Escola Superior de Propaganda e Marketing

Escola Superior de Propaganda e Marketing, commonly known as ESPM, is a private higher-education institution in Brazil whose identity is closely associated with advertising, marketing, communications, and business education. It began as a specialist advertising school connected with the São Paulo Museum of Art and developed into a multi-campus institution offering undergraduate, graduate, professional, doctoral, and research programs. Its historical model combines academic instruction with direct participation by practitioners, reflected in the early motto “Taught by who does it.” This practice-oriented approach remains central to the institution’s positioning and distinguishes ESPM from a conventional generalist university. The school was established at the request of media executive Assis Chateaubriand and Pietro Maria Bardi, director of the São Paulo Museum of Art, with Rodolfo Lima Martensen, a radio host and advertising executive, responsible for founding and managing the institution. Its first home was a room at the museum, where it operated under the name Escola de Propaganda do Museu de Arte de São Paulo. The original educational offer was a single advertising course taught by professionals from the advertising industry. This connection to Brazil’s media, cultural, and commercial sectors shaped the institution’s later expansion. After moving to its own premises in 1955, the institution adopted the name Escola de Propaganda de São Paulo and subsequently incorporated “Superior,” signaling its development as a higher-education provider. In 1971, director Otto Hugo Scherb proposed the current name, Escola Superior de Propaganda e Marketing. Around the same period, support from Antônio Delfim Netto helped the advertising course become a four-year undergraduate program recognized by Brazil’s Ministry of Education. The school’s formal academic standing therefore grew alongside its original professional orientation. ESPM expanded beyond São Paulo during the 1970s and 1980s. A Rio de Janeiro campus was established in 1974 with backing from the Globo Organization, and graduate education began in 1978. Under president Francisco Gracioso, the institution broadened its graduate portfolio and introduced Business Administration with a marketing emphasis as its second undergraduate course in 1981. A Porto Alegre campus followed in 1985. In later decades, ESPM added doctoral and academic research activity and diversified its undergraduate programs into fields including Design, International Relations, Journalism, Information Systems, Social and Consumer Science, and Cinema and Audiovisual studies. ESPM currently operates two campuses in São Paulo—one focused on undergraduate education and another on graduate and post-secondary learning—alongside campuses in Rio de Janeiro and Porto Alegre. Its academic scope covers marketing and advertising as well as business, communication, design, media, technology, international studies, and creative production. The institution is regarded in Brazil as a leading specialist school in marketing and advertising, and its São Paulo advertising program has ranked highly in market-based assessments such as the Folha University Ranking. ESPM’s brand is consequently built on specialist reputation, professional proximity, applied learning, and the integration of theory with industry practice.

ESPM originated in São Paulo as a specialist school for advertising. Its creation was associated with Assis Chateaubriand, a major Brazilian media executive, and Pietro Maria Bardi, director of the São Paulo Museum of Art. Rodolfo Lima Martensen, a radio host and advertising executive, founded and managed the school. The initial institution occupied a room at the museum and was known as Escola de Propaganda do Museu de Arte de São Paulo. It offered a single advertising course and recruited working advertising professionals as instructors. This arrangement established the practical orientation that would become one of ESPM’s defining characteristics. In 1955, the institution moved into its own premises within the same building and adopted the name Escola de Propaganda de São Paulo. The use of “Superior” reflected its increasing role in higher education. In 1971, director Otto Hugo Scherb proposed the name Escola Superior de Propaganda e Marketing, which became the institution’s enduring name. With support from Antônio Delfim Netto, then Brazil’s Minister of Finance and a representative of the University of São Paulo, the advertising course was converted into a four-year undergraduate program and received recognition from the Ministry of Education. The next phase was geographic and academic expansion. In 1974, a Rio de Janeiro campus was founded with support from the Globo Organization. ESPM began offering graduate courses in 1978, expanding its role beyond its original undergraduate advertising specialization. In 1981, during the presidency of Francisco Gracioso, the institution substantially widened its graduate offer and introduced Business Administration with a marketing emphasis as its second undergraduate program. A third campus opened in Porto Alegre in 1985. After the turn of the twenty-first century, ESPM continued to broaden its academic and research profile. It created doctoral and academic research programs and added undergraduate degrees in areas including Design, International Relations, Journalism, Information Systems, Social and Consumer Science, and Cinema/Audiovisual studies. These additions extended the school’s scope from advertising and marketing into a wider set of disciplines connected to communication, technology, culture, society, and creative production. The contemporary institution maintains two São Paulo campuses, with one serving undergraduate education and another dedicated to graduate education and post-secondary learning. It also operates campuses in Rio de Janeiro and Porto Alegre. Although its academic portfolio is now broad, ESPM continues to be identified particularly with marketing, advertising, communications, and applied business education. Its institutional philosophy continues to link professional practice and academic theory, while its market reputation is especially strong in Brazilian advertising and marketing education.

1. 1985Opening of the Porto Alegre campus

   ESPM established a third campus in Porto Alegre, extending its physical presence beyond São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro.

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2. 1981Expansion into Business Administration with a marketing emphasis

   During Francisco Gracioso’s presidency, ESPM introduced Business Administration with an emphasis on Marketing as its second undergraduate course and expanded its graduate offerings.

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3. 1978Launch of graduate education

   ESPM began offering its first graduate courses, extending its academic activity beyond the original advertising undergraduate program.

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4. 1974Opening of the Rio de Janeiro campus

   A campus in Rio de Janeiro was established with backing from the Globo Organization.

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5. 1971Adoption of the ESPM name

   Director Otto Hugo Scherb proposed the name Escola Superior de Propaganda e Marketing, which was approved and retained.

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6. 1955Move to dedicated premises and renaming as Escola de Propaganda de São Paulo

   The school moved to its own premises within the same building and began operating under the name Escola de Propaganda de São Paulo.

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7. Founding as an advertising school connected with the São Paulo Museum of Art

   Rodolfo Lima Martensen founded the institution with the support of Assis Chateaubriand and Pietro Maria Bardi. Its first location was a room at the São Paulo Museum of Art, and its initial name was Escola de Propaganda do Museu de Arte de São Paulo.

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8. Expansion into doctoral research and new disciplines

   In the period after the turn of the century, ESPM created doctoral and academic research programs and added undergraduate offerings in design, international relations, journalism, information systems, social and consumer science, and cinema/audiovisual studies.

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A practice-oriented private higher-education institution focused on advertising, marketing, communications, business, and creative industries. ESPM emphasizes teaching by active professionals and the application of academic theory to real-world commercial, cultural, and media contexts.

• AdvertisingUndergraduate education

  ESPM’s original academic specialization and its historic foundation. The program grew from a practitioner-led advertising course into a four-year undergraduate degree recognized by Brazil’s Ministry of Education. Advertising remains one of the institution’s most strongly identified areas and a central expression of its theory-and-practice teaching model.

• MarketingUndergraduate and graduate education

  Marketing is a core ESPM discipline and a major component of its institutional identity. The school’s portfolio includes marketing-oriented undergraduate and graduate education, with emphasis on applied commercial knowledge, consumer understanding, communication, and strategic decision-making. Its reputation in Brazilian marketing education supports the broader ESPM brand.

• Business Administration with emphasis on MarketingUndergraduate education1981

  Introduced as ESPM’s second undergraduate course, this offering extended the institution from specialist advertising education into broader business training. Its marketing emphasis connects management, commercial strategy, and organizational knowledge with the school’s established expertise in communication and markets.

• Graduate and postgraduate programsGraduate education1978

  ESPM began graduate education in 1978 and subsequently expanded the range of programs available to post-secondary and professional learners. These programs extend across marketing, communications, business, and related fields, maintaining the institution’s emphasis on practical application and professional relevance.

• Design, Journalism, International Relations, Information Systems, Social and Consumer Science, and Cinema/Audiovisual studiesUndergraduate education

  ESPM broadened its undergraduate portfolio after the turn of the century with programs linked to creative production, media, technology, society, and international affairs. Together, these offerings place advertising and marketing within a wider educational ecosystem covering communication, design, digital systems, consumer behavior, culture, and audiovisual production.

• Doctoral and academic research programsResearch and postgraduate education

  The creation of doctoral and academic research programs expanded ESPM beyond teaching and professional preparation into formal knowledge production. These activities support the institution’s academic profile in marketing, communication, business, consumer studies, and related fields.

1. Escola Superior de Propaganda e Marketing
2. ESPM official website