“In the beginning, it was a bit difficult – I didn’t talk to many people”. Rodrigo Teixeira recognises in his own experience the obstacles that new university students may face. That’s why, now in his second year, he decided to take part in the Mentoring Programme, accompanying a group of new students at Instituto Superior Técnico from their first day at the Welcome Week.
“I hope I can share everything I learnt last year to make it easier for them”, he explains. In his case, the mentors he was assigned to “were very important”, as they helped him clear doubts, solve bureaucratic issues and choose timetables.
According to Afonso Veríssimo, another mentor in his second year, the greatest help he found was becoming part of a group. “On my first day at Técnico, I was very nervous and my mentors helped me”, he shares. “I kept in touch with mentors and the group of mentees I was part of, which was a great help in keeping pace with my studies”.
Constança Paixão praises the group she mentors. “They’re all very sweet”, she says, smiling, adding that she still exchanges messages in the chat she joined in her first year as a new student. “It helped me a lot to integrate and meet people from other courses”, she explains.
Filipe Vasconcelos, a master’s student in Engineering Physics (coming from another university), is already sharing his testimony surrounded by new colleagues, all from the same mentoring group formed a few minutes earlier. He believes that ‘Técnico trains great professionals in this field’. Often, during his studies, he came across ‘excellent work by Técnico professors’, which encouraged him to want to study at the school. André Rodrigues, also in the same master’s programme, wants to pursue research and expects “a lot of work”. “Técnico will open many doors for the future”, he says. These and several other master’s students arrived at Técnico throughout the week and participated in different initiatives according to their field of study.
This was the last day of Welcome Week activities, which also included the usual institutional session with the Técnico Management Board and Pedagogical Council and the welcoming session for the new students’ families. The Alameda campus was home to the Undergraduate Programmes in Computer Science and Engineering, Materials Engineering, Engineering in Mining and Energy Resources and Naval Architecture and Ocean Engineering. The Taguspark campus welcomed students participating in mobility programmes.
The activities of the Welcome Week don’t stop there – the weekend is filled with initiatives aimed at integrating the participants into academic and Lisbon life, including outings, dinner parties and other activities.
Welcome Week daily news:
- First day – Técnico welcomes new students on the first day of Welcome Week
- Second day – New students arrive at Taguspark campus searching for Técnico’s “prestige”
- Third day – New students “root for Técnico” at Welcome Week
- Fourth day – Students’ organisations and socialising during Welcome Week – because “Técnico isn’t just about going to classes”
- Family Information Sessions – Welcome Week – What do students’ families have to say about Técnico?
