Urban Design in Barcelona

Aerial view of Barcelona with La Sagrada Familia church in the center.

Language Requirement: None

Academic Standing by Program Start: Junior or Above

Location: Europe, Spain

GPA: 3.0

Program Overview

Barcelona is a world leader in urban design and architecture with the Smart City Expo and Mobile World Congress occurring annually. Since 2011, the Urban Design in Barcelona program has explored inclusive design, social equity, public health, and environmental sustainability with the support of leading experts in the field of urban design and architecture and government collaborations.

16 credits will be conveyed via studio, media, advanced technology and seminar courses. Collaborations with Pritzker Prize Award RCR architects, Aldayjover Architecture and Landscape, and the City of Barcelona will focus around the integration of three Oregon + Catalunya ideals: urban design, housing access, and cross laminated timber. The project will be located in the newly mixed-use post-industrial neighborhood via past 22@ Barcelona Innovation District planners. Additionally, the program will be complimented with engaging seminars, immersive workshops, informative guest-speaker lectures, and site visits and excursions to architecturally significant landmarks in Spain. Notable excursions and site visits include The Alhambra, a palatine city and fortress complex recognized for its stunning Islamic architecture, the Great Mosque of Córdoba, RCR Arquitectes project sites in Olot and Ripoll, and a one-week RCR Arquitectes La Vila workshop. You will learn intensive media skills including Grasshopper, Rhino, and Revit.

See student work from previous years!

Scholarship Opportunity: Applicants to this program have the option to apply for a program-specific scholarship. Award recipients are chosen based on academic merit, financial need, and overall quality of their essay. Individual awards range from $500 - $1,000. To be considered, the Scholarship Essay must be completed by the program application deadline. Please refer to the Scholarship Essay instructions in the program application or speak with your GEO coordinator for more details.

Dates and Deadlines

Term	Year	Deadline	Arrival Date	Departure Date
Spring Quarter	2027	11/15/2026	Late March	Late June

This program has a rolling admission application process: GEO staff and the program's faculty leader will review complete applications in the order that they are submitted. An interview with the program's faculty leader is required. This will take place shortly after your application is submitted.

Acceptance will be based on a holistic review of your application. This includes a review of your GPA, transcripts (including courses taken and in-progress), any additional requirements or prerequisites (see section "Additional Requirements"), and the application short statement (essay).

Hear from Our Students

Seeing the Sagrada Familia completed as I finish up my semester in Barcelona

A student standing in front of castle and a lake

Wow, what a journey! The last week of the program I was really pushing it trying to see and do everything I could in Barcelona. It dawned on me how little time we had left here, and I was sad to… read more

Enjoying the Journey

Kunal smiling by a courtyard with lion statues in Spain

In general, my time abroad has been going well. I'm realizing it's my first time living in a big city, and the culture has motivated me and inspired my work. It was a bit of an adventure getting here… read more

Stepping into Barcelona

Kunal posing in front of the Sagrada Família in Barcelona, Spain

Hello! My name is Kunal Mehta; I am a first-year master's student in Architecture at the University of Oregon. I am neurodivergent and enjoy seeing the patterns in life, through my work I am able to… read more

Academic Details

You will enroll in four upper-division architecture courses related to urban design and taught by Professor Philip Speranza.

Advanced Technology and Barcelona Data (UO ARCH 410/510)
Barcelona Urban Design Studio (UO ARCH 4/584)
Contemporary Urban Design in Barcelona Seminar (UO ARCH 410/510)
Media for Design Development (UO ARCH 423/523)

For more course information, click on View All Courses.
For UO students majoring in architecture, interior architecture, and landscape architecture, these courses may be used for professional elective requirements. Students from allied fields may be able to request major credit from their major departments.

Course Equivalencies

UO students: please refer to the UO Course Equivalency Process and the UO Office of the Registrar Course Equivalency Database.

Non-UO students: Actual credit awarded is determined by the relevant department at your university in consultation with the study abroad office. Check with your study abroad advisor for more information.

Additional Requirements

Experience with media-based design software.
All classes will be in English, but a working knowledge of Spanish is recommended.
This is a design intensive program for Architecture, Interior Architecture, and Landscape Architecture students.
You must be eligible for University of Oregon 4/584 (intermediate level) studio sequences.
Graduate students are required to have a GPA of 3.0 or above.

Faculty and Staff

Dr. Philip Speranza is an architect, urban designer, and assistant professor in the Department of Architecture at the University of Oregon. Philip’s research explores the use of geospatial design methods to understand small-scale social and environmental phenomena in urban design. He received his Master of Architecture from Columbia University and Bachelor of Science in Architecture from the University of Virginia. Dr. Speranza developed the Urban Design in Barcelona program and has successfully run it for over a decade.

Housing Description

Students will be housed in apartments in Barcelona and each apartment will accommodate approximately 3-4 students. You may share a room with another student depending on the size of the group. Additional housing details will be made available closer to the program start date.

Budget and Price

2026 Spring Quarter

**GEO Program Fees**
Description	Amount
UO Study Abroad Fee	$500
Program Tuition	$11,200
Housing & Included Meals	$2,220
Insurance	$230

**Estimated Additional Expenses**
Description	Amount
Estimated Airfare from Eugene	$1,600
Estimated Additional Meals/Estimated Meals	$1,175
Estimated Cell Phone Expenses	$125
Estimated Travel Clinic & Pre-departure physical**	$50
Estimated Cost of Acquiring Passport	$150
Estimated Additional Living Expenses	$540

**Total**
Description	Amount
Sub-Total: GEO Program Fees (Billed to UO Student Account)	$14,150
Sub-Total: Estimated Additional Expenses	$3,640
Total Estimated Cost of Attendance	$17,790

Cancellation Policy

Cancellation Date	Cancellation Penalty
Upon acceptance to program	Student agrees to $500 non-refundable program deposit
8 weeks before program start date	Student is responsible for 50% of total GEO program fees
Program start date or after program begins	Student is responsible for 100% of total GEO program fees

IMPORTANT: The GEO Cancellation Policy is effective from the time a student agrees to pay their non-refundable program deposit or electronically signs the program commitment form, regardless of application or acceptance status. It is essential to read this policy before a potential cancellation takes place, to fully understand the withdrawal and cancellation penalties, and to understand what it means financially to commit to a study abroad program.

To view the program specific cancellation policy dates and penalties, click the term budget dropdown menu.

Students who cancel their participation must notify GEO in writing. Email is acceptable (geoinfo@uoregon.edu). Verbal notification to GEO or notification given to a non-UO campus study abroad office is not sufficient.

For full details, see the complete GEO Cancellation Policy.

View as PDF

Search Global Education Oregon

Global Education Oregon Menu

Global Education Oregon

Jump To: