Each academic year is divided into teaching periods called semesters, the winter and spring semesters. The courses of the Department's curriculum are divided into mandatoty and elective courses and are divided into eight (8) semesters. During the winter semester, the courses that fall under the 1st , 2nd , 5th and 7th semesters of the curriculum are taught. During the spring semester, the courses falling under semesters 2nd , 4th , 6th and 8th of the curriculum are taught. The education of the students of the Department of Geology and Geoenvironment takes place with the delivery of the courses, the laboratory exercises, the field exercises and is completed with the writing of a Dissertation.
The education of the students of the Department of Geology and Geo-environment takes place through the delivery of Lectures, laboratory and practice exercises, fieldwork exercises and excursions/visits to areas or facilities of specific interest and is completed with the preparation of a thesis. The new curriculum of the Department of Geology and Geo-environment was reformed in the academic year 2011-2012 in order to adapt to the increased needs of the modern era, and was modified in the academic year 2021-2022.
The main points of the modification concerned:
Specifically, the provision of a specific day and time in the timetable for the holding of the Department's Assemblies, with a specific duration, is established. On days when no Assembly is held, the Assemblies of the Sections and of the Students as well as Seminars with invited speakers can be held during this period. The same is proposed for Student Assemblies, which could also be held on a specific day (the time scheduled for the Departmental Assembly when it is not held) in addition to a specific day and time.
Students are evaluated at the end of each semester with written or oral examinations, mid-term progress examinations, written assignments, laboratory or clinical exercises, a combination of different assessment methods or other assessment methods that are appropriate to the nature of each educational process. When written or oral examinations are used as assessment methods, the integrity of the process shall be guaranteed. If more than one (1) of the assessment methods referred to in the first subparagraph are included in the curriculum regulations as possible, the teacher shall choose the one he/she considers most appropriate for the assessment of students. If the assessment is carried out by final examinations, the examinations shall be conducted after the completion of the academic semester for first cycle curricula and by a re-examination after the completion of the academic year.
During the re-examination, students are entitled to be examined in courses and educational activities irrespective of the academic semester during which they are provided in accordance with the approved curriculum, if they have not been successfully assessed in them. In particular, students in first cycle programmes of study who have completed the period of regular attendance, which is the minimum number of academic semesters necessary for the award of the degree, shall be entitled to be examined during the examination period of each academic semester.
The training process may be carried out using sychronous distance learning methods only in the following cases:
i) provision of teaching work in first cycle curricula, conducted with the participation of Professors from foreign institutions or Associate Professors,
ii) teaching in the context of joint study programmes with foreign institutions,
iii) the provision of teaching work in the context of first cycle interdepartmental or interdepartmental programmes, for the part of the teaching work provided under the responsibility of the collaborating departments, where the collaborating departments are located in different cities,
iv) the provision of teaching work on second cycle programmes of study, and
v) n cases of force majeure or exceptional circumstances, where it is not possible to conduct the educational process in person or to use the infrastructure of the Higher Educational Institution (HEI) for the conduct of its educational, research and other activities,
vi) the organisation of immersion courses and tutorial exercises, in addition to the compulsory teaching hours per course.
The organisation of the educational process using distance learning methods ensures accessibility for people with disabilities and special educational needs.
Exceptionally, it is possible to organise the educational process in person, with simultaneous synchronous transmission of the teaching work carried out using electronic media, exclusively for students from other departments of the same higher education institution, if they choose to attend courses and educational activities of other departments of the same higher education institution, provided that the students to whom the course is addressed attend a department located in a different regional unit or city from that of the department in which the course is offered. The assessment of students shall be carried out in a uniform manner, irrespective of the method of conducting the educational process and monitoring the students.
The Electronic Classroom (eClass) is an integrated e-learning management system and supports the asynchronous distance learning service at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens without restrictions and commitments. Educational material per course is posted on the electronic platform, which includes notes, presentations, exercises, indicative solutions, as well as video-recorded lectures, provided that the current legislation on personal data protection is respected. The educational material of any kind is provided exclusively for the educational use of students and is protected by Law No. 2121/1993 (A' 25), provided that the relevant conditions are met.
Access to the e-class service is possible from the link https://eclass.uoa.gr. Students, once they create their online account in the EKPA e-classroom, are required to register for all the courses of the Programme of Studies they are going to attend during the semester in question.
Mandatory courses are those courses whose attendance and successful examination is considered necessary for all students of the Department.
Attendance of the theory lectures of the courses is an academic obligation of the student. Systematic attendance of the lectures is absolutely necessary for the proper theoretical training of the student. Only direct contact with the lecturer can lead to a thorough knowledge of the subject matter of each course.
Examinations are given by the lecturer(s) at the end of the semester on a set syllabus. Examinations may be written or oral. The grade of the course is expressed as a whole number on a scale of zero to ten (0-10), with a pass mark of five (5). In case of failure, the student has the possibility of a supplementary examination. If the student also fails the supplemental examination, the student will be required to re-enroll in the course and take the course in the following semester.
The curriculum includes thirty-two (32) sub-credit courses. From the academic year 2021-2022 onwards, all compulsory courses have a workload equivalent to 6 ECTS. Therefore, the 32 mandatory courses have a total workload of 192 ECTS.
In addition to the 32 mandatory courses, the Programme of Studies also provides for the mandatory preparation of a Diploma Thesis, for which there is a special reference below (Diploma Dissertation ).
Elective courses are a set of courses from which the student completes the number of courses required for a degree. The student must take electives from at least two (2) fields. Elective courses are declared by students in the semester in which they are taught or later.
With regard to the examinations and grading of each elective course, the same applies as for mandatory courses. In case of failure, the student may re-enroll in the course and take it in a subsequent semester or enroll in another elective course.
The curriculum includes 52 elective courses with 4 ECTS each, of which the student must choose seven (7) or nine (9), depending on the type of Thesis chosen.
Many of the mandatory or elective courses are accompanied by practical training of students in specially equipped rooms with instruments and devices (laboratories). The content of the laboratory exercises is related to the subject matter of the same course.
The practice is compulsory and for practical reasons the students are divided into sections.
In order for a student to be considered successful in the laboratory, he/she must have successfully completed all the exercises prescribed by the programme of each laboratory.
In case of absence or failure of the student in some exercises, the exercises may be repeated, after consultation with the person in charge of the laboratory, provided that this possibility is available.
Each student's participation in the laboratory is graded by the laboratory grade, which is included in the calculation of the single course grade. A prerequisite for participation in the course examinations is the completion of the corresponding laboratory exercises. The course is considered successful when the theoretical and laboratory part of the course is passed.
Field Work is a mandatory for all students and are related to the mandatory and elective courses. Field work takes place, for the winter semester courses, over a two-week period, from the end of November to the beginning of December, and for the spring semester courses, between 15-30 May. The students are divided into groups and each group is led outdoors by teachers and E.D.I.P. from all sectors. The mandatory course "Geological Mapping" (Y6203) is held in the 6th semester, between 15-30 May, is interdisciplinary and includes: i) Preparation in the laboratory, ii) Mapping in the field (general geological and specific) and iii) Delivery of a report - examination. For students in the last two years of study, Interdisciplinary Field Exercises are also offered, in which multifaceted topics are examined, taking into account the knowledge of most of the courses taught in all years of study.
In the first and second cycle curricula, students may be required to undertake an internship as a mandatory or optional educational activity of the curriculum aimed at the practical application of the theoretical scientific knowledge acquired through the successful completion of the curriculum and the familiarization of students with possible workplaces. The practical training of students is carried out in public services, legal entities under public law, first and second degree local authorities, legal entities under private law and enterprises, hereinafter referred to as 'host institutions', under the supervision of a lecturer of the programme of study. Practical training may also be carried out in foreign institutions, provided that supervision of the educational process is feasible, in accordance with the rules of procedure of the study programme referred to in paragraph 1. 2. For student internships, an internship contract shall be concluded between the higher education institution (HEI), the student and the host institution. Successful completion of the internship shall result in the award of the number of credit points (ECTS), which shall be determined by decision of the Departmental Assembly.
The dissertation is the student's first comprehensive study as a Geologist and Geoenvironmentalist and includes in general: a. literature study, b. field work and/or laboratory analysis, c. extraction of results and formulation of conclusions on the specific subject matter and d. writing and appropriate presentation of these data.
The subject of the dissertation must be relevant to the content of the courses attended by the student. The choice of the subject of the dissertation is made from a list of topics, which are communicated each year by the Sections of the Department. The student is supervised by a faculty member, who is responsible for the guidance and at the end grades the student's performance. A copy of the dissertation is submitted in electronic form to the Library of the Faculty of Science.
The "Diploma Dissertation" is divided into "Dissertation Thesis-Research" with 20 ECTS and "Dissertation Thesis-Bibliographical" with 12 ECTS respectively. The choice of a bibliographical dissertation (12 ECTS) implies the additional attendance of 2 more elective courses corresponding to 8 (2x4) ECTS.
There are four (4) Seminar Courses covering the subjects of Introduction to Geosciences, Computer Science and Programming Language, Scientific Writing. In addition, they cover the needs of informing and educating students on issues related to the Geological Sciences, strengthening students' digital literacy, which will help them to successfully attend courses and workshops, and familiarizing students with the search and use of scientific literature, the writing of papers and technical reports and the techniques of presenting scientific results.
Seminar courses receive 0.5 ECTS each, are not taken into account for the acquisition/grading of the degree and will be included in the Diploma Supplement, as is the case with the Practical Training (PA001, 8ECTS).
CIVIS (Europe's Civic University Alliance) is a network of public European Universities with the aim of creating a European University. The eight universities that are members of this network are:: University Aix - Marseille (Aix-en-Provenceand Marseille, France), NAtional and Kapodistrian University of Athens Αθηνών (Athens, Greece), Université Libre de Bruxelles (Brusselles, Belgium), Universitatea din București (Bucarest, Romania), Universidad Autónoma de Madrid (Madrid, Spain), Sapienza Università di Roma (Rome, Italy), Stockholms universitet (Stockholm, Sweden), and Eberhard -Karls- Universität Tübingen (Germany).
The Department of Geology and Geoenvironment participates in CIVIS by offering the following courses in foreign languages: