Each term, hundreds of international students start their academic period in Barcelona attending the welcome and orientation events provided by UPF, a leading University of the Spanish State in terms of the index of internationalization.

In the first term, coinciding with the start of the academic year, it receives the bulk of students from across world who will spend several months or even the entire academic year at the University, depending on the type of programme or agreement applicable.

These welcome events, organized by the Mobility and Reception Office (OMA) of the International Relations Service, enjoy the participation of exchange students on the Erasmus + programme, bilateral agreements, visitors and Sicue-Seneca (in the latter case, with universities of the State), taking official subjects of UPF bachelor’s degree curricula.

Also participating are students linked to the Education Abroad Programme, a tailor-made programme for students primarily from North American and Canadian universities, who have a specific welcome event because of their different academic needs.

Due to a 10% increase in international exchange students compared to last year, this year the welcome events for this group are being held on two different campuses: Ciutadella (held on 19 September) and Poblenou (20 September), whereas to date only one central one had been held. The reception event for the Education Abroad Programme students took place on Monday, 18 September, on the Ciutadella campus.

Students from all over the world

This year, the overall number of students pertaining to this first batch was 944, split between 539 exchange students and 405 (392 from the U.S., 12 from Canada and 1 from Japan) of the Education Abroad Programme.

The students belong to 40 different nationalities: the most numerous group is from the United States (416), Britain (90), Italy (65), France (38) and the Netherlands (33).

The students involved in exchange programmes come from 209 universities from around the world, while in terms of the Education Abroad Programme, students come from 26 different institutions (universities and agencies): 24 from the U.S., one Canadian and one Japanese.

Sessions to facilitate the students’ stay at UPF and in Barcelona

This year, the welcome events for exchange students, both on the Ciutadella campus and on the Poblenou campus, consist of a welcome by Sara López, head of the UPF International Relations Service, and Meritxell Cama, coordinator of the OMA, and the inaugural speech “Barcelona, past and present”, given by Stephen Jacobson, professor with the Department of Humanities at UPF.

The sessions include talks by the heads of the various services offered by the University that the students can enjoy during their stay at UPF (Languages UPF, Language Volunteering, University Community Assistance Service (SACU), Computing Service and Library/CRAI) as well as the Erasmus Student Network (ESN) and the Mossos d’Esquadra Association, which gives advice related to security.

The event ends with a guided tour of the campus, and is complemented by several sessions divided according to areas of study, which take place throughout the week in spaces of the University’s three campuses: Ciutadella, Poblenou and Mar.

With a similar format to the above, the Education Abroad Programme welcome took place on 18 September in the auditorium of the Ciutadella campus. Lucía Conte, programme director, and María Morrás, academic director of the Hispanic and European Studies Programme (HESP), took part.

Then, the students were introduced to the ESCI-UPF International Business Programme; the various services provided by the University, and a talk was given on security by the consular services. The students could also take a guided tour of the campus, and over the course of the week various informative academic sessions are scheduled, divided according to areas of study.