attend the sessions scheduled for their assigned subgroup. At the beginning of the semester, a dossier containing problem statements for the course will be provided through the Virtual Campus and will be worked through during the sessions. In a limited number of sessions distributed throughout the semester, the teaching staff will explain the experimental and calculation principles required, as well as the guidelines for solving the problems. Students will work on the problems outside class hours. Face-to-face sessions will be devoted to solving problems that have been previously prepared. Students, in groups of 3–4, will discuss and defend their solutions in class.

Oral presentation seminar

The topic will be related to the course. Students will prepare the topic and present in front of the rest of the students.

Laboratory sessions

The group will be subdivided into eight subgroups, and the corresponding lists will be announced in advance. To ensure proper operation and safety during practical sessions, changes between groups will only be accepted if clearly justified and previously approved by the teaching staff. To maintain a balanced number of participants, only exchanges between students from different groups will be accepted, preferably for both practical sessions. Students must attend the practical sessions wearing a lab coat, protective goggles and bring a printed and previously read copy of the practical protocol (available on the Virtual Campus), as well as a notebook to record observations and results.

On the scheduled days, students will be called to the Biochemistry laboratory to perform basic experiments related to the determination of properties and analysis of biomolecules.

The practicals, as well as their assessment, will be carried out in groups of two students (or as determined by the teaching staff). After each session, each group must submit a questionnaire including their experimental results and answers to the proposed questions. Attendance at practical sessions is mandatory, except in duly justified cases.

Mentoring sessions

Individual mentoring sessions will be held upon request by students. These sessions aim to resolve doubts, review basic concepts, and provide guidance on consulted information sources, as well as on self-directed learning topics or those proposed by the teaching staff.

These sessions will not be lecture-based, nor will new course content be introduced; they will be focused on addressing specific questions.

Gamification Activity

In sessions held prior to the first and second midterm examinations, a gamification activity will be conducted using the Socrative platform, where students will answer questions related to the course content. The questions will be of a difficulty level comparable to that of the examinations.

Material available on the course Virtual Campus

Teaching guide

Presentations used in theory classes

Laboratory protocols

List of self-learning topics and recommended sources

Schedule of teaching activities

Annotation: within the schedule set by the centre or degree programme, 15 minutes of one class will be reserved for students to evaluate their lecturers and their courses or modules through questionnaires.

The assessment of this course will follow a 'continuous assessment' format. The objective of continuous assessment is to encourage student effort throughout the entire syllabus, allowing monitoring of their level of engagement and understanding of the subject matter.

Theory

Individual assessment through:

• Two eliminatory midterm exams with multiple-choice questions and also short/long answer questions. Each theory midterm will account for 30% of the final grade. No conditions are established for taking any of the scheduled exams.
• A retake exam for the theory midterms with multiple-choice questions and also short/long answer questions corresponding to the first or second midterm. To take this exam, students must have previously been assessed in a set of activities whose weight represents at least two-thirds of the total course grade. Therefore, students will receive a grade of "Not Assessed" when the evaluation activities completed represent less than 67% of the final grade.

Students who have obtained a grade below 4.0 (out of 10) in one or both midterms must take the corresponding retake exam(s) (first midterm, second midterm, or both).

Although the midterms are eliminatory, it is possible to improve the grades of the first two midterms on the retake exam. In this case, the grade obtained in the retake exam will always be considered final. The overall weight of the theory assessment will be 60% of the total.

Problems

Problems will be assessed in a continuous form. This assessment will be divided into two parts: 1) work and submission of problems in class (10%, 5% each delivery); 2) problem assessment through an individual exam (10%, 5% per midterm). Absence from problem sessions will penalize the individual grade.

Problem assessment is continuous throughout the course and will not be recoverable.

The overall weight of the problem assessment will be 20% of the total.

Self-learning exercises

During a period of the course announced in advance, self-learning exercises will be available on the Virtual Campus and can be completed as a questionnaire in Moodle. This questionnaire provides no feedback, and it is not possible to return to previous questions. The questions will cover the self-learning topics. Students may complete up to 3 attempts during the availability period, and the highest score obtained will be considered. Individual evaluation, 5% of the final grade.

Oral Presentation Seminar

Topics related to the course will be assigned for the groups formed during the problem-solving sessions. Each group will be required to prepare and deliver a short oral presentation to the rest of the class. This activity will account for 5% of the final grade and will be assessed as a group activity.

Practical sessions

Group assessment:

• Presentation of results obtained during the practical sessions and completion of the proposed questionnaire. Attitude and behavior in the laboratory will also be taken into account.

Attendance at practical sessions is mandatory. Students will receive a grade of "Not Assessed" when absence exceeds 20% of the scheduled sessions.

Changes between groups will only be admitted exceptionally and always with proper documentation. In case of justified absence from a practical session and if it is not possible to attend another group, that session will not be considered in the calculation of the practical grade.

The weight of the practical assessment will be 10% of the total.

Calculating Grades

All three components are inseparable, meaning that students must participate in and be assessed in all of them in order to pass the course. The final grade is calculated so that the theory component accounts for 60%, the problem component for 25%, the self-learning exercises for 5%, and the practical component for the remaining 10%. The course will be considered passed when the final grade is at least 50 out of 100.

The course cannot be passed if one or more theory midterm exams have a grade below 4.0; in this case, the maximum grade recorded will be 4.5.

Single Assessment

Students who opt for single assessment must attend the laboratory practical sessions (PLAB) in person; passing them is mandatory, and they account for 10% of the grade.

Single assessment consists of a single comprehensive exam (including multiple-choice questions and open questions requiring development/calculation) covering all theory and problem content. The solved problem dossier must also be submitted on the day of the exam.

The grade obtained in the comprehensive exam represents 80% of the final grade, the practical sessions 10%, and the problem dossier the remaining 10%.

The single assessment exam will take place on the same date scheduled for the last continuous assessment exam, and the same resit system will apply. To pass the course, a minimum grade of 5 out of 10 must be obtained in each component (comprehensive exam, PLAB, and problem dossier).

Other considerations

Students who are unable to attend an individual assessment test for justified reasons (such as illness, death of a first-degree relative, or accident) and who provide the appropriate official documentation to the Degree Coordinator will be entitled to take the test on another date.

Students who need any retake exam to be approved will not be eligible for the highest honors (matrícula de honor), obtaining at most an excellent grade. Students who sit the retake exam should waive their midterm grade, and the final grade will be that of the retake exam.

Students will receive a grade of "Not Assessed" when the completed assessment activities represent less than 67% of the final grade. This implies that students must have taken both midterm exams in order to be eligible for resit, and failure to attend a midterm will result directly in a “Not Assessed” grade.

Repeating students will not be required to complete the teaching activities or assessments corresponding to competencies already passed from the second enrollment onward, specifically group work in problem sessions and laboratory practicals.

For this course, the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies is allowed exclusively for support tasks, such as literature searches, information retrieval, text correction, or translations. Students must clearly identify which parts have been generated using these technologies, specify the tools used, and include a critical reflection on how these have influenced the process and final outcome. Lack of transparency in the use of AI in this assessed activity will be considered a breach of academic integrity and may result in partial or total penalties in the grade, or more severe sanctions in serious cases.

The commission of any irregularity in an assessment activity (academic fraud, plagiarism, or improper use of AI, unless such use is explicitly authorized in the course guide) that may lead to a significant alteration of the grade will result in that assessment activity being awarded a grade of 0 (zero). If the course guide establishes that obtaining a minimum grade in that assessment activity is an essential requirement to pass the course, or if multiple irregularities occur in the assessment activities of the same course, the final grade for the course will be 0 (zero). Furthermore, independently of these academic consequences, disciplinary proceedings may be initiated against any student who commits any of these irregularities.