Study Abroad in Barcelona II Summer 2026

Course Descriptions

Intro to Organizational Behavior - OBHR 330

A contemporary workplace axiom is that an employee is "hired for her or his technical skills, fired for poor people skills, and promoted for leadership and management skills" (Russell & Yao, 1997). To that end, this class is designed to help students improve the array of "soft" people skills that play such a crucial role in professional development. We will explore topics such as leadership, team dynamics, conflict management, performance management, negotiation and problem solving. All of this will be done in the context of Spanish culture immersion to provide students with a unique opportunity to prepare themselves for leadership positions in multinational corporations.

Our subject matter, physical location and small class size will facilitate the integration of Spanish culture and soft skill development. For example, we will visit historic sites in Barcelona which bring to life leadership lessons from the course. The intimate setting will facilitate interactive workshop style discussions, experiential exercises and self-assessments which cannot be done in large traditional undergraduate courses. In short, the class will be taught in the style of an executive coaching seminar, without work experience or prior Irish culture knowledge being pre-requisites.

Cultural Competency - MGMT 390

The MGMT 390 cultural competency course is taught by a local professor and will allow students to be fully immersed in a business course with a specific focus on the host city.

Both courses are supplemented with cultural activities, excursions, and company visits.