More Filipinos pursuing higher studies in Spain, says expert

More Filipinos are pursuing post-graduate studies in Spain, driven by the country’s wide range of visa opportunities, an expert said.

“Spain is very popular among Filipinos because we have different programs,” Spain’s Goodwill Ambassador Jessica Isabelle C. Badua told BusinessWorld in an interview on Thursday.

“Filipino students are increasing because of the number of visas available,” she added.

According to Ms. Badua, the most common master’s programs among Filipinos are engineering, law, health sciences, administration and management, and humanities. Meanwhile, most students are from the Millennial and Generation Z age brackets.

“I think Spain offers different programs in every area of study,” she said. “Students wishing to apply in Spain can find programs where the tuition is affordable, as long as it’s a public university.”

Citing data from the HTL International School, the average annual tuition for international students enrolled in master’s or doctorate programs at Spanish public universities is estimated to be within €2,000 to €5,500, while a bachelor’s degree costs €1,500 to €4,000 per year, on average.

Ms. Badua noted that the Auxiliares de Conversación, or the Language Assistant Program, is popular among students who want to work while studying.

“There are universities in partnership with the Ministry of Education in Spain,” she said. “So, what they do is they offer a master’s degree in teaching, and at the same time, they offer that Auxiliaries de Conversación Program.”

“So, meaning, students can study their master’s and also teach English to students, and then they get paid,” she added.

The Ambassador also attributed the growing enrollment rate in Spain to visa opportunities that streamline the path to citizenship.

Specifically, programs like the Golden Visa and Digital Nomad visa, alongside the Ley de Memoria Democrática, which allows descendants of Spanish nationals to claim citizenship, are among the popular visas used by Filipinos.

“With that, the families have the option to move to Spain because they have their passports. So, they moved to Spain along with their kids, and the kids also study there,” she said.

The Philippines was first discovered by Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan in 1521 and was later colonized by Spain from 1565 to 1898. The centuries-long Spanish colonization has influenced the country’s religion and culture, specifically Catholicism and language.—Almira Louise S. Martinez