Magistrales 2026

The UPV’s Gandia campus hosted the ninth edition of Magistrales, the event through which the Polytechnic University of Valencia pays tribute to those who, through their dedication, hard work and generosity, transform lives: teachers. For the first time, the event took place at the Gandia campus, as this is where the UPV runs the Master’s Degree in Secondary Education. The main lecture theatre was filled with established teachers alongside enthusiastic aspiring teachers.

For this ninth edition, the UPV selected 13 women and 12 men, as always based on a survey carried out amongst first-year students. It is the students themselves who recommend a teacher by name – someone who has made a lasting impression on them through their exceptional abilities, a teacher they remember for their dedication, patience, commitment and ability to motivate pupils. Over the course of its nine editions, the UPV has recognised a total of 225 teachers from 160 schools across the Valencian Community.

As in previous years, there were teachers from almost every corner of the Valencian Community: Sedaví, Godella, Albaida, Calpe, Oliva, Betxí, Alcoy, La Vall d’Uixó, Vilamarxant… Once again, most of the award winners are experts in technical subjects (Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Technical Drawing…) whilst a few teach Biology, Art, Physical Education, Valencian, Accountancy, and Business and Business Model Design. They come from state, state-subsidised and private schools, as well as from sixth-form colleges and vocational training programmes.

“You have to be honest with a student and say: you can do better.”

On behalf of all those honoured at this 2026 ceremony, Francesc Sanfélix, from IES María Ibars in Dénia, took the floor. Sanfélix sought to highlight the value of effort, perseverance and resilience. “We have often confused educating with overprotecting. But there is no learning without effort, nor growth without discomfort. Learning is not just about content: it is about emotion, effort, frustration and overcoming challenges.”

Sanfélix recalled how, in the first year of BUP, a teacher sent him to retake the subject in September, and the anger he felt. Years later, he came to understand it. That teacher wasn’t harsh, but demanding. She was doing her job responsibly. “To educate is to tell a student honestly: you can do better. Because a student doesn’t just need understanding; they also need boundaries, role models, rigour and, above all, truth.”

“You get a student to stop watching the clock and start looking towards their future.”

Iván Sevilla, a student on the Bachelor’s degree in Computer Engineering at the UPV, responded: “In a few years’ time, the students sitting here today will be building infrastructure, programming systems, creating works of art or running a business. But it is only right to look back and remember how it all began. Because the spark that made us believe we could be here today was kindled in your classrooms.”

Sevilla added: “Your methods may differ, but the result you achieve is the same: you get a 17-year-old student to stop watching the clock, waiting for the bell to ring, and start looking towards their own future with ambition. For all of this, thank you. Thank you for recognising our potential. Thank you for having the patience to guide us.”

“Nothing is possible without the preceding stages.”

Vice-Chancellor José E. Capilla, who presided over the ceremony, emphasised this point: “The Polytechnic University of Valencia is what it is thanks to its students, and those students have been trained and inspired by you. For all of this, thank you. Nothing, absolutely nothing, is possible without the groundwork laid beforehand.”

• Notia UPVTV