DMU Made: Creative Industries and Freelancing in Girona, Spain

Key Information
Eligibility
About
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Key Information

Information

Application Deadline: 26/05/26 at 9:00 am

Opportunity type: Employability trips, Extra-curricular opportunities

Ref: 10010319

Dates

Departure Date: 23/11/26

Return Date: 27/11/26

Student cost

£203: This is your estimated cost for travel and accommodation after deducting the £200 DMU Global bursary + £150 DMU Made bursary. It also includes a £3 carbon levy to help offset emissions from your flight.


What’s not included: UK and in-country transfers, visits, food & drink, and visa (if applicable).

Booking

Accommodation: Shared rooms in a hostel booked by DMU

Travel: Flights booked by DMU (students travel as a group)

Contact

General Enquiries: Global Mobility Office - dmuglobal@dmu.ac.uk

Trip Lead: Simon Baines - sbaines@dmu.ac.uk

How to pay

Payment details: If offered a place, students will receive further information and will be asked to pay the student cost listed above. As mentioned, the DMU Global bursary has already been deducted from this.

Your application

Important: The use of generative AI tools such as ChatGPT, Gemini, Copilot and others to write or generate content for your application is not permitted. DMU Global reserves the right to reject applications that have been created using these tools. To learn more, visit our application process page.

Trip Profile

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Independence

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Independent travel

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Eligibility

All current first and second year undergraduate students are eligible to participate on this opportunity. In particular, we are looking for students with a demonstrable interest in freelancing and self-employment, or you may have a business idea that you would like to launch or grow. Additionally, students interested in doing a work placement in the future are are encouraged to apply. There are a maximum of 20 places available, with a minimum of 15 participants required for this opportunity to take place. Students are recommended to check the eligibility criteria before applying.

About

Trip description

Are you studying a course like Fine Art, Drama, Performing Arts, Photography, Media Production or Graphic Design?  Creative Industries like these have high self-employment rates, so if you are likely to be working as a freelancer or your own boss after graduating, this is the trip for you.

Through a series of workshops, industry visits and group tasks, you’ll develop entrepreneurial and practical skills which will help you both throughout your studies, and once you move on from DMU.

From social media and personal branding, to market research and pitching, you’ll learn about new skills and put them to the test in the stunning area of Girona. During the trip, you’ll visit the University of Girona, and its school, ‘ERAM’, to learn what life is like at a University in the heart of Europe. ERAM is a student exchange partner of DMU, where students can spend a year studying abroad.

You’ll also work on a series on fun tasks, designed to help you to enhance your creative and entrepreneurial skills.  If you’re a first or second year, you’ll also develop skills to help you prepare for a placement, internship or employment.

DMU Made Bursary


DMU Made is offering an additional bursary of £150 towards the cost of this DMU Global trip for any student participating in the trip who meets the following criteria;
 
1. Has registered as a Sole Trader (self-employed) with HMRC since July 2025.
2. Has registered a business with HMRC since July 2025.
3. Is willing to register as a Sole Trader / register a business before the end of June 2026.
 4. If you have previously received a DMU Made Bursary, you will not be eligible to receive another.
 
If you meet criteria No.3, you will be asked to provide DMU Made with a reference number provided to you by HMRC when you register, and then your Unique Tax Reference Number / Business registration number once you receive it. This is normally withing 15 days of applying.
 
To qualify, you must be a UK home student or an EU student with settlement status.   Details about registering can be found here;
 
Set up as a Sole Trader: Set up as a sole trader: step by step – GOV.UK
Register a business: Set up a business – GOV.UK


Learning objectives

Participating in a DMU Global opportunity can help you develop a range of employability skills and competencies that enhance your studies. Through participation in this trip to Girona we expect that students will:

  • Become entrepreneurial.  If you’ve ever watched “The Apprentice” and thought the tasks look fun, you’ll love this trip!
  • Understand what is required to be self-employed.  What exactly is “freelancing” and how do you do it? You’ll find out.
  • Learn business skills like networking and pitching, which are valuable to you whatever you do in future.

Participants will take part in workshops before, during and after the event which are all relevant to developing entrepreneurial skills which can be applied within a future job role or within the participants own business ventures.


Cultural activities

Girona, Spain, is a cultural treasure trove nestled in Catalonia, offering a variety of enriching activities for every traveler. Students can walk through the Old Town, where narrow medieval streets, ancient stone buildings, and vibrant plazas invite exploration. Also, it is worth visiting the Girona Cathedral, famous for its grand staircase and the widest Gothic nave in the world.

Fans of “Game of Thrones” can join a filming location tour to see the real-life sets used in the series. For museum lovers, the Jewish History Museum in the old Jewish quarter explores centuries of Jewish life in Girona. Nearby, the Cinema Museum offers an interactive journey through the history of filmmaking. Art enthusiasts should not miss the Museu d’Art de Girona, showcasing religious and contemporary Catalan art.