According to the Internacional Project Management Association, competence is the ability to put knowledge or skills into practice when it requires demonstrated personal skills. According to Dublin Descriptors that define competence levels in each of ESHE learning levels, the Master’s teaching plan must cover the following generic competences:

• knowledge and understanding,

• application of knowledge and understanding,

• judgment formulation,

• communication and,

• learning of skills.

A series of general competences have been defined, transferrable to each course of the Master, that are strengthened with different expression levels and specific competences for each subject of the Master. General competences of the Master are as follows:

• Written and oral communication skills: To complete contributions in writing, developing the ability to synthesize and present ideas in a working group and through public speaking.

• To integrate previous knowledge (from first cycle) in a critical way and relate it accurately so that it can be applied to the study of real situations and to any proposal for alternative research or action.

• To strengthen oral and written use of the English language.

• Critical ability for analysis, synthesis and learning through the opinion interchange by giving strong and structured arguments.

• Bibliographic search and documentation analysis.

• Bibliographic search and documentation analysis.

• Ability to manage, analyze and synthesize information from several sources and the ability to use accumulated information to help solve complex problems.

• Teamwork capacity.

• Capacity to observe, generate hypotheses and indentify experimental problems.

• TIC use for cooperative work and teamwork.

• Positive human values for research including respect for basic human rights, principles of equal opportunity, global accessibility and non-discrimination and values of a culture of peace and democratic values. Commitment to these rights, principles and values: motivation, positive and enthusiastic attitude, ethics, integrity and honesty in research.

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  Specific competences are numbered for each of the courses correlatively.

Specific competences in planning, evaluation and management of rural development:

CE 1.1: To understand and know the relationship between the different planning models of development and specific policies and programs on rural development at the European and international level in order to promote participative planning processes for sustainable management of rural areas with a spirit of service in the public field that is aimed at promoting goodwill.

CE 1.2: To know participative methodologies in the formulation, execution, follow-up and evaluation of a development program or project and its multidimensionality (human, territorial and environmental).

CE 1.3: Knowledge, analysis and application of participative evaluation methodologies aimed at learning about the organizations that are likely to be involved in development programs and projects.

Specific technical and analytical competences for a sustainable development

CE 2.1: To know cutting-edge methods, techniques and tools for the generation of cartography information and representation, quantification and analysis of territory variables.

CE 2.2: Ability to manage procedures and techniques for information integration when evaluating and diagnosing a territory during planning.

CE 2.3: To know and use methods and algorithms for decision making, obtaining of opinions and preferences and support at decision (SAD); to identify and use more adequate methods of decision making in view of a problem of management and sustainable development in rural environments.

Specific competences in management of territories and their biodiversity

CE 3.1: To know cutting-edge methods and tendencies in the experimental study of soil biochemistry and soil-plant interactions as well as labor tools and agroforestry use and methods for optimization of sustainable soil exploitation.

CE 3.2: To use cutting-edge water analysis techniques in hydrological networks and in soil analysis. To know low-cost treatment methods and water quality control and protection methods.

CE 3.3: To identify, value and integrate the elements of an ecosystem or landscape in models for integral management of natural resources, especially on an individual scale, and to identify critical elements for the conservation and improvement of biodiversity in agroforestry systems.

CE 3.4: To know socioeconomic valuation methods and obtain opinions and preferences in order to integrate decision-making processes and identify more adequate valuation methods in view of a problem of management and sustainable development in rural environments.