Miguel Ferrando Bataller, Professor in the Department of Communications at the Universitat Politècnica de València (UPV) and founder of the Antennas and Propagation Lab (APL) at iTEAM, has been honored with the Professional Career Award at the Valencian Night of Telecommunications. A well-deserved tribute to more than four decades of outstanding dedication to teaching and research.
With an academic career spanning over 47 years, his leadership has extended across multiple fields. He was the first elected Director of the School of Telecommunication Engineering (ETSIT-UPV), a position he held from 1991 to 1996, consolidating the school as a national benchmark in the field.
He subsequently held several Vice-Rector positions at the UPV, leading areas of strategic importance for the institution: from 1996 to 1999 he was Vice-Rector for Academic Planning, from 2005 to 2007 he served as Vice-Rector for University Structure, and from 2007 to 2008 he led the area of Information and Communication Technologies. These roles were instrumental in modernizing the university and adapting it to the challenges of the digital age.
From 2009 to 2013, he served as Director of the Centre for Lifelong Learning (CFP), where he played a pioneering role in promoting online and distance education. He was the driving force behind initiatives such as PoliformaT and Polimedia, which became the foundations of UPV’s MOOC offerings on the edX platform.
As an educator, he has supervised over 50 bachelor’s and master’s theses, and participated in more than 20 educational innovation projects. As a researcher, he has authored over 100 articles in scientific journals, more than 350 conference papers, and supervised 21 PhD theses. He has led numerous national and European research projects, including the prestigious “Antennas Center of Excellence.”
Throughout his career, he has been recognized as a Life Senior Member of the IEEE and Senior Member of URSI, reflecting his international scientific and academic impact.
As founder and coordinator of the Antennas and Propagation Lab (APL) within iTEAM, his work has positioned the group as an international reference in antenna design and electromagnetic wave propagation.
At iTEAM, we proudly celebrate not only this recognition, but also the privilege of having such an outstanding researcher as Miguel Ferrando among us all these years.