The phrase ‘A man is not born to work; he is born to create and to be a poet’, originally from Agostinho da Silva, was quoted by the president of Instituto Superior Técnico, Rogério Colaço, to kick off a debate on generative artificial intelligence (GenAI). This initiative, in collaboration with the Público newspaper, was part of the Jobshop, an event organised by the Técnico Students’ Union (AEIST), which took place from 28 and 30 April at the Técnico Innovation Center powered by Fidelidade.
The debate titled ‘The impact of GenAI on the skills young people need to develop to enter the job market’ was described by Rogério Colaço as ‘an extraordinarily pressing issue’. However, the debate (the full broadcast is available at the end of this article) was not the only highlight of the Jobshop. Dinis Silva, a third-year student in the Undergraduate Programme in Electrical and Computer Engineering, attended the event primarily for the opportunity to connect with the business community at the company fair. He wanted ‘to learn about various companies and the internship offers available’, particularly summer internships. Now enrolled in a Master’s Programme in the same field, specialising in Control, Robotics and Artificial Intelligence, he attended Jobshop with a friend and shared his recommendation – ‘here, we meet new companies, gain a better understanding of the opportunities available and discover companies that have emerged from Técnico, which can be inspiring if you’re looking to start yours.’
On the “other side” of the spectrum, Lina Simões, head of recruitment at Metropolitano de Lisboa, views Jobshop as a valuable resource. ‘We’ve been participating in Jobshop for many years and we’ve always had positive experiences’, she shares, adding that ‘Técnico is a benchmark institution in engineering education’, noting that the young engineers who graduated from Técnico and join the company ‘have a solid academic background’.
Maria Teresa Andrade has been quite busy lately, as she is one of those responsible for organising the event. The Técnico student highlighted that ‘this is a great opportunity to make a first contact with companies, find internships and explore what’s “out there” available in the business world’. However, the benefits extend beyond just the participants. For the students who organised the event, the experience is also formative and enriching. ‘We gained a lot of team spirit – we were able to deal with a lot of crises’, she laughs, exchanging complicit glances with team-mates around her.
