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Last-Minute Internship in Barcelona: Dieter’s Experience After 6 Months in Spain
CATEGORY: Finance & Accounting Internship
COUNTRY: Spain
READING TIME: 5 minutes
Finding an internship abroad at short notice can be challenging — but for Dieter, it turned into a defining experience. The 26-year-old International Management student completed a six-month last-minute internship in Barcelona, working in the finance and accounting department of an international company. Supported by Erasmus+ funding, he gained hands-on professional experience while adapting quickly to life and work in Spain. In this experience report, Dieter shares how spontaneity, responsibility, and international exposure shaped his time abroad.
I chose StudentsGoAbroad because I was very short on time and urgently needed an internship for my studies. The StudentsGoAbroad team supported me in a clear, structured, and straightforward way and was able to arrange a suitable internship position in Barcelona within a short period of time.
Essentially, the only things I had to take care of myself were my university-related documents and my travel arrangements. Everything else was handled with support — from finding accommodation to arriving in Barcelona. Whenever I had questions, I always had a dedicated contact person, so I felt well supported throughout the entire process and never left on my own.
Looking back, I’m very glad I took this step, as the stay gave me many new experiences that I still benefit from both professionally and personally today. The company where I completed my internship is internationally oriented, very open, and characterized by a pleasant and appreciative working atmosphere. I was warmly welcomed into the team and gained a realistic and in-depth insight into everyday professional life in the finance and accounting field.
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Work and everyday life during my internship in Barcelona
My tasks included supporting daily accounting processes such as processing invoices, maintaining asset records, performing bank reconciliations, and entering data into the accounting system. I was also involved in preparing monthly and annual closings and supported the creation of financial reports. Through this, I not only learned a great deal on a technical level, but also developed a better understanding of internal control processes and company-wide policies. What I found particularly interesting was seeing how these processes are organized within an international environment.
Life outside of the internship also had a strong influence on my time in Barcelona. The city is relaxed, open, and incredibly diverse. You meet people from all over the world with very different backgrounds and stories — and that is exactly what makes traveling so appealing to me. You step away from everyday routines and gain the opportunity to look at your own life from completely new perspectives.
Outside of work, my daily life mainly consisted of shared cooking evenings with my flatmates and activities with my colleagues from work. For example, we climbed up to the Bunkers del Carmel, which date back to the Spanish Civil War and offer an impressive panoramic view over the city, or met in the evenings at bars and local spots around Barcelona.
My conclusion after a 6-month internship at an international company
I also have fond memories of visiting old university libraries, whose architecture almost feels like something out of Harry Potter and which are freely accessible. A real highlight was discovering a fishing boat during my stay. We went out to sea several times, caught large amounts of tuna, and then prepared it together back at the apartment — an experience I definitely hadn’t planned, but one I’ll never forget.
Barcelona turned out to be an extremely lively, creative, and versatile city, and in my opinion, it is absolutely worth a longer stay. The internship itself, life in the city, and the many encounters I had broadened my perspective and made my time abroad a truly valuable experience overall.
Written by Dieter – Finance & Accounting Intern in Barcelona, Spain with StudentsGoAbroad
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