Studies & Degrees in International Trade
International Trade Study Programs
International trade is the exchange of goods, services and money across national borders. As a subject it teaches how a company sells to or buys from another country: finding markets and customers abroad, negotiating and drafting international contracts, arranging transport and insurance, clearing customs, and getting paid in another currency. It combines business and marketing with law, logistics and languages.
The Spanish vocational curriculum shows the usual content well. Its modules include international marketing, international negotiation, administrative management of international trade, international finance, international transport of goods, international means of payment and international digital trade, together with professional English.
Qualifications and levels
- Vocational training in Spain. The official title Técnico Superior en Comercio Internacional is a higher vocational training (FP grado superior) programme of 2,000 hours in the Comercio y Marketing family. The vocational training centre of the Universidad Europea in the Madrid region teaches it over two years, in Spanish, as an official title issued by the regional education authority. ESIC lists the same title with a duration of two academic years and work placements in companies.
- Bachelor's degrees. In Spain, official bachelor's degrees (grado) have 240 ECTS credits. International trade is most often taught as a pathway or a set of courses inside business administration, economics or international business degrees. In Argentina, the Universidad Nacional de Tres de Febrero offers a degree in Relaciones Comerciales Internacionales that lasts five years; students receive an intermediate technician title at the end of the third year and the Licenciado title at the end of the fifth.
- Master's degrees. Official master's degrees in Spain (Máster Universitario) have 60, 90 or 120 ECTS credits. Business schools also offer their own master's programmes. ESIC, for example, states that it offers both Máster Universitario and Formación Permanente programmes in trade and international relations, and EUDE Business School in Madrid offers a Máster en Comercio Internacional, Logística y Negocios Internacionales e Inteligencia Artificial Aplicada that covers international contracts and their taxation, international logistics and transport, and e-commerce. Ask each school whether the programme you are considering is an official university master's degree and what recognition it has.
Where to study
SpainExchange lists 25 active schools for international trade. Fourteen are in Spain and five in the United States; China and Argentina have two each, and the Czech Republic and Bulgaria one each. In Spain the list includes universities such as the Universitat Jaume I in Castellón de la Plana, the Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, the Universidad de Extremadura, the Universidad Europea de Madrid, the Universidad Camilo José Cela and the Universitat Abat Oliba CEU in Barcelona, and business schools such as ESIC, EUDE, IMF Business School and ESEI International Business School. Outside Spain it includes the University of Kentucky, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, East China Normal University in Shanghai, the Universidad Nacional de Tres de Febrero in Argentina and the Varna University of Management in Bulgaria.
Language is a practical point. Spanish vocational programmes and most Spanish university degrees are taught in Spanish; some business schools, such as ESEI International Business School in Barcelona, teach in English. Whatever the language of instruction, the work itself needs good English, and a third language is useful for dealing with customers and suppliers.
Careers
Graduates work in the export and import departments of companies, for freight forwarders and logistics operators, in banks that finance foreign trade, in customs brokerage and in public trade promotion bodies. The Spanish ministry lists the following jobs, among others, for holders of the higher vocational title: foreign trade technician, international sales technician, international marketing technician, freight forwarder, ship's agent and logistics operator. The Universidad Nacional de Tres de Febrero points to two directions: trade relations between states, in the public sector, and the private management of foreign trade operations, which covers customs, transport and finance.
Official statistics rarely count trade specialists as a single occupation. For the related occupation of logistician, which analyses and coordinates an organisation's supply chain and typically requires a bachelor's degree, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics projects employment growth of 18 percent from 2025 to 2035, much faster than average.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a university degree to work in international trade?
No. In Spain the higher vocational title Técnico Superior en Comercio Internacional takes 2,000 hours, usually two academic years, and leads directly to jobs such as foreign trade technician or freight forwarder.
How long does it take to study international trade?
Two years for the Spanish higher vocational title, 240 ECTS credits for a Spanish bachelor's degree and 60 to 120 ECTS credits for an official master's degree. The degree at the Universidad Nacional de Tres de Febrero in Argentina lasts five years.
Which languages do I need?
The language of the programme, plus English: professional English is a module of the Spanish vocational curriculum. A third language helps in export work.
Is a master's in international trade from a business school an official degree?
It depends on the programme. Schools may offer official Máster Universitario degrees and their own programmes side by side, so ask the school what recognition the qualification has before enrolling.