Teaching IP to science students, especially in the degree of biotechnology

IP Law, especially patent law, should be part of the curricula of science undergraduates, taking into consideration that, at the end of the day, those are the ones who develop patentable inventions after their studies, and who should be fully aware of the different possibilities offered to them in order to protect the results of their efforts made during their professional endeavour. The Bologna Process offered the opportunity to adapt curricula of Science Degrees to a new reality in which interdisciplinary competencies could be added to the learning outcomes to be achieved by students in their specific field. Some Universities have taken the chance to introduce new modules to offer the basic knowledge of IP Law to students of different Science Degrees. This was the case of the Degree in Biotechnology offered at the University of Salamanca. This module was designed before the Bologna process but adapted afterwards when the Bologna system became compulsory at the Spanish University. In this respect, a module called ‘Legal and Social Aspects in Biotechnology’ has been offered since the Degree in Biotechnology was first implemented at the University of Salamanca in the academic year 2007-08. Long before that, an optional module called ‘Patents’ was offered in the Degree in Chemical Engineering. In this sense the University of Salamanca has been a pioneer in introducing the study of IP Law as part of the curricula of technical degrees. This chapter focuses on my experience and the approach that I followed in teaching in the Biotechnology Degree, taking into account the specific profile of the students and the precise learning outcomes pursued.