Barcelona, rated highly by international talent working in the city
Barcelona is considered the 4th most attractive city in the world for working abroad, according to the Boston Consulting Group. This is not just because of its 2,500 hours of sun a year and renowned quality of life: the city’s excellent universities, business schools, start-ups and multinational corporations attract thousands of expats each year, who choose the city to study, work or start up a business. What do international citizens already living in Barcelona think of the city? International Talent Monitor 2019, compiled by Barcelona Global, reveals some clues.
International Talent Monitor 2019, a biennial survey of international professionals working in Barcelona conducted by Barcelona Global with support from Banc Sabadell, analyzes various aspects of the city from an expat’s point of view.
The professionals all agree that Barcelona is an open city, with great quality of life and a powerful reputation. They are satisfied with the international community here (5.8 out of 7 points) and think the city is able to attract international talent easily (4.9/7), above all young digital talent. The expats surveyed are also satisfied with working conditions (4.9/7), the entrepreneurial landscape (4.9/7) and the business environment (4.9/7).
Among the international scientists working at universities and research centers in Barcelona, the most highly rated element is the city’s connectivity (5.9/7) and the research environment, in terms of capacity and international competitiveness (5.5/7).
International acceleration and talent programs in Barcelona
One of the main things that make Barcelona attractive to expats is the wide range of training programs and talent accelerators on offer in the city.
One example is Design Health Barcelona (d·HEALTH Barcelona), a postgrad program promoted by Biocat to train healthcare innovators and entrepreneurs, in which one third of the fellows are international. d·HEALTH Barcelona participants experience a whole innovation cycle. In multidisciplinary teams made up of fellows with degrees in the sciences, design, engineering and business, they do a two-month immersion at a large hospital in Barcelona to detect unmet clinical needs that they can turn into a business idea, then design a solution and scout for funding. 95% of d·HEALTH Barcelona fellows from previous years have found a job in the healthcare sector and one in three are working on their own business project. If you’re a designer, engineer or have a degree in the life sciences or business, find out how to apply to Design Health Barcelona (d·HEALTH Barcelona). The next course kicks off in January 2020.
If you’re a researcher or entrepreneur and already have your own project, Barcelona is also home to interesting international acceleration programs. These include CRAASH Barcelona, Biocat’s intensive 12-week acceleration program that gives participants the chance to work with experts from CIMIT Boston. In the first phase, teams validate whether their technology actually resolves a real need and has a place on the market, and then they validate their project in different countries in the second phase. If you’re an entrepreneur, sign up for CRAASH Barcelona and participate in the program that will take your idea to the next level. The next edition kicks off in 2020.
