Dr. Miguel is an international academic with over 32 years of extensive experience in international educational settings. He has
undertaken educator and leadership roles in K-12 and university environments. His main interests are in the areas of
Language Technology, Educational Technology, Translation Technology, Teaching Innovation, and Computer-Assisted
Language Learning. Miguel is currently a member of the Language Research Center of Swansea University, the Red
Iberoamericana de Investigación Educativa, and he reviews manuscripts for publication for ReCALL (Computer-Assisted
Language Learning journal of Cambridge University Press), Language, Interaction, and Acquisition (LIA), and for IAFOR.
Ph.D. Applied Linguistics
(Vocabulary retention, Computer Assisted Language Learning)
Swansea University, Swansea, UK
Master Interdisciplinary Studies
(Educational Technology, Technology Integration)
State University of New York, Qatar
Master Language Technologies
(Computational Linguistics, Programming)
Pompeu Fabra University, Barcelona, Spain
B.A. Translation Studies
(Linguistics, Languages, Translation)
National University of La Plata, La Plata, Argentina
Certificate in Leadership (Online)
Harvard University, Massachusetts, USA
Certificate in Teaching Spanish as a Foreign Language
(Languages Teaching) National University of La Plata, La Plata, Argentina
Latest scholarly works:
Córdova-Rojas, M., Melo Andrade, M., & Varela, M. A. (in press). Gamificación + ludificación avanzada con IA. In Metodologías emergentes para la enseñanza-aprendizaje en la educación. Tirant Humanidades.
Varela, M.A. (2026). Movie Trailers to Improve Vocabulary Retention, Confidence, and Academic Engagement in
Foreign Languages. RE@D - Journal of Distance Education and eLearning. https://doi.org/10.34627/redvol9iss3e202608
Varela, M.A. (2026). Left Alone With AI: Evaluating Student Preparedness for Fully Automated Language Instruction.
The Washington DC Conference on the Social Sciences 2026 Official Conference. https://doi.org/10.22492/issn.2760-7267.2026.14
Red Iberoamericana de Investigación Educativa (RIBIE), (2024-Present)
Member, Language Research Center at Swansea University (2020-Present)
Asst. Professor, Prince Mohammad Bin Fahd University, Dhahran, Saudi Arabia Present
AI Prompt Engineering, Core program educator.
Graduate Adjunct Professor, Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC), Spain 2026-Present
Supervise remote graduate research, lead courses in Computer Assisted Language Learning.
Thesis Supervisor, International University of La Rioja, Spain 2024-2026
Graduate research remote supervision for the Master’s in Educational Technology.
Graduate research supervisor, University of Kurdistan Hewler, Iraq 2025-2026
Supervise graduate research, led courses in Applied Linguistics and Translation Technology.
Curriculum Designer, City University Miami, Miami Mar-Nov 2025
Design and update the curriculum of the Master’s program in Artificial Intelligence.
Adjunct Professor, University of Doha for Science and Technology, Qatar 2022-2023
Led Effective Learning course and redesigned the curriculum. Taught Experiential Learning courses and developed the
curriculum for a Graduate Diploma on EdTech.
1. Artificial Intelligence and Language Technologies
2. Technology-Enhanced Learning and Educational Innovation
3. Applied Linguistics, Sociolinguistics and Multilingualism
4. Translation, Semantic Web and Web technologies
5. Digital Transformation, AI Literacy and the Future of Education
