Dana Barale, Alumni of Universidad Europea and recipient of the Best Student of the Year Award for Outstanding Academic Achievement and Universidad Europea’s Excellence Scholarships, continues to achieve new milestones in her professional career. Selected from nearly 1,000 applicants, she has been awarded a scholarship from the "La Caixa" Foundation, which will allow her to continue her education at Harvard University, where she will pursue a Master in Design Studies.
Next year, Dana will join Harvard University, where she will further develop her interest in critical theory. Reflecting on her academic journey, she explains: “After studying at Universidad Europea, I focused my practice on cultural media studies, technology and conceptual approaches. These fields move beyond the traditional practice of architecture and construction, expanding the way we understand the discipline from a conceptual perspective.”
Before beginning this new chapter at one of the world’s leading universities, Dana had already gained valuable international experience through Universidad Europea. “Universidad Europea gave me the opportunity to study at the University of Bath and Delft University of Technology through its Erasmus programmes. These experiences were fundamental to my personal and professional development and helped shape my future path.”
An Alumni of Arquitectura and Máster Universitario en Arquitectura, Dana considers the search for references to be one of the keys to the success she has achieved at the start of her professional career. “Having inspiring references was incredibly important to me, and many of them came from Universidad Europea. They followed innovative paths and shared a transformative vision of the discipline. Through exhibitions held in Hall C, I discovered projects that became benchmarks for my own aspirations and motivated me to pursue similar goals. Above all, they made me realise that university projects should go beyond purely academic objectives and serve as a gateway to future opportunities and long-term achievements.”
With this new opportunity, Dana is ready to continue advancing her career and contributing to the fields of critical theory and cultural media studies. Her experience at Universidad Europea, combined with the prestigious scholarship awarded by the "La Caixa" Foundation, will allow her to continue growing academically and professionally. Her journey is an inspiring example of how education and international opportunities can open doors and create a lasting impact.