Técnico celebrated its 10th Graduation Day on January 12th, in Aula Magna. The ceremony brought together more than 200 finalists, their families and friends.
The president of Técnico, professor Arlindo Oliveira, opened the session and took the opportunity to congratulate the graduates and recognise the important role families play in student achievement and school improvement. Professor Arlindo Oliveira highlighted some of the most important skills that Técnico students acquire during their academic journey: “learning to think and to reason, solve complex and abstract problems, which will be useful to face the future challenges of Science, Technology and Engineering”. At the end of his speech, the president of Técnico expressed a desire: “I hope that, throughout your lives, you see yourselves as Técnico students, which means that you are always prepared to learn. As Técnico graduates, I am sure you are proud to have graduated in Portugal’s biggest and best engineering school”.
Bruno Gonçalves, graduated in Electrical and Computer Engineering and Ana Marta Borges, graduated in Electronics Engineering shared their experiences with the audience. Bruno Gonçalves explained how difficult it was for him to finish the course and highlighted the importance of his family and friends during his academic journey. A sense of accomplishment and the lessons learnt that will be useful to a journey that is about to begin were also highlighted by the Técnico alumnus. “A professor once told me that Técnico picks the best students who are about to enter the university, push them to the limit and then, when they leave Técnico they are exceptional people”, said Bruno Gonçalves, who also challenged his colleagues: “Be innovative and resilient in this phase of our lives, without fearing new challenges”.
According to Ana Marta Borges “Técnico has given us the opportunity and the means to develop our technical and personal skills. And this is what distinguishes a Técnico student from other students: a constant state of self-improvement and never give up”. “We will always be able to face all the challenges thanks to all we have learnt here”.
Cristina Fonseca, Técnico alumna, shared her experience and gave some advice: “Eight years ago, I was standing where you are now and, as most of you, I was naïve although I did not believe it. I graduated in Portugal’s biggest engineering school and I had everything to have a bright future”. After a pneumonia and being hospitalized, Cristina Fonseca learnt that “life may end tomorrow. What we do today is what matters most”. “I decided that I was not going to spend my life doing what other people expected me to do”, said the co-founder of Talkdesk. When she finished her master’s degree, she decided not to accept any job offer “because none of the job offers interested me at all”. “A lot of people thought I was crazy, including some people who are in this room today and with whom I learnt so much”, said Cristina Fonseca. “The experience gained over the years and resilience inspired us to create Talkdesk”. “Success takes time, it’s more or less like finishing a course at Técnico”, said Cristina Fonseca, who stressed that “making yourself indispensable is the best way to succeed”.
The Rector of Universidade de Lisboa (ULisboa), professor António Cruz Serra, congratulated Técnico graduates, who are “skillful young people who can contribute for a better country and society”. “We expect a lot from you. We hope that you go much further than we went and that you have the opportunity to create national innovative companies. And of course, we hope that at least some of you can win a Nobel Prize”.
