The first edition of the BNP Paribas Merit Award took place on 6 December, in the Meeting Room of the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, at Técnico – Alameda campus. The award aims to recognise the best student entering the Master’s Programme in Computer Science and Engineering. The ceremony was attended by five finalists, who had the opportunity to present their motivations and plans to a jury made up of Técnico and BNP Paribas representatives.
Daniel Carvalho, a 1st year Master’s student, was the big winner of this edition. Aged 21 and from Pinhal Novo, he shared his interest in artificial intelligence and data science, highlighting the applicability of these subjects at BNP Paribas in areas such as market forecasting, risk management and personalised customer experience. The student thanked ‘Técnico and BNP Paribas for the opportunity’ and said it was ‘an honour to see his effort and dedication recognised’. The prize money is worth 2,500 euros.
The other finalists – Diogo Costa, Gonçalo Pattenden, Henrique Carrão and Henrique Soares – also presented the scientific areas with which they identify, such as cybersecurity, software engineering and distributed systems. Their presentations emphasised the relevance of these areas to the digital transformation challenges faced by BNP Paribas.
The jury was made up of Sérgio Cabrita, Auditor at BNP Paribas, Rui Dias Morais, Data Lab Team Manager at BNP Paribas, professors Alberto Abad and Pedro Monteiro, who coordinate the Master’s programme in Computer Science and Engineering. Sérgio Cabrita emphasised the ‘excellent level of the candidates’ and stressed that ‘Técnico is BNP Paribas most important partnership in Portugal’. Pedro Monteiro praised the merit of the students and the positive impact of this award on the relationship between Técnico and the business sector.
In addition to the individual award, a donation of 1,670 euros was made to the Master’s Programme Coordination Office for the improvement of teaching activities.
The Head of the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Miguel Pupo Correia, thanked BNP Paribas for the initiative and stressed the importance of business partnerships to ‘promote the link between students and the labour market’.
At the end of the ceremony, Pedro Amaral, the Vice-president Técnico for Corporate Interface, Innovation and Entrepreneurship, congratulated the finalists and described the 1st edition of the award as ‘an important milestone in recognising the talent of Técnico students’.
