04-04-2023
The Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering (DEMI) once again had a strong presence at Futurália, the country's largest education, training, and employability fair, held from March 22nd to 25th at the Lisbon International Fair (FIL).
The NOVA School of Science and Technology | FCT NOVA, as the invited entity to attend this event, made a point of representing not only the school itself, but also all departments, which rotated throughout the days of Futurália, allowing everyone to be present and have the opportunity to better promote their educational offerings.
DEMI was present on the final day, March 25th, and representing our department were Professors Rui Martins - Coordinator of the Master's in Mechanical Engineering and Erasmus, also in the area of Mechanics; Daniel Vaz - Coordinator of the Undergraduate Program in Mechanical Engineering; Luís Gil - member of the Scientific Committee of the Master's in Aerospace Engineering; and Radu Godina - Assistant Professor of Industrial Engineering and Management and Coordinator of the M4ML Project, a project that promotes the mobility of professors, students, and researchers in the field of Maritime Logistics between Portugal and Norway.
Also present were some students from our programs: João Bencatel and João André from Mechanical Engineering, and Adriana Alves, Catarina Custódio, and João Ribeiro from Industrial Engineering and Management. The presence of both these students and DEMI faculty at Futurália allowed us not only to provide more accurate information about the programs, but also to better understand, from the faculty, what the new generation seeks in college and higher education.
Professor Daniel Vaz gave a very positive assessment of DEMI's presence at Futurália, highlighting the large turnout of high school students, from 9th to 12th grade, some alone, some accompanied by other classmates and even family members, who visited the FCT NOVA booth this past Saturday. He recalls that "our visitors were often very pleased to learn about the FCT curriculum, which includes quarterly curricular units that aim to promote the development of soft skills across all students."
This was a common response given by FCT professors and students who attended this event, to the most frequently asked question during the event: "Why should we choose your college and/or your courses?" This is undoubtedly a unique feature of FCT NOVA that sets it apart from other colleges.
In addition to this added value, FCT NOVA also stands out, in the words of our students present at the event, for the ease of communicating with Professors who, in general, are very available and accessible people, and for the community atmosphere that exists on campus, which allows for very fruitful interaction between students of all courses, staff and Professors.
