João Norte and Gonçalo Frutuoso, master’s students in Computer Science and Engineering at Instituto Superior Técnico, were honoured for their academic performance in the Software Architecture curricular unit in the 2024/2025 academic year. The two students won the 1st edition of the Deloitte Merit Award in Software Architecture, which recognises academic performance in this curricular unit (UC).
The prize of 1800 euros was presented at the award ceremony, held on 4 April in the Main Building’s Meeting Room, at Técnico – Alameda campus. ‘This award is an incentive. I think that professors made the UC very interesting and prepared us well for the real world’, said Gonçalo Frutuoso. João Norte thanked Técnico, the professors involved in the UC and the company.
Rogério Colaço, the President of Técnico, thanked Deloitte for supporting the initiative, saying that ‘these awards are just the beginning of what we’ve been building at Técnico in recent years’. The initiative reflects ‘Técnico’s strategy of engaging with society by understanding the needs of companies and facilitating opportunities for students to connect with them’, he added.
Pedro Amaral, the Vice-President of Técnico for Corporate Interface, Innovation and Entrepreneurship, argued at the opening of the ceremony that ‘Técnico is committed to recognising the hard work and dedication of its students’. ‘This award serves as both a public acknowledgment and a school recognition of their merit’, he said, also highlighting the importance of Deloitte as a strategic partner and the growing role the company plays ‘within the school’s ecosystem’.
During the ceremony, the finalist projects developed as part of the Software Architecture curricular unit were presented. The groups presented their proposals, objectives, challenges and the practical application of the software. The student groups Ana Margarida Almeida and Tiago Farinha, João Norte and Gonçalo Frutuoso, Gonçalo Rodrigues and João Durão, participated in the pitches. Each pitch was followed by a question-and-answer moment, moderated by a jury made up of António Rito (senior lecturer of the UC), Pedro Monteiro (Coordinator of the Master’s Programme in Computer Science and Engineering), and Rui Pedro Vaz and Miguel Mendes (Deloitte representatives and both Técnico alumni).
Rui Pedro Vaz, Partner at Deloitte and Técnico alumnus, praised the quality of the projects and emphasised the importance of collaboration between academia and business: “It’s very interesting to see students exposed to experiences that didn’t exist when I studied here. Today, there is a growing trend for companies to be more proactive and collaborate more directly with universities.”
The ceremony ended with a donation of 1,200 euros to the Department of Computer Science and Engineering (DEI) to improve the quality of teaching and learning in the Software Architecture UC. Luís Caires, Vice-Head of DEI, thanked Deloitte for its support, stressing that this type of initiatives ‘motivate students, professors and the department’s entire teaching team’. He also emphasised the department’s ongoing efforts to forge closer ties with the business community and foster partnerships that enhance the students’ training.
