I like to have everything under control
En junio de 2026, una joven de diecisiete años en Palencia obtuvo la nota más alta entre los 586 estudiantes que se presentaron a la selectividad, cerrando una etapa con un 9,81 que le abre casi cualquier puerta del sistema universitario español. Su logro individual se enmarca en un resultado colectivo notable: la provincia lideró Castilla y León con una tasa de aprobados del 98,63%, reflejo de un esfuerzo sostenido que mejora el año anterior. Hay algo antiguo y reconocible en esta historia: el trabajo silencioso que precede al reconocimiento público, y la paradoja de que la abundancia de opciones puede pesar tanto como su ausencia.
- Una adolescente que estudió con disciplina casi obsesiva salió del examen convencida de que algo había salido mal, mientras sus compañeros expresaban dudas en los pasillos.
- El 9,81 llegó como una corrección a la narrativa que los nervios habían construido, convirtiéndola en la mejor nota de toda la provincia de Palencia.
- Ahora el verdadero dilema no es superar un examen, sino elegir entre dos vocaciones igualmente poderosas: Ingeniería Industrial o el doble grado de Física y Química.
- Palencia entera mejoró sus cifras —98,63% de aprobados y una media de 7,61— liderando el distrito universitario de Castilla y León por encima del año anterior.
- Con más de cinco mil plazas abiertas en ochenta y dos titulaciones, el engranaje universitario ya gira, esperando que cada estudiante decida dónde encaja.
Mireya Guati Tejido tiene diecisiete años y salió de la selectividad de junio en Palencia con un 9,81, la nota más alta entre los 586 presentados. Con ese resultado en la fase obligatoria y un 13,63 en la voluntaria, prácticamente ninguna carrera universitaria en España le está vedada. Sin embargo, la amplitud de lo posible tiene su propio peso.
Se describe como alguien que necesita tenerlo todo bajo control, que estudia de manera constante y que llegó al Instituto Jorge Manrique sin conocer a nadie, construyendo su lugar a base de trabajo. El día del examen, ver a compañeros salir con dudas y frustración le contagió la ansiedad. Los números, cuando llegaron, desmintieron lo que sus nervios habían escrito.
Palencia como provincia también tuvo motivos para celebrar: 578 de los 586 estudiantes aprobaron, un 98,63% de éxito y una media de 7,61, la más alta del distrito universitario de Castilla y León. Supone una mejora clara respecto al año anterior, cuando la tasa era del 96,07% y la media, de 7,41.
Guati Tejido, criada en los pequeños municipios de Santoyo y Astudillo, se enfrenta ahora a una elección genuina: Ingeniería Industrial o el doble grado de Física y Química. Habla de su interés por la enseñanza, por explicar y transferir conocimiento, pero también del atractivo de trabajar en equipo en un entorno empresarial. Lo que sí tiene claro es que quiere estudiar en la Universidad de Valladolid, cerca de casa.
En el conjunto de Castilla y León, 10.454 de los 10.638 presentados superaron la prueba, un 98,27% de aprobados, 1,25 puntos más que el año anterior. Las universidades ya han abierto el periodo de matrícula con más de cinco mil plazas en ochenta y dos titulaciones. Para Mireya, el examen terminó. Ahora empieza la parte que exige un tipo diferente de decisión.
Mireya Guati Tejido walked out of her university entrance exams at seventeen years old with a score of 9.81—the highest mark among 586 students who sat for the test in Palencia this June. It was the kind of result that closes off nothing and opens nearly everything: with that score in the mandatory phase and a 13.63 in the optional section, she could pursue almost any degree program in Spain. But the weight of possibility, it turned out, was its own kind of pressure.
She describes herself as relentlessly disciplined—someone who likes to keep everything under control, who studies constantly, who arrived at her high school, the Instituto Jorge Manrique, knowing no one from her previous school and built her place there through sheer work. The exam itself rattled her. She watched classmates file out expressing doubt and frustration about how they'd performed, and that anxiety crept in. But the numbers, when they came, told a different story than the one her nerves had written.
Palencia as a whole delivered strong results. Of the 586 students examined in the province, 578 passed—a 98.63% approval rate. Only eight failed. The average score across the region was 7.61, the highest in Castilla y León's university district. This represented a measurable improvement over the previous year, when the pass rate stood at 96.07% and the average sat at 7.41. The province had lifted itself.
Guati Tejido, who grew up in the small towns of Santoyo and Astudillo and attended the Colegio de La Providencia before her high school years, now faced a genuine dilemma. She was drawn to two paths: Industrial Engineering or a double degree combining Physics and Chemistry. Both were within reach. Both appealed to her. She spoke about a longtime interest in teaching, in the work of explanation and transfer of knowledge, but also about the appeal of working within a team in a corporate setting. The future, she said, remained unwritten. What she did know was that she wanted to study at the Universidad de Valladolid—close to home, manageable, familiar.
Across the broader region of Castilla y León, the entrance exam results showed consistent strength. Of 10,638 students who sat for the test, 10,454 passed, a 98.27% approval rate. That represented an increase of 1.25 percentage points from the previous year and meant 395 more students passed than had in 2025. The average score in the mandatory phase across the entire region was 7.15, up a tenth of a point from the year before.
The universities themselves were preparing for the enrollment period that would now begin, with more than five thousand available places distributed across eighty-two different degree programs. Engineering and architecture dominated the offerings, but the health sciences had gained prominence, particularly with new programs launching in September. For students like Guati Tejido, the machinery of higher education was already turning, waiting for them to decide where they would fit.
She spoke about needing rest, about reconnecting with friends—something she had never stopped doing even during her heaviest study periods—and about the simple pleasure of time in her small towns. The exam was over. The score was set. Now came the part that mattered differently: choosing what to do with it. A second opportunity for the entrance exam would be available to those who needed it, scheduled for late June and early July, but Guati Tejido would not need that second chance.
Notable Quotes
I'm very disciplined and hardworking, very consistent—I like to have everything under control— Mireya Guati Tejido
I've always been drawn to teaching, to explaining things, but I'm also attracted to working in a team at a company— Mireya Guati Tejido
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
What was it like for her, watching other students leave the exam room upset while she was still processing her own doubts?
She absorbed their anxiety like a sponge. She's someone who needs control, who studies constantly, and suddenly she was surrounded by people saying they'd failed. That doubt is contagious at seventeen. But the score told a different story than the room did.
Why does Palencia's improvement matter beyond just the numbers?
Because it shows something about how a whole province can lift together. Last year they were at 7.41 average. This year 7.61. That's not random. That's teachers, students, families all pushing slightly harder, or smarter, or both.
She had to choose between two very different paths—engineering versus physics and chemistry. How real is that choice at her level?
At a 9.81, it's genuinely open. She's not choosing between what she can do and what she can't. She's choosing between things she actually wants. That's rare. Most students are choosing between what's available to them.
She mentioned teaching, but also working in teams in companies. Does she sound like someone who knows what she wants?
She sounds like someone who knows herself—disciplined, thoughtful, aware of her own nature—but hasn't yet lived enough to know which version of that self will matter most. That's honest, not indecisive.
Why mention that she arrived at high school knowing no one?
Because it tells you something about her character. She didn't coast on friendships from before. She built her place through work. That's the same quality that got her the 9.81.