1 April 2024
Matías Araya Canales, student at the School of Civil Engineering in Computer Science and Telecommunications at the Diego Portales University, carried out an exchange during the 2nd semester of 2023 at the University of Cantabria, Spain.
During this time, Matías participated in the ‘Manuel Arce’ Literary Awards for Poetry and Short Storytelling, which have a long history and reward works from Cantabria at a regional level. Two awards are given per category, the prize and the second prize (or the minor prize).
Matías was recognized with the second prize in poetry for his work “Girasoles”, which meant a prize of 450 euros, the publication of his collection of poems by the University and 25 physical copies of it.
But more than all that, for him “the beauty of seeing something recognized that comes from all within was an experience that he had never felt and is frankly inexplicable. “It must be the most beautiful memory I have, even if I really didn’t have anyone to celebrate it with, since my friends had already left and my family was here in Chile.”
He will soon be able to see the first physical proofs of the collection of poems and in the second semester the copies will be sent to him from Spain. “I am very excited,” said the EIT UDP student.
“They told me that I did it twice: it was the first time that a computer scientist won a prize and that an exchange student won the prize,” Matías recalled.
“It is the most beautiful thing that has happened to me in my life and it is the trip of my life without a doubt, thank you very much for giving me the opportunity,” he thanked the UDP International Relations Department.
You can review the last poem in his work and see the award ceremony at the University of Cantabria below:
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