Università degli Studi di Perugia

Degree course in Food Economy and Culture [L-26] D. M. 270/2004

General information

Qualification awarded

Bachelor’s Degree in Food Economy and Culture

Level of qualification

First cycle

Specific admission requirements and specific arrangements for recognition of prior learning

In order to enrol on the Degree Course, students must have a diploma from a Secondary School or another equivalent qualification obtained abroad and recognized suitable. Students are required to have an adequate preparation in the basic subjects of mathematics, physics, chemistry and biology. Before classes commence, the Faculty organizes a month of preparatory activities during which students may attend classes aimed at assessing and consolidating the knowledge of basic subjects.

Profile of the programme

The Degree Course in ECOCAL is a joint Bachelor’s degree, organized by the Faculty of Agriculture carried out with the Faculty of Medicine and that of Arts and Humanities. It provides undergraduates with skills necessary to operate within the increasingly complex system at the root of human eating habits. There is particular emphasis on financial and managerial aspects, backed by basic knowledge about the nature and quality of foodstuffs, the production and control processes, the principles of human nutrition habits with a view to health protection, and the historical and cultural roots of the Italian food tradition.

Qualification requirements and regulations

The Degree course in ECOCAL has a duration of 3 years, during which the student must obtain 180 credits. The educational activities, organized on a six-monthly basis, take place through face to face classes, exercises, practical work and seminar attendance, training and a final examination. The curriculum of each student is oriented upon enrolment and through ongoing assessment by the staff of the didactic secretary’s office and by designated tutors (Professors, PhD and research fellows of Departments). Upon completion of the degree course, career orientation is provided by the Faculty in collaboration with the Association ALFA (Association for Graduates of the Faculty of Agriculture). All aspects relative to the organization and management of the Degree course are described in the didactic regulations, which can be viewed on the Faculty’s website.

Key learning outcomes

ECOCAL undergraduates acquire and are able to use specific skills of know-how, oriented towards the applicative aspects of mathematics, physics, chemistry, plant biology and botany, microbiology, genetics and breeding, the biochemistry of foodstuffs and economics. Graduates acquire basic knowledge of food products; production processes and their influence on the products’ quality; principles and methods of preservation and quality and hygiene control of both fresh and transformed foodstuffs; the principles of nutrition; physiology and physiopathology of the human body and of the endocrine system; the history of agriculture of eating habits and of the anthropology of eating habits; the structural and socioeconomic configuration of the food system. And lastly, the undergraduate acquires in-depth knowledge of the principles and methods of the final management of enterprises of production, marketing and distribution of agro-food products and of the restaurant industry.

Students acquire such skills by participating in seminars and exercises in class, laboratory and open field, and are assessed through tests and/or specific reports written according to the methods specified in each activity, in the didactic regulations of the degree course.

ECOCAL undergraduates acquire the autonomy to judge the reliability of necessary information and to make decisions in a critical, concise manner in order to solve problems. The course also aims to sensitize graduates to focusing their attention on the skills of “knowing how to be” (being sensitive and paying attention to the various needs – cultural, ethical, social and health-related – which condition and characterize food demand, awareness and sensitivity to the scarcity and abundance of food and of the limits and difficulties of international governance in terms of nutrition and worldwide commerce).

Furthermore, graduates are able to communicate clearly and with appropriate language and to dialogue with the various professions which have a relationship with agro-food industries, through correct written and oral forms. They are capable of using the main instruments of Information and Communication Technology and their communicative and relational skills in order to be able to operate as a team within an interdisciplinary context. Such skills will be encouraged through means of seminars and the writing of reports during the more professional courses. The monitoring of results in terms of communication skills is carried out during the course of exams taken for the individual courses and, particularly, of the final examination.

Examination regulations, assessment and grading

The individual examinations take place orally before a board of at least two professors. Other possible methods of assessment (e.g. final written exams or ongoing exams, seminarian presentations) are specified in the descriptions of the individual courses. Exams relative to individual courses are assessed on a scale of 30 and, where appropriate, with honours. The final grade is based on the results of the individual courses and on the final examination, which involves the presentation of a written research paper to be discussed before a board of at least 7 professors. The latter is assessed on a scale of 110, and where appropriate, with honours.

Graduation requirements

The final qualification is awarded upon the attainment of 180 credits and upon the approval of a written paper.

Mode of study (full-time, part-time, e-learning, ...)

Full time study and attendance is recommended. However, part-time study is possible: attendance is not compulsory and students can sit exams according to their rhythm and needs.

Occupational profiles of graduates with examples

Professional opportunities are foreseen in the field of agricultural and environmental activities, where services may be provided to enterprises dealing in particular with foodstuff; freelance work; in public administration and research institutes. The skills acquired by the undergraduate during this degree course are standard to exercise the profession of Junior Agronomist, regulated by D.P.R. 328/2001 and subsequent amendments.

Access to further studies

The qualification provides access to the following study programmes: Master’s Degree in Food and Nutrition Sciences (SANU) if the required number of credits has been achieved or, with formative debits, in Food Technologies and Biotechnologies (TBA).

Programme director or equivalent

Tabella riepilogativa regolamento

Food Economy and Culture (Regulations 2013)