Spend this summer getting to know the exciting, vibrant city of Barcelona--its unique markets and street vendors, the stunning Gothic architecture of Antoni Guaudi's Sagrada familia, the whimsical Park Güell--all while improving your language skills and meeting the locals!
Barcelona will be your classroom.
Enroll in one IES Abroad language course and one to two area studies courses at the prestigious Universitat Pompeu Fabra (UPF), IES Abroad's local partner university. Even though you'll directly enroll at UPF with local and other international students, the on-site IES Abroad staff are there to provide support when you need it.
We want you to feel at home in Barcelona, so we will do everything we can to help you integrate into life in Barcelona, from arranging comfortable and safe housing to organizing cultural activities. Welcome to study abroad!
These dates are preliminary and are subject to change. Students should not book flights according to these dates.
Our mission is simple: to provide you with the best study abroad program in Barcelona possible—which includes the highest quality academic and cultural experiences.
You begin the program with a four-week IES Abroad language intensive course, worth 4 credits.
After your first week of the IES Abroad language intensive course, you begin your course(s) at Universitat Pompeu Fabra (UPF). You may take one to two courses (an extra fee applies for a second course), each worth 3 credits. Courses are available in both Spanish and English, and range from beginning level to advanced.
You enroll in a total of 7-10 IES Abroad credits.
This is a list of planned course offerings. A final list of course offerings will be made available to you in your MyIESabroad account.
In English
Contemporary Barcelona and it's Cultural History
Society and Politics in Contemporary Spain
Spanish Postmodernism and Beyond
In Spanish
Destination Barcelona
Images of Spain in Contemporary Cinema
The Silver Age: Spanish Avant-Garde Intellectuals and Artists Between the Wars
Spain and the Americas: Transition and Democratization
Culture and Literature in the Spanish Golden Age
Universitat Pompeu Fabra (UPF)www.upf.edu UPF was founded by the Catalonian government in 1990 and is a public institution. It is named after the scholar who established the grammar of the modern Catalan language, and enrolls approximately 10,000 Spanish and international students.
IES Abroad Barcelona organizes field study trips that complement what you’re learning in the classroom, and contribute to your general knowledge of Spanish culture and society.
Our job is to make sure that your greatest challenge is deciding what landmarks to see first or discovering the best café—not finding a place to live where you feel comfortable. We do our best to locate housing that is reflective of how the local students are living. Our goal is that when you leave Barcelona, it will feel like home.
You have the unique chance to experience two types of housing during the seven weeks of your program.
Homestays – During the four-week period of intensive language instruction, you live in a home with local residences--a homestay. This provides a truly immersive experience, which supplements and enhances the intensive language instruction you receive from IES Abroad during this period.
Normally, two or three IES Abroad students live in a home with local residents and sometimes students share a double room. You are provided two meals a day (breakfast and dinner) while the program is in session.
Apartments - After the initial four-week period, you move into an apartment. Living in an apartment is a great way to put your language skills to work. Live with three to five other IES Abroad students in mostly double or triple rooms. Live-in Spanish Resident Assistants (RAs) guide you in cultural integration. No meals are provided, but the apartments have fully-equipped kitchens.
Part of making you feel at home in Barcelona is doing our best to help you feel safe and cared for. Whether it is an orientation program that makes you feel prepared, housing that is well-located and comfortable, or the field trips that take you to places off the beaten path—we’re all about our student services. This is just one of the things we’re known for.
After your arrival, you receive practical information on housing, transportation, and extracurricular activities, and learn about the city and its culture through scavenger hunts, Spanish language classes, a cinema forum, and local walking tours. You also participate in a short orientation session at UPF with other international students.
Additionally, CORE™, IES Abroad’s Comprehensive Orientation & Re-entry Experience, begins during orientation and continues throughout the semester with activities focusing on cultural adjustment, goal achievement, and preparing for the return home.
Although your adventure begins in Barcelona, our field trips take you to other great cities in and around Spain to provide contrast and context for what you are learning in Barcelona.
Possible destinations include:Montserrat 1 Day Hike through the montain-top monastry of Montserrat
La Garrotxa National Park 1 Day Take a guided nature walk through the volcanic remains of La Garrotxa National Park
Sitges 1 Day Tour the picturesque catalan coastal village of Sitges, also famous for hosting film festivals and other cultural attractions,
The IES Abroad Barcelona Center is located in the center of Barcelona near the Plaza Catalunya. Features include:
Dr. Cèsar Alegre AlsinaIES Abroad Director Originally from Barcelona, Dr. Alegre speaks Spanish, Catalan, and English fluently. He brings more than twenty years of experience in higher education to IES Abroad, including a distinguished teaching career in the United States, experience in student services, and a strong research portfolio. Dr. Alegre is a linguist specializing in second language acquisition, pedagogy, bilingualism and sociolinguistics. Previously, Dr. Alegre served as the Dean of Spanish for IES Abroad Barcelona, where he distinguished himself as the coordinator of language teaching by implementing numerous curricular and technological improvements. Notably, Dr. Alegre launched internet-based teaching tools and an on-line language placement test. Student evaluations of the Spanish language courses and the language faculty have been consistently high under his direction.
IES Abroad Staff
Jane EwartHead of Registration and Advising
Francesc FontesAdministration Coordinator
Pilar GraciaAdministration Coordinator
Salvador OrtizOutside Courses and Customized Programs Coordinator
Noemí PoloStudent Affairs Coordinator - Health and Safety, Homestays
María RomeroAssistant Dean of Faculty
Olga SánchezStudent Affairs Associate - Health and Safety
Beatriz TabernerCoordinator of Educational Resources and Publications
Ferran TeresStudent Affairs Coordinator - Apartments
Betsey TufanoGeneral Manager and Director of Administration
Alex WalkerDirector of Academic Affairs and Dean of Faculty
Margherita ManginiCenter Administrator
Matthew ClearArea Faculty Advisor
María MejíasLanguage Faculty Advisor
Ignasi PérezArea Faculty Advisor
Ataúlfo PortelaLanguage Faculty Advisor
Laura VázquezLanguage Faculty Advisor
Faculty Cèsar AlegreSpanish Language Ph.D. in Hispanic Linguistics, University of Massachussets and Amherst
John Frederick AndersonMaster of Arts in Documentary Photography, University of Wales College Newport, UK Sandra Becerril Spanish Language
Nieves BorregoSpanish Language
Rosa BrionSpanish Language Ph.D. (in progress) Linguistics, Universitat Pompeu Fabra
Luis CardonaOceanography Ph.D. in Biology, Universitat de Barcelona
Laura CerviPhD. in Political Science, Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona, Spain- Università degli Studi di Pavia, Italy
Alistair CharlesInternships MBA, University of Brighton
Matthew ClearArt History Ph.D. in Mediterranean History, University of Sussex
Josep María ContrerasSpanish Language
Xavier De PedroEnvironmental Studies, Sociology Ph.D. in Biology, Universitat de Barcelona
Gemma DraperMaster in Fine Arts. Cranbrook Academy of Art. Bloomfield Hills, MI
Alexander WalkerUrban Studies Ph.D. in Planning Studies, University College London
Marina DíazHistory Ph.D. in History, Tufts University
Verónica FajardoLiterature
Laura VázquezSpanish Language Ph.D. (in progress) in Teaching of Language and Literature, Universitat de Barcelona
Josep GrauHistory Ph.D. in History, Universitat Pompeu Fabra
Dawn HiscockAnthropology, Sociology
Jeannine HorowitzInternational Business Ph.D. in Genetics/Biochemistry, University of East Anglia/John Innes Institute
Sinan HosadamPolitical Science Ph.D. (in progress) in Political and Social Science, Graduate Center, City University of New York
Pep InglésCatalanPh.D. (in progress) in Spanish as a Second Language, Universitat de Barcelona
Christopher KennetPhD of Philosophy in Sports Management, Loughborough University, UK
Beth KuhnleinManagement Ph.D. (in progress) in Management Sciences, Universitat Ramon Llull
Camila LoewLiterature Ph.D. in Humanities, Universitat Pompeu Fabra
Raúl LozanoSpanish Language Ph.D. in Hispanic Philology, Universitat de Barcelona
Marga García BolivarSpanish Language Ph.D. in Spanish Literature and Linguistics, Temple University
Meritxell MartínReligious Studies Ph.D. in History of Religions, University of Virginia
James McGladeHistory, Archaeology Ph.D. in Archaeology, Cambridge University
María MejiasSpanish Language Ph.D. (in progress) in Education Studies, Universitat de Barcelona
Wim Mellaerts HistoryPh.D. in History, University of East Anglia
Laura MierPh.D. in Literature, 15th Century Spanish Literature, University of Salamanca
Mauricio MolinaPhD in Philosophy Music, City University of New York
Jay Moran International BusinessMBA, Emory University
Iolanda NievesSpanish Language
Nuria PlazaSpanish Language Ph.D. (in progress) in Philology, 17th Century Spanish Literature, Universitat de Barcelona
Ataúlfo PortelaSpanish M.A. Spanish, Miami University, Oxford Ohio
Ignasi PérezHistory, Political Science Ph.D. in Political Science with European Honors (Doctor Europeo), Universitat de Barcelona/University of Florence
Adil QureshiPsychology Ph.D. in Counceling Psychology, University of Southern CA
Montserrat SuárezEnvironmental Science M.S. Marine Environmental Sciences, Stony Brook University, New York
Carles RocaCommunications Ph.D. in Sociology, University of Manchester
Daniel RodriguezMáster Spanish Teaching as a Foreign Language, University of Granada
Carme RuizCommunications Ph.D. in Archaeology, University if Texas at Austin
F. Javier San Julián ArrupePhD in History and Civilisation, European University Institute, Firenze
Isabel SanchezArt History
Nuria SilvestreSpanish Language
Karen Smyth PsychologyPh.D. in Mental Health, Trinity College, Dublin
Anna Solé del BarrioMaster Degree in Economic History, Universitat de Barcelona
Ian StephensB.A. Sports and Recreation Studies, Madeley College of Physical Educattion, Staffordshire University, UK
Suzanne StrumUrban Studies Ph.D. (in progress) in Architectural Theory and History
Vertical Tabs