Besides visiting media companies, a group of School of Communication students visited the Gothic Quarter and participated in cultural activities such as a paella cooking class and flamenco workshop.

Students in the School of Communication and College of Arts and Sciences visited media and marketing companies in Barcelona as part of a study abroad program.

By Barbara Gutierrez
7-25-2025
This story originally appeared in News@TheU.

group of students from the University of Miami School of Communication and the College of Arts and Sciences traveled to Barcelona, Spain, earlier this summer to revel in its culture and visit numerous media outlets that cover news, sports, and cultural affairs.

The first summer course of its kind, Global Communication and Social Media in Barcelona aimed to expose the students to news, advertising, social and other media, and learn how these are generated and spread in a different country.

The trip took place from May 25 to June 14 and was led by Heidi Carr, assistant professor of professional practice; Luis Herrera, associate dean for student development programs; and Abbie Bernet, manager of digital engagement and graduate enrollment marketing.

“The program was well suited for students from different backgrounds,” said Bernet. “We had students from journalism, interactive media, motion pictures, public relations, and it was really interesting to see students with unique majors all come together to learn about global communication.”

Bernet, who is a teacher’s assistant, offered the students a class on Social Media 101: How to Create Impactful Posts for Every Platform and a class on Optimizing Your LinkedIn Profile. As part of the course assignment, students worked in pairs to post daily experiences from the trip.

Before a visit to each media outlet, each student had to prepare a briefing on that company.

The students visited 10 different companies, including traditional agencies like DDB Advertising and El Pais newspaper, but also digital agencies; heard from a film producer; and even participated in a radio show called “El Bar,” where they spoke about soccer and the importance of sports in Miami. They also met with two local students who were learning about communication.

For Julia Campbell, a rising senior who is majoring in motion pictures, the visits to the different media companies were eye-opening.

“I never realized all the ins and outs and work that went into public relations and marketing,” she said. A highlight of the trip for her was visiting the coastal town of Sitges and riding in a hot air balloon.

The students took day tours of classic Barcelona neighborhoods such as the Gothic Quarter, where they admired the magnificent Basilica de la Sagrada Família and El Raval neighborhood, a cultural melting pot where immigrants from all over the world have shaped its unique character.

For Daniel Marquez, a rising junior majoring in interactive media and media management, the trip offered him the “chance to study abroad and learn about different cultures.” He is half British and wanted the experience of being in a country with a completely different language.

“I really wanted to take the opportunities that UM offers to study abroad,” he said. “This proved to be a really different experience than anything else I had ever done.”

Sampling the Catalan culture, he formed part of building a “castell,” which are human towers built by local teams. These multistory towers are a big part of local festivals in Catalonia, the Balearic Islands, and Valencia. The students heard from a local casteller group about the history of this unique sport. Marquez was one of the many people who made up the castell.

“I was part of the tower, and it was super cool,” he said.

Emily Huffman, a rising sophomore majoring in public relations, had traveled to Europe before but never to Spain. She absolutely fell in love with Barcelona and particularly loved the class on Spanish cuisine, where she learned to cook local dishes like paella, gazpacho, and pan con tomate.

Her visits to the media companies taught her how compelling storytelling can create emotionally impactful advertising, she said.