CONCERTADO / CONCERTADA SCHOOLS BARCELONA

The two friends above (American on the left and Catalan Spanish on the right) each go to two of the best concertada schools in Barcelona and speak English, Spanish and Catalan like native speakers.

Concertada Schools in Barcelona

In our opinion, the concertada schools in Barcelona are some of the best schools in Barcelona even compared with many private schools. But you may ask aren't Barcelona concertada schools private? The answer is not exactly. You may ask are these schools called concertado schools with an "o" or concertada schools with an "a". Well the answer is both. 

Concertada or Concertado?

Concertada schools in Barcelona are referred to as concertados or concertadas in Spanish depending on whether you are using the feminine use with the word escuelas which has a feminine "a" or the masculine use with the word colegios which has the masculine "o".

Schools in Barcelona Spain

Schools in Barcelona fall into 3 basic categories: 

• Public Schools: called colegios públicos or escuelas públicas in Spanish
• Concertada Schools: called colegios concertados or escuelas concertadas in Spanish
• Private Schools: called colegios privados or escuelas privadas in Spanish

Public schools are wholly funded by the government and follow the Spanish school curriculum. Concertada schools are funded by the government but also charge tuition. Private schools such as international schools, like American schools or British schools, do not receive funding from the government so are funded solely by the tuition.

Concertadas are often referred to as Semi-Private Schools

Barcelona concertada schools are technically public schools because they are funded by the government. Public schools in Barcelona are free. However, the difference between concertada schools and regular public schools is that while they are both funded by the government, concertada schools are privately run and managed. Moreover, concertada schools also charge tuition so they are not free likely regular public schools. This is where concertada schools get the name “semi-private” schools. 

Barcelona Concertada Schools are like Charter Schools in the US  

Concertada schools in Barcelona are like charter public schools in the US, except they are not free. What makes concertada schools ic Barcelona different and arguably more effective is that while they receive pubic funding like public schools, concertada schools also charge tuition to attend. With this additional funding through tuition, these Barcelona concertada schools can fund additional educational and school improvements, rather than trying to raise additional funds through donations and fundraisers like in the US.  

Concertada Schools in Barcelona are good and cheaper than private schools

Because concertada schools are state subsidized they are required to follow the Spanish syllabus. International private schools, however, are free to follow any school curriculum typically from other countries such as the US or UK. However, these private schools are significantly more costly than concertada schools, especially in Barcelona. 

Although concertada schools in Barcelona are subject to certain conditions established by the government, such as the limit of students, dates, admissions, etc., they do have a high freedom of management which allows for superior teachers, campuses and educational content. Concertada schools in Barcelona also provide teaching of multiple languages such as English, Spanish, French and German.