Study in Tarragona, Spain

About Tarragona

Tarragona is a Mediterranean port city in southern Catalonia and the capital of the province of the same name. It had 143,260 inhabitants in 2025, according to the Statistical Institute of Catalonia (Idescat), based on the annual population census of Spain's national statistics office (INE). The city is compact: the Universitat Rovira i Virgili (URV) notes that most routine journeys around Tarragona can be made on foot.

For students, Tarragona offers a public university, a Roman and medieval old town, beaches and a quieter pace than Barcelona, which is about an hour away. It suits students who want a mid-sized city by the sea, with the academic offer of a full university and good rail links to the rest of Spain.

Studying in Tarragona

Our directory lists three active schools in Tarragona: two university listings and one private language academy. The main institution is the Universitat Rovira i Virgili, the public university of southern Catalonia. It was created when the Parliament of Catalonia approved Law 36/1991 on 30 December 1991, bringing together university faculties that had developed in the area since 1971 as delegations of the University of Barcelona. According to the URV's own figures, it offers 58 bachelor's degrees, 58 official master's programmes and 26 doctoral programmes in the 2025-26 academic year, and had 13,026 students enrolled in bachelor's degrees in 2024-25. That year 590 visiting students spent a study period at the URV, and 37% of its postgraduate students came from abroad.

Subjects in our Tarragona listings include law, labour relations, psychopedagogy, teacher training, English studies, chemistry, food science and several branches of engineering. The URV also runs an online master's in professional Spanish-English translation, first offered in 2000. It is taught entirely online, in English and Spanish, and comprises 60 ECTS credits; the course page gives a fee of about 2,900 euros. For English rather than Spanish, the British School Tarragona has taught English in the city since 1973, in small groups with native-speaker teachers and preparation for Cambridge exams.

Languages of instruction

Catalan and Spanish are both official languages in Catalonia, and the URV uses both in its teaching. Catalan is the university's language for institutional and administrative purposes, and each lecturer chooses the language of their classes. The URV explains that students do not have to use Catalan actively: they can take part in class, write essays and sit exams in Catalan or Spanish. Students who already speak Spanish usually follow classes in Catalan after a short adjustment period, and the university offers Catalan courses and language tandems.

Learning Spanish in Tarragona

The URV's Centre for Hispanic Studies (Centre d'Estudis Hispànics, CEH) coordinates the university's programmes in Spanish as a foreign language, on the Catalunya campus in the city centre. Its offer includes:

• Spanish language and culture courses for international students
• intensive courses and language vacation programmes
• tailor-made study abroad programmes
• a 60-hour semester course for levels B2 to C1
• DELE exam preparation, face to face and online
• online training for teachers of Spanish as a foreign language

The URV is an examination centre for the Instituto Cervantes and administers the DELE exams at all levels, from A1 to C2.

Cost of living for students

Tarragona is a smaller city than Barcelona or Valencia, and rent is the main expense for most students. The URV does not publish typical rents, but its Housing Office lists apartments and rooms in the cities with URV campuses, and there are halls of residence such as the Sant Jordi University Residence, a few minutes' walk from the CEH.

Local buses are run by the municipal company EMT Tarragona. Its 2026 tariffs include:

• a single ticket for €1.60, bought on the bus
• the TJove pass for under-25s: 100 journeys in 30 days for €9.75 (€7.30 for residents registered in Tarragona)
• a one-off card issue fee of €3.50 for passes

Getting around and daily life

Most of the city, including the Catalunya campus, can be covered on foot, and EMT buses link the neighbourhoods and the outlying campuses. High-speed AVE and long-distance trains run from Camp de Tarragona station to Madrid Puerta de Atocha - Almudena Grandes and Barcelona Sants. According to the URV, Tarragona is about one hour from Barcelona by train or motorway and two and a half hours from Madrid by high-speed train.

The nearest airport is Reus, about 10 km away, with flights to European cities; the Aena airport website lists a Hispano Igualadina bus between the airport and Tarragona, with departures adjusted to flight times. The climate is Mediterranean. At the AEMET weather station at Reus airport, the average temperature for 1981-2010 is 9.0 °C in January and 24.2 °C in July, with about 500 mm of rain a year.

Frequently asked questions

Is Tarragona a good place to learn Spanish?

Yes, if you want a mid-sized city by the sea. The URV's Centre for Hispanic Studies runs Spanish courses for international students and DELE exam preparation, and the URV administers the DELE exams from A1 to C2. Catalan is also widely spoken in the city.

Do I need to speak Catalan to study at the URV?

No. Teaching is in Catalan and Spanish, and students can write essays and sit exams in either language. The URV offers Catalan courses and language tandems for international students.

Which universities are in Tarragona?

The Universitat Rovira i Virgili is the public university of Tarragona, created in 1991. It offers 58 bachelor's degrees, 58 official master's programmes and 26 doctoral programmes in 2025-26.

How much does public transport cost for students in Tarragona?

A single EMT bus ticket costs €1.60 in 2026. Students under 25 can buy the TJove pass, with 100 journeys in 30 days for €9.75, plus a €3.50 card issue fee.

How do I get to Tarragona from Madrid or Barcelona?

AVE trains from Madrid Puerta de Atocha and Barcelona Sants stop at Camp de Tarragona station. According to the URV, the trip takes about two and a half hours from Madrid and about one hour from Barcelona.