Becas de Formacion Practica para Titulados Universitarios en las Areas de Desarrollo Rural, Innovacion y Politica Forestal

What you get

You get 1,150 EUR gross per month for a paid practical training placement with Spain's Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAPA) in Madrid. You work on rural development, innovation and forestry policy. The placement runs for up to 12 months and can be extended up to three more times, so the total can reach around four years. From your start date you are enrolled in Spain's social security system. If your work needs travel or an extra training course, you can claim travel and training allowances, with course fees covered up to 300 EUR. In the most recent round (2022), the Ministry offered 12 places: 7 for agricultural, forestry and veterinary graduates, and 5 for journalism, law, economics, computing and statistics graduates.

Who can apply

• Degree: You hold, or will hold by the application deadline, a university degree in one of these fields: agricultural or forestry engineering, veterinary science, journalism, law, economics, computing or statistics.
• How recent: You finished your studies within the last 6 years, counted from the year the call is published.
• Nationality: You are a national of Spain, another EU country, or a country in the European Economic Area, and you live legally in Spain.
• Spanish: You have a strong command of Spanish. You only need to prove it if you are not Spanish or Latin American and have lived in Spain for less than two years.
• English: You have an official English certificate at level B1 or higher.
• One area only: You may apply for just one of the two field groups per call.
• No overlap: You cannot hold this at the same time as another public grant or a job that clashes with the placement.

How to apply

You apply online through the MAPA electronic office, using a digital certificate. The window is short: 15 working days after the call is published in Spain's official gazette (BOE). Selection is competitive, and the Ministry decides within about six months.

How realistic are your chances?

This is cut narrowly: a specific set of degrees, a recent qualification, legal residence in Spain and B1 English, competing for only around a dozen places. That keeps the field small, so a graduate who clearly matches one field group and applies within the tight window has fair prospects. Note that the last call was published in 2022, so watch for a fresh call before preparing your documents.