UPC rector elections 2025: Daniel Crespo, candidate for rector
Daniel Crespo’s campaign team, left to right in the front row: vice-rector for Quality and Language Policy Imma Ribas; vice-rector for Research Miquel Soriano; vice-rector for Students and University Life Anna Mujal; UPC rector Daniel Crespo; vice-rector for International Policy Lourdes Reig; vice-rector for Academic Staff Josep Maria Font; and vice-rector for Transfer, Innovation and Entrepreneurship Climent Molins. Left to right in the back row: vice-rector for Architecture, Infrastructure and Regional Outreach Jordi Ros; general secretary Ana Belén Cortinas; vice-rector for Teaching and Lifelong Learning Joan Gispets; vice-rector for Social Responsibility and Equality Jasmina Casals; vice-rector for Academic Policy Marta Casanellas; vice-rector for Digital Strategy Àlvar Vinacua; general manager Ivan Planas; and head of bureau Lluís Monfort
Biographical note
I was born in 1959 into a working-class family in the Porta neighbourhood of Barcelona, the eldest of three siblings. At 14, I began working mornings while attending night school.
In 1976, at the age of 17, I started working at Banco de Bilbao in L’Hospitalet de Llobregat, and that same year I began studying Physics at the University of Barcelona, attending evening classes during my first three years (1976-1979). From 1980 to 1982, I studied English and computer science. After transferring to the evening shift at the bank’s computing centre, I was able to complete my studies in the mornings (1982-1984). Soon after, I received a predoctoral contract at the University of Barcelona and left the bank. In 1987, I joined the UPC as a full-time adjunct professor at the ETSECCPB. I became a university school associate professor in 1990 and an associate professor in 1998. I have held the position of full professor since 2010.
I have taught various physics courses at the ETSECCPB, the EETAC, the ETSETB and the EEBE. Although I defended my doctoral thesis in fluid mechanics, my research later shifted toward materials physics. I have studied amorphous metals, also known as metallic glasses—their mechanical properties, physical stability (relaxation processes, ageing and crystallisation) and chemical stability (corrosion resistance). I have led or participated in around 40 research projects, supervised 12 doctoral theses and published approximately 120 scientific papers. I have held administrative roles at the University as deputy director of the EETAC and director of the Department of Physics. From 2019 to 2021, I chaired the UPC’s Teaching and Research Staff Board. Since 2021, I have served as rector of the UPC.
I am married with one child and divide my time between Barcelona and Castellterçol, my adopted hometown. Spanish is my mother tongue, but I live my life in Catalan.
Voting will take place electronically at eleccionsrectorat2025.upc.edu from 13 to 16 May 2025
May 08, 2025
Dear members of the UPC community,
I am running for re-election as rector of the UPC with my sights set on the future, maintaining the same spirit of service and backed by the results and progress achieved over the past four years. I want to continue driving the growth of the UPC, anticipating the academic and social challenges ahead, and strengthening its role as a national and international benchmark at the service of society.
I am supported by a strong, experienced and trustworthy team that has proven its value and commitment to our community throughout these years. Our programme remains focused on the University’s most valuable asset—its people—who are the driving force behind the UPC’s progress.
My aim is to ensure that teaching and research staff and technical, management, administrative and service staff have the resources they need to work in optimal conditions, both on site and through telework.
For teaching staff:
➢ We will continue replacing all retirements and will hire at least 35 new full-time teaching staff annually.
➢ We will implement a new model to recognise PDI contributions, not only by valuing teaching quality but also by reducing the teaching load by one hour per week for permanent teaching staff with an active six-year research period, which can be accumulated into sabbatical time.
➢ We will increase funding for the AGRUPS programme, sabbaticals and mobility—opening a specific call for assistant professors—and maintain ALECTORS support scholarships.
➢ We will reduce the time required for part-time faculty to be promoted to type 2 positions to three years, while maintaining funding for the horizontal promotion programme.
For administrative staff:
➢ We will continue replacing all retirements and will hire at least 35 new administrative staff annually.
➢ We will develop a human resources planning framework for administrative staff and recognise training and effort through the implementation of horizontal career progression, with financial effects from January 2025.
➢ We will strengthen training programmes to support career advancement and maintain current levels of teleworking.
Reducing the bureaucratic burden on both teaching and research staff is essential. We will review internal processes and tools, and expand departmental support units with on-site staff. Reception and concierge services will be redefined as accessible first points of contact for the UPC community.
I want a UPC where STUDENTS receive an excellent education—one that combines technical rigour with critical thinking—and where they enjoy a vibrant university life while feeling supported and guided by the institution at all times. To this end, I commit to continuing improvements in teaching quality and personalised support for students:
➢ We will launch a one-stop helpdesk for access to scholarships, volunteering, sports, student associations and campus life activities.
➢ We will enhance emotional wellbeing support services and replicate the model of the student house (casa de l’estudiantat) on the North Campus across all campuses.
➢ We will increase resources to promote university life, provide better support to student delegations and associations, and create new sports facilities on every campus.
➢ We will introduce a new “salary scholarship” programme for students from low-income backgrounds and revise the minimum pay for work placements, in collaboration with schools and the Student Council.
➢ We will continue promoting the use of Catalan at the UPC, ensuring transparency and commitments regarding the languages of instruction.
We will strengthen the UPC through academic offerings by:
➢ Increasing our training capacity in our core STEAM fields and promoting international joint degrees.
➢ Completing the transition of CITM programmes to public tuition fees and launching the new bachelor’s degree in Medicine in Terrassa.
➢ Supporting schools in improving teaching quality with resources through the Galàxia Aprenentatge framework.
At the same time, we will work to make the UPC more inclusive and socially impactful. We will continue to advance our equality, equity and diversity policies, and promote community support through an extensive programme of social and cultural activities. We will prioritise volunteer initiatives and reach net-zero emissions by 2030—leading the way in university sustainability.
We will uphold a rigorous, transparent financial management approach, which has allowed us to end this term of office with the resources needed to launch strategic projects such as:
➢ The construction of L building at the ETSEIB, without compromising the €120 million earmarked in the multi-year infrastructure plan.
➢ A range of transformative initiatives including Fàbrica Nova, the Barcelona Maritime Technology Park, the Sustainable Mobility Campus in Martorell and multiple campus-based projects reflecting our regional commitment.
➢ The strong backing for Unite! and the UPC’s international reach.
I share these proposals with you to request your support for the continuity of a four-year term focused on people. We have restored teaching and administrative staffing levels to those of 2012 and worked to build a fairer, more diverse, vibrant and enriching university, open to the world and guided by ethical principles. A UPC where the community takes pride in belonging to a shared project, while also having the opportunity to pursue individual academic and professional paths—a place where everyone can grow. Because it is the sum of these individual journeys that makes the UPC a great institution.
I want to continue serving as your rector, to keep connecting the UPC with all sectors of Catalan society, to foster the talent already present within our community and to attract talent from around the world. My goal is to position the UPC among the world’s top technological universities—recognised for both academic excellence and social impact. This is our way of pursuing continuous improvement: setting ambitious goals, because it is in striving toward them that we achieve our most meaningful successes.
I want the UPC to be recognised as a place of rigorous and reliable knowledge—a trusted partner in social and economic progress. I want our institution to be known for the quality of education it offers and the impact of its research and
knowledge transfer activities. And beyond academic work, I want us to be known for advancing equity and social impact. My goal is for the community to be proud of the rector’s work and the public image that the UPC projects.
In this election, I ask you to reflect on our track record over the past four years, the vision we are presenting and our outlook for the future of the UPC as a public university. I hope you will place your trust in us to continue for a second term, which, like the first, we will carry out with a deep sense of service and the determination to use our experience to build a better UPC—one that serves people and our country.
Daniel Crespo’s campaign website
Campaign video
https://youtu.be/dunPu88Z6uI
