Short-term exchange student
Erasmus, SICUE, Global UB Mobility, Global Faculty UB, Coimbra Group, Study Abroad
As you probably already know, in Catalonia and at the UB, Catalan and Spanish are both official languages. In a broad sense, this means that everyone knows both languages, and each individual chooses the one they prefer. This means that you’ll hear them both, inside and outside class! If you don’t know any Catalan, we’d recommend learning at least a little to make the most of your time in Barcelona. To make things easy, we’ve prepared an itinerary for you with specific learning suggestions for before your arrival and once you’ve arrived in Barcelona. Here’s your personal itinerary!
At the UB approximately 64% of classes are taught in Catalan, 28% are taught in Spanish, and 8% are taught in English or another language. You should therefore check the language of instruction before you enrol in a subject.
Students enrolled in subjects taught in Catalan or Spanish can use either of these languages to ask questions in class, submit written work or complete examinations, regardless of the language of instruction chosen by the teacher.
Catalan, like Spanish, is a Romance language. The similarities between languages in this family mean that, if you already speak one, you can quickly learn to understand another. The Romanica Intercom programme for the simultaneous learning of Romance languages is an excellent example of this.
Recommended itinerary
At the Language Services we work hard to integrate you into the linguistic and cultural reality of the UB. We’ve prepared the following itinerary for all our exchange students, to help you feel at home with Catalan language and culture.
Before arriving at the UB
LingCat offers general information about the Catalan language, and the Languages at the UB website provides specific information about the use of languages at the University of Barcelona.
– Click Study Catalan before coming to Catalonia to find a list of courses where you can study Catalan at universities around the world before you come to the UB.
– The Institut Ramon Llull offers Catalan courses through its network of lectureships around the world.
– The Centre Cultural Blanquerna offers Catalan courses for SICUE mobility students studying at a Catalan university.
– Catalan people can be found in many parts of the world. If there’s a Catalan residents’ association, or casal català, where you live, you could contact them to see if they offer language courses or other activities.
The Intercat website provides various resources for learning Catalan online. There are two well-known and easily accessible options:
Speakcat
Catalan survival course for international university students. Free and open access.
Parla.cat
Platform for taking Catalan courses from beginners’ to advanced levels. It offers other materials and learning spaces for practising the language. You can also access via the Online Language Support (OLS) platform.
The Language Services organize Catalan courses each July for students who will be coming to the UB. Information about these courses in published in April.
LingCat offers general information about the Catalan language, and the Languages at the UB website provides specific information about the use of languages at the University of Barcelona.
– Click Study Catalan before coming to Catalonia to find a list of courses where you can study Catalan at universities around the world before you come to the UB.
– The Institut Ramon Llull offers Catalan courses through its network of lectureships around the world.
– The Centre Cultural Blanquerna offers Catalan courses for SICUE mobility students studying at a Catalan university.
– Catalan people can be found in many parts of the world. If there’s a Catalan residents’ association, or casal català, where you live, you could contact them to see if they offer language courses or other activities.
The Intercat website provides various resources for learning Catalan online. There are two well-known and easily accessible options:
Speakcat
Catalan survival course for international university students. Free and open access.
Parla.cat
Platform for taking Catalan courses from beginners’ to advanced levels. It offers other materials and learning spaces for practising the language. You can also access via the Online Language Support (OLS) platform.
The Language Services organize Catalan courses each July for students who will be coming to the UB. Information about these courses in published in April.
When you arrive at the UB
The UB is transparent: the language of instruction for each subject is publicly announced and cannot be changed. Find out the language that will be used to teach your subjects: you have the right to know what language will be used and cannot request changes.
When you arrive in Barcelona you can take an introductory Catalan course at a reduced rate (you only pay the registration fee: €25). The UB offers a wide range of options to make things easy for you: intensive and extensive, face-to-face, online and hybrid. Information is published in June and December, when you will be able to reserve your place. A wide range of schedules are offered, and each course includes a selection of cultural activities.
If you pass A1, you can take the next level (A2) for free!
The Language exchange service is one of the most popular language reception options – everyone wins! By signing up you’ll be able to practise Catalan with a UB student who is learning your language. That is, Catalan with German, Italian, English, Japanese, Basque, Ukrainian, French, Chinese… The UB is multilingual, and you’re a big part of that! Also, for students
from Spanish-speaking territories we also organize Catalan conversation groups.
At the Language Services we organize cultural welcome activities to help you immerse yourself in Catalan language and culture, make new friends and find out more about Barcelona and Catalonia! Participation is free – to take part you just need to join CATclub, a community of international students interested in learning more about Catalan language and culture and local students who volunteer to help them.
– University phrase books: to learn basic expressions in Catalan. They’re available on the web and on paper.
– Cultural itineraries: a small portal maintained by the Language Services offering itineraries to get to know Barcelona.
-Self-taught language learning if you want to learn at your own pace, check out the Catalan language learning portal or visit the UB’s Self-Access Language Learning Centres.
The UB is transparent: the language of instruction for each subject is publicly announced and cannot be changed. Find out the language that will be used to teach your subjects: you have the right to know what language will be used and cannot request changes.
When you arrive in Barcelona you can take an introductory Catalan course at a reduced rate (you only pay the registration fee: €25). The UB offers a wide range of options to make things easy for you: intensive and extensive, face-to-face, online and hybrid. Information is published in June and December, when you will be able to reserve your place. A wide range of schedules are offered, and each course includes a selection of cultural activities.
If you pass A1, you can take the next level (A2) for free!
The Language exchange service is one of the most popular language reception options – everyone wins! By signing up you’ll be able to practise Catalan with a UB student who is learning your language. That is, Catalan with German, Italian, English, Japanese, Basque, Ukrainian, French, Chinese… The UB is multilingual, and you’re a big part of that! For students from Spanish-speaking territories we also organize Catalan conversation groups.
At the Language Services we organize cultural welcome activities to help you immerse yourself in Catalan language and culture, make new friends and find out more about Barcelona and Catalonia! Participation is free – to take part you just need to join CATclub, a community of international students interested in learning more about Catalan language and culture and local students who volunteer to help them.
– University phrase books: to learn basic expressions in Catalan. They’re available on the web and on paper.
– Cultural itineraries: a small portal maintained by the Language Services offering itineraries to get to know Barcelona.
-Self-taught language learning if you want to learn at your own pace, check out the Catalan language learning portal or visit the UB’s Self-Access Language Learning Centres.
Any questions?
If you have any doubts once you have read the information, contact us at one of the following addresses:
- beginners’ Catalan courses (A1 and A2): sl.catala.inicial@ub.edu
- advanced levels (B1 to C2): sl.formacio@ub.edu
- Catalan language support (CATclub, language exchange, etc.): sl.acollida@ub.edu
Language Services
Melcior de Palau, 140
01014 Barcelona
+34 934 035 478
serveis.linguistics@ub.edu
Melcior de Palau, 140
01014 Barcelona
+34 934 035 478
serveis.linguistics@ub.edu