Barbara Palvin Is the Newest Victoria's Secret Angel: 'It's the Ultimate Career High'

Barbara Palvin is the first Hungarian supermodel to join the Victoria's Secret Angel family

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Published on March 14, 2019 03:00PM EDT

Barbara Palvin is ready to announce some big news.

The Hungarian model, 25, is joining the Victoria’s Secret family as the brand’s newest Angel. “I’ve been keeping this a secret for three months,” Palvin tells PEOPLE exclusively. “It’s the ultimate career high!”

Palvin’s road to becoming a Victoria’s Secret Angel has been a long time coming. She first walked in the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show in 2012, modeled in multiple campaigns afterward, including three in 2018, and then made her grand return to the catwalk after this past November. And now she’s officially the first Hungarian model to join the Victoria’s Secret Angel family.

“When I was 13, I saw the VS Fashion Show and said, ‘One day I will get there.’ Three or four years later, I shot with Victoria’s Secret PINK for the first time,” Palvin says. “Now, I feel like I was destined to do this. Victoria’s Secret caught me at the perfect time, because I’m finally happy with myself and my body.”

When she got the call from Victoria’s Secret with the news that she was officially getting her Angel wings, the model was in Hungary and immediately called boyfriend , Dylan Sprouse, who was back in the U.S.

Variety x Armani Makeup Artistry Dinner, Los Angeles, USA - 20 Feb 2019 — Katie Jones/Variety/Shutterstock

“He couldn’t believe it. Then he was like, ‘I told you. I knew it,'” she says. Then she ran downstairs at 5:30 a.m. to tell her parents. “They were half-asleep, but they were freaking out. First they thought something was wrong, but then I repeated myself and they were so happy,” Palvin says. “My mom cried a little bit, and my dad fist-bumped my shoulder, like he usually does.”

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Palvin says she’s proud to “support a brand that actually supports beautiful body types and diversity,” especially since she’s battled internet body shamers herself. “Once I accepted my body I felt healthier and better than ever,” she adds.

But the model admits that confidence is something she still struggles with on a daily basis.

“I’m still fighting to feel confident all the time because there’s always things we can work on with ourselves,” Palvin says. “I think that the beauty of Victoria’s Secret is that they really support me for who I am and how I look. I’m thankful for them.”

031419-sexy-sleep-barbara — Victoria's Secret

Palvin credits waking up early (usually around 7 a.m. when the sun rises) and working out with her personal trainer as the best way to boost her mood. She adds with a laugh, “But of course, sexy lingerie does it too.” Her pick: a “very lacy red one-piece” that her man’s sure to love.

RELATED PHOTOS: UPDATED! The Best New Beauty Products of 2019

To celebrate Palvin’s exciting news, we had the new Angel share her all-time favorite picks from Victoria’s Secret that you can shop below.