History

The Faculty of Economic and Business Sciences

The Faculty of Political, Economic and Commercial Sciences was created by the law of 17 July 1953, implemented by the decree of 16 June 1954. In the academic year 1954-1955, the first year of the first course began, and each year a new course of the five that made up the degree was introduced. 

Initially, teaching took place in the classrooms of the Arts Courtyard of the Historic Building in the afternoon. Later, on 28 September 1967, the Faculty’s own building on the Diagonal campus, designed by the architects Subías, Giráldez and López Íñigo, was inaugurated.

In the academic year 1972-1973, it was named the Faculty of Economics and Business Studies, a period in which the degree in Economics and Business Studies consisted of four common courses and, in the fifth year, students could choose the specialization between General, Business Economics and Insurance. From that year onwards, the curriculum was changed, only the first year was compulsory and students chose their specialization from their second year: General Economics, Business Economics, Public Administration and Sociology.

Subsequently, there were several changes in the course curricula, such as those of 1976-1977 and 1980-1981, until 1992 and 1999, which gave rise to three full degrees (Economics, Business Administration and Management and Sociology), two second-cycle degrees (Actuarial and Financial Sciences and Market Research and Techniques) and one diploma (Statistics).

The first doctoral thesis was read at the Faculty in the academic year 1963-1964 and the number of theses has increased ever since.

The University School of Business Studies

In the 18th and early 19th centuries, the Junta de Comerç de Barcelona had already promoted studies in political economy and accounting and bookkeeping, which were the direct antecedents of the first institutionalized commercial studies, first at the Escola de Comerç (1850) and then at the Escola Superior de Comerç (1887), which later became the Escola d’Alts Estudis Mercantils. At that time, this school was already very important, as is shown by the fact that in 1902 it had more than a thousand students enrolled. In 1961, the new building on the Diagonal campus was built by the architects Carvajal Ferrer and García de Castro.

In 1971, the School was integrated into the University of Barcelona as the University School of Business Studies, launching the Diploma in Business Studies on an experimental basis. In 1974, the curriculum was introduced and remained in force for almost two decades, until a new curriculum was approved in 1992.

The Faculty of Economics and Business

The merger that gave rise to the new Faculty of Economics and Business was carried out just before the approval and implementation of the new degrees resulting from the adaptation to the European Higher Education Area. The creation of the new bachelor’s and master’s degrees was carried out with the aim to building a project with the complicity of all the agents, willing to add and share, convinced that people are the most important asset and knowledge is the fundamental element of value.

Ten years after the merger, the balance is very positive. In fact, the integration into the new Faculty has been carried out satisfactorily and nobody refers to the old centres any more. The size of the new Faculty and the enhancement of its diversity have been the key to this merger process.

Bibliography:

• Pont Clemente, Joan Francesc. Memòria d’un sexenni renovador 1992-1998. Barcelona: Escola Universitària d’Estudis Empresarials,1999.
• Pascual, Jordi. «Petita història dels ensenyaments d’Economia i Empresa». A: La Universitat de Barcelona: Història dels Ensenyaments (1450-2010). Barcelona: Publicacions i Edicions de la UB, 2010.