Even kings get first-day-of-school jitters. On September 24, King Felipe VI stood before Spain’s academic establishment to open the new university year. In a rare personal aside, he turned his attention to the student closest to his heart: his daughter and heir, Princess Leonor, who’s only a few weeks into her own year.
“My daughter has started her civilian university life this year, and we, her parents, are experiencing it with that mix of excitement, pride and uncertainty,” the king said, as reported by our sister website HOLA! Spain.
The occasion was the solemn ceremony opening the 2026/2027 academic year for Spain’s universities, held this year at the Polytechnic University of Cartagena (UPCT) in the region of Murcia. The event marks the start of classes for more than two million students in the country.
A political science student like any other
© Getty ImagesLeonor, Princess of Asturias, began her degree in Political Science at Carlos III University of Madrid in September, arriving on the school’s Getafe campus on September 7. It’s a defining chapter in her civilian education, coming on the heels of her military training in Spain’s armed forces.
For the first time, the heir to the throne is building an academic life outside the barracks.
According to the Zarzuela Palace, the degree she chose “will allow her to acquire a solid foundation of essential knowledge, skills and abilities in the area of Political Science, Law and Administration, and foster critical thinking and an interest in political analysis in national and international contexts.”
Leonor is enrolled in the same degree program as her classmates and carries the same academic obligations, a notable break from her father’s university years. When Felipe was crown prince, the Autonomous University of Madrid built a custom program around him, allowing him to study Law alongside a hand-picked selection of Economics courses.
© Formula 1 via Getty ImagesA warning about AI, and a message for every freshman
Leonor wasn’t the only subject on the king’s mind. In the same address, Felipe warned students and teachers about the dangers of disinformation and the growing use of artificial intelligence.
He closed out his speech with a line that could have been written for his daughter as well as every other student preparing to further their education. “That is, at heart, the meaning of the university: to receive knowledge, to understand it, to test it and to move it forward; to meet those who think differently and to put it all at the service of your own growth and that of the society you belong to, as professionals and as citizens.”
With those words, he declared the 2026/2027 university year officially open.
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