With this program, which has an international focus, learn to plan, develop, and implement effective communication strategies for private companies, public institutions, and non-governmental organizations, with special attention to commercial relations between Asian countries and Spanish-speaking countries.
The Master in Communication and Business Relations is a program that provides the knowledge, tools and skills necessary to plan, develop, and implement communication and commercial relations strategies, adapted to various cultural and socio-political environments, focused mainly on Asian and Spanish-speaking countries.
Throughout the master, you will learn the fundamental concepts, theories, and methods related to the professional field of communication, with a clear international orientation, and through the combination of theoretical bases and practical skills. At the same time, you will deepen your knowledge of the new formats and trends in corporate and digital communication.
The objective of the master is to prepare participants to work in a sector that is evolving rapidly and constantly. Real cases of communication in companies or institutions will be analysed, learning to use data collection, analysis, and interpretation methodologies for effective decision-making. In the master you will also exercise in reflecting on and measuring the effects of communication on audiences and the public in order to adapt strategies for better performance in the medium and long term.
All this under the guidance of an excellent teaching staff that comes mainly from the UPF Communication Department, UPF-BSM and with the participation of leading experts from the field of communication, branding, marketing, business, and commercial relations.
The Master in Communication and Business Relations is endorsed by Pompeu Fabra University, the 1st Spanish university and the 15th best university in the world (of those with less than 50 years), according to the Times Higher Education ranking. In addition, UPF Barcelona School of Management has EQUIS accreditation, the most prestigious institutional recognition for business schools globally.
Why choose this program
Excellent teaching staff
You will be trained by an excellent teaching staff that comes mainly from the UPF Communication Department, which is among the 150 best in the world according to the QS ranking, professors of UPF-BSM and with the participation of experts from the sector who develop their work in international companies and institutions.
Adapted to your needs
The master's degree curriculum is designed to offer you a solid training in communication management, corporate and digital communication, and commercial relations. You will be able to adapt the contents to your needs by taking elective subjects.
Multicultural and international vision
You will acquire an international vision both due to the contents of the program and due to the multicultural environment in which you will study: you will share a classroom with students who come from different countries and disciplines who seek to train in an equally international city like Barcelona.
Connection with the professional world
The master includes the option to undertake a curricular or extracurricular internship in companies, to let you put in practice the knowledge acquired.
Study at an accredited school
Study at a school accredited by EQUIS, an international distinction that guarantees the quality of our institution and makes us the 1st school of management linked to a public university with this accreditation in our country.
Who is it for?
The Master in Communication and Business Relations is aimed at recent graduates and young professionals of diverse backgrounds who wish to specialize in the areas of corporate, commercial and digital communication, with a special focus on relations between Asian and Spanish-speaking countries.
Accreditations
UPF Barcelona School of Management is the management school of Pompeu Fabra University, the 1st Ibero-American university and the 16th placed university in the world, among those under 50 years of age, according to the Times Higher Education ranking.
UPF Barcelona School of Management has EQUIS accreditation, the most prestigious institutional recognition for business schools globally, and places itself among the top business schools in the world.
The Master in Communication and Business Relations is an official master's degree and has the academic recognition of the Ministry of Education of the Government of Spain. The Quality Agency of the University System of Catalonia (AQU) has also institutionally accredited UPF-BSM. This accreditation certifies all the official master's degrees that we teach and recognizes the quality of our educational model in accordance with the criteria of the European Higher Education Area (EHEA).
Curriculum
The Master in Communication and Business Relations is organized into three terms.
During the first two terms, participants combine compulsory subjects together with electives of their choice. During the third term, the remaining electives must be taken.
Participants can choose between taking 7 optional subjects, or 5 optional subjects plus some curricular internships. All participants must choose at least 3 optional subjects from the Business Relations subject, specific to this program.
The completion of a thesis or Master's Final Project, which is worked on throughout the three terms of the master's, is mandatory.
Elective courses
Master's Final Project
The Master's Final Project may be carried out following one of the two following modalities:
- Original research carried out by the candidate, leading to the execution of an academic research project in the field of communication
- A project with an applied and practical approach, in which the candidate performs an organizational communication analysis or audit, a case study, or the creation of a corporate communication plan for a company or organization. This second option can be developed within a specific organization or company with which, through a contact, an agreement has been reached for the preparation of the work. In this case, the students will have, in addition to an academic tutor, a professional tutor in the company to guide and advise them in carrying out the project.
The Master's Final Project tutor must be a master's professor.
Professional internships (optional)
The assigned tasks will be agreed between the organization or company that receives the student and the management of the master's degree, always with the aim of responding to a real need of said institution or company. The managers of the master will supervise that the assigned tasks are relevant and related to communication management. In the internships in companies, the knowledge acquired throughout the program must be put into practice.
The 8 ECTS corresponding to the professional internships are interchangeable for two optional subjects of 4 ECTS each.
There is also the possibility of recognition for professional experience.
Complementary activities
The Master in Communication Management and Business Relations also includes the possibility of participating in practical activities and activities for personal and professional growth such as:
- Training complements: Initial preparation course for participants who have the need to take them depending on their previous training. This is carried out prior to joining the program.
- Professional Careers Program: Preparation sessions for entry into the world of work and development of professional skills.
- UPF-BSM Inside: is a group of interdisciplinary subjects (applied data, communication, creativity, innovation and project management, sustainability and leadership among others) that, if you take this program, you can access at no additional cost. They are 100% online and you can take them throughout the academic year at your own pace, as they have been designed as self-study subjects.
Qualification obtained
Once students have completed the course they will obtain the Màster Universitari en Gestió de la Comunicació/ Master of Arts in Communication Management - Máster Universitario en Gestión de la Comunicación / Master of Arts in Communication Management official Master's Degree, issued by the Pompeu Fabra University.
Students will also receive an additional Master in Communication Management and Business Relations completion certificate awarded by the UPF Barcelona School of Management.
Issuance of official Master's Degrees: The amount stipulated in the DOGC (Official Gazette of the Government of Catalonia) must be paid for the rights to issue the title. This rate varies annually and the rate in force at the time of application for the degree will be applied.
Note: The information collected here is for informational purposes only and may undergo modifications in the adaptations of each academic year. The definitive guide for each subject will be available to the participants enrolled in the virtual environment before the start of each of them.
Faculty
The teaching team of the Master in Communication and Business Relations is mainly made up of professors from the UPF Communication Department, UPF-BSM professores together with the participation of leading experts from the sector, who have extensive experience, and who carry out their work in international companies and institutions.
Academic directors
Faculty
Collaborating faculty
- Laura Grande Jiménez
Associate Professor in the Department of Communication at Pompeu Fabra University. She holds a degree in Advertising and Public Relations from the Pompeu Fabra University (UPF) and a Master's Degree in Organizational Communication from the Complutense University of Madrid (UCM).
She is currently Project Manager in Sustainability at Prodigioso Volcán. Her areas of expertise are corporate communication, ESG strategies, Agenda 2030 and intangible management. - Frederic Guerrero Solé
Professor of the Department of Communication at Pompeu Fabra University.
He holds a PhD in Public Communication from Pompeu Fabra University and a degree in Theoretical Physics and Slavic Philology from the University of Barcelona. He teaches sociology of communication, intercultural communication and quantitative methods. His main lines of research are the sociology of communication, media effects and social networks. - Raquel Herrera
PhD in Social Communication and degree in Audiovisual Communication from the Universitat Pompeu Fabra. Professor of communication and digital marketing in English, Spanish and Catalan for universities (Autònoma de Barcelona, Oberta de Catalunya) and business schools (BSM-UPF, TBS, EUBS, Barcelona SIS). Research groups Digidoc (UPF) and GAME (UOC) collaborator. She has researched on communication and digital marketing in its cultural, political, gastronomic and touristic aspects. - Olatz Larrea Estefanía
Lecturer at the University of Barcelona. PhD in Social Communication from Pompeu Fabra University. She holds a degree in Journalism from the University of Navarra. Her classes and research focus on radio, the study of voice and public speaking. - Lluís Mas Manchón
Lluís Mas is a professor in the Department of Communication at Pompeu Fabra University. His research focuses on brand communication, responsible corporate communication (CSR, ODS), social media and young people. She applies diverse methodologies: quantitative, qualitative, experimental studies or psychophysiological measures. She is part of the CAS research group (UPF). - José Luis Marín
- María Pérez Ramos
She holds a Postgraduate course in Graphic Communications Strategies by Universidad Autonoma de Barcelona. She developed her professional career in the UK, where she worked for a wide range of brands operating in Europe, America and Asia. Her expertise covers both B2B and B2C campaigns for an extended range of markets: software, high-fashion, jewellery, beauty, food, beverages and travel, among others. - David Rubio
Product Design Lead with more than 9 years of experience, specialising in UX UI. Multidisciplinary training and experience focused on the creation of solutions and valuable digital and digital products of value. He has led projects for leading companies in the banking sector such as La Caixa, Bankia and Banco Sabadell; as well as for companies of the Inditex group.. - Sara Vinyals Mirabent
PhD in Communication with honors from Pompeu Fabra University.
She is a Lecturer at the Department of Advertising, Public Relations, and Audiovisual Communication at Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. She also holds a MA in Advanced Studies in Social Communication and a BA in Advertising and PR (from UPF). Her research interests are linked to the areas of persuasive and online communication, with a focus on advertising, branding, and a particular interest in place branding. She’s been awarded a DAAD postdoctoral scholarship (Germany, 2019-2020) and recently became part of the ‘Serra Húnter Programme of highly qualified faculty staff.’
Methodology
The master is developed full time and on-campus to let you acquire the skills and knowledge necessary to perform as a communication professional. One of the key elements is the Master's Final Project, an individual project structured in various stages and supervised by a tutor.
Interactive learning methodology
A combination of various learning methodologies, with seminars, lectures, practical cases, presentations, group activities, and simulations will be carried out to create an interactive and practice-oriented teaching experience. It will be supplemented with more academic tasks such as reading articles, books, reports, written analysis, and exams.
Master's Final Project
The Master's in Communication and Business Relations includes an individual project that the student must begin to define from the beginning of the course, in order to work on it throughout the program. It can consist of original research or a project applied to a specific organization. The student will be responsible for choosing the challenge to be addressed.
Guidance from the mentor
As a central part of its teaching model, the master has a key figure: the mentor. The mentor will be assigned by the academic directors of the master's based on the characteristics and needs of the projects. They will act as a guide to the project and will stimulate the student's ideation and planning processes, while helping to identify tools, resources and materials that contribute to the development of the project.
Professional development skills
Together with the contents of the different subjects, the improvement of the students' communication skills will be stimulated. The following skills will be worked on in a specific and integrated way: interpersonal communication, written communication, high-impact presentations, negotiation, digital identity, and ideation methodologies.
Evaluation
Evaluation will be based on theoretical exams, oral presentations, individual essays, group projects, debates, and participation in the classroom and the evaluation of the written report and the oral defence of the Master's Final Project.
Tools
Project-oriented learning and the combination of lectures and active methodologies such as case studies, flipped learning, solving real problems and professional simulations allow the student to connect theory and practice, acquire advanced skills and achieve learning which is transferable to work.
You will have:
- Master's Final Project (TFM) or Postgrad Final Project (TFP)
- A personal mentor to monitor your final project (TFM or TFP)
- Digital resources to achieve transversal skills
- Interdisciplinary activities and workshops
Professional Future
Throughout the program, participants will learn to plan, develop, and implement strategies related to corporate and digital communication and business relations for all types of companies and institutions. In the Master's Final Project, students will put into practice all the knowledge acquired. It is also possible to carry out curricular internships, with these being validated as 2 optional subjects.
At the end of the Master, participants will be able to join the labour market in positions related to the field of communication, marketing, branding, and institutional and commercial relations.
Student profile
The Master in Communication and Business Relations brings together recent graduates and young professionals with diverse backgrounds who wish to specialize in the areas of corporate, commercial, and digital communication in the city of Barcelona, a vibrant, cosmopolitan, and international city that is a magnet for international companies, communication agencies, as well as organizations, foundations, and institutions.
Average age
Career opportunities
The Master in Communication and Business Relations prepares recent graduates and young professionals to join the professional world in communication agencies, multinational companies, start-ups, government organizations, etc., both in the city of Barcelona and in any other location.
The program also offers the possibility of carrying out curricular internships and providing students with a professional experience in companies, these being validated as 2 optional subjects.
- A limited number of internship opportunities will be offered by the UPF Barcelona School of Management career service.
- Participants must have a proactive attitude in the search for internships. Resources and assistance will be provided by the internship coordinator and the Careers Service.
- The Professional Careers Service will make an advisor available to the participants to supervise the required documentation and manage the internship agreement.
- The school does not intervene in the selection process. Remember that the ultimate managers of the selection process are the companies and organizations themselves. For more information, please see our internship regulations.
- Brand Manager
- Marketing and Communication Specialist
- Digital Marketing Specialist
- Consultant (brand, strategy, communication, etc.)
- Press officer
- Advertising specialist
- Head of Public Relations and Institutional Relations
- Market researcher
- Positions related to management and corporate communication in companies or public organizations
- International business department of a multinational company
- Public institutions and private consultancies in the field of business internationalization
- International sales and commercial teams