Valter Fernandes is a Técnico alumnus, Project Developer and Senior Advisor to CEO at TAP.
He chose the university before picking a course. The references he had from his father, godfather and godmather, all of them Técnico alumni, made his ideas clear. “I was deciding between Mechanical or Aerospace engineering”, recalls engineer Valter Fernandes. Mechanical engineering ended up to be his first choice due to “a widest range of career options in the industrial sector”.
The idea “it’s a lot easier entering Técnico than leaving” occured to him several times during his academic life. It was not an easy journey and it took him a lot of work and dedication. “The best academic memories I have are related to the last curricular units, which were the most specific ones”, said the Senior Advisor to CEO at TAP. The “active participation at Junitec” was also part of these good memories, as well as the friends he made and still kepts.
After finishing the course he worked at UMM as Quality Manager and then he joined TAP. Aviation and management captivated him during his academic journey: “While I was studying at Técnico my best academic achievements were in the fields of Economics, Production management and similar areas”. “Throughout my professional life I ended up doing engineering only 4 years”, recalls Valter Fernandes. Nevertheless, he is sure that his background “is key to better understand problems and to make better decisions”.
His dedication and committment, as well as the teams he joined were essential for his success. According to Valter Fernandes “the success obtained at this moment is always the best way of boosting your career”.
When asked if he would make different choices, he answers with determination: “Never. Técnico is a school of excellence and I made the right decision”, he points out. “Técnico helped me to solve any hard problem, in an analytical, pragmatic and methodical way”, says engineer Valter Fernandes. If there is one thing that Técnico didn’t teach me to say was: “It’s very difficult, I am not able to do this”.
