As in every academic year, La Salle Campus Barcelona, a founding member of the Universitat Ramon Llull, takes stock of its activity and, through the main data and testimonies of the people who are part of the campus, explains it in the impact report, and the one for the 2023-24 academic year can now be consulted. With the motto ‘Thank you’ as a starting point, the report reviews the course and details how the campus impacts its environment and becomes a driver of transformation. In the words of the general director of La Salle-URL, Josep M. Santos: “We train students who are experts in technology, with values and a strong ethical sense, committed to building a fairer and more sustainable world. We train excellent professionals, but above all, people who add up”.
During the 23-24 academic year, as recorded in the report, La Salle-URL has experienced several outstanding moments: the appointment of Guiomar Corral as the new Director of the La Salle Digital Engineering School; the opening ceremony of the 2023-24 academic year at Universitat Ramon Llull; the inauguration of the Executive Education space, located in the Santa Maria de l'Estrella building; the launch of the new Bachelor in Artificial Intelligence and Data Science; the III ACUSTICAT Award to Brother Josep Martí for his career in the world of acoustics; the 1st La Salle University Conference, organized by the La Salle campuses in Madrid and Barcelona; the international Entrepreneurial University seal awarded by the ACEEU; and the ABET accreditation, achieved by the Degree in Computer Engineering.
Social impact, the SDGs and the 2030 agenda
The actions, projects and initiatives of the campus are aligned with the UN's Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and this is reflected in some of the main milestones of the course: the Thinking and Creativity subject, which runs across all the campus's degrees, in which students present projects linked to the SDGs; the award for the best contribution to the SDGs from the Barcelona City Council, which was given to the La Salle Social Challenges initiative; the alliance with Suara Cooperativa and IDIBGI to promote a research project that offers personalized support in homes with acoustic sensors; the participation of students in an ENGAGE.EU project on digital transformation to generate social impact; the co-organization, with the La Salle universities, of the International SDG Chair; and the Aristos Campus Mundus awards, awarded to La Salle-URL students and teachers.
Among the main figures of the course, the nearly 8,000 students stand out, more than 36% of whom are international from up to 100 different nationalities. The employability rate of graduating students is 97% and, faithful to the mission of promoting accessible and quality education, a total of 2,258 students were awarded scholarships in the 2023-24 academic year, 48% more than the previous academic year. In addition, 353 students have participated in social, volunteer and community service activities and projects.
Regarding the steps of the campus decarbonization plan, La Salle-URL is working on several axes and actions to minimize the carbon footprint and be an active part of the development of a more sustainable society that takes care of the common home. In relation to the reduction of emissions, La Salle-URL has a photovoltaic installation for self-consumption of energy with an annual production of 200,000 kWh.
An ecosystem of knowledge, research, transfer, innovation and entrepreneurship
La Salle Campus Barcelona trains experts in seven areas of knowledge from its four centers: the La Salle Digital Engineering School (ETSELS), the La Salle Higher Technical School of Architecture and Building (ETSALS), the La Salle International School of Commerce and Digital Economy (FICEDLS), and the La Salle Faculty of Philosophy (FFLS).
In terms of research, during the 2023-24 academic year, work was carried out on 94 projects led by the campus's two research groups: Smart Society and Human-Environment Research (HER). Knowledge transfer, as an essential part of the university's third mission, connects the academic environment with society, promoting the practical application of research projects and initiatives. Among the projects of the course, the following stand out: acoustics and artificial intelligence in elderly care; low-cost technology to detect pathologies by interpreting facial shape; robotics applied to improving the instrumental skills of students with autism spectrum disorder; flexibility and optimization of the use of logistical resources; and the application of AI in cybersecurity.
True to the objective of connecting students with companies, the campus promotes innovation and the entrepreneurial spirit of students through the La Salle Technova Barcelona innovation park, which in the 23-24 academic year has supported 69 startups; and with initiatives such as Talent Week, which this year has brought together more than 1,200 students and 46 companies. Along these lines, work is being done to consolidate the Corporate Board Council, the La Salle-URL Business Council that promotes strategic, business and socio-economic interaction between university and company. The link with the business sector means that La Salle-URL has become a reference in training aimed at executives and companies, provided through Executive Education, which emphasizes the promotion of participatory, digital and responsible leadership, and which is a good example of the Lasallian mission of accompanying people during all stages of their life cycle.
Looking to the future, the campus is growing with new facilities such as the recently inaugurated Interactive Arts & Science Laboratory (IASlab), the campus laboratory that is a pioneer in Europe in transdisciplinary research and artistic creation.