Bachelor in Information Systems for Management

The Management and Information Systems course (now Information Systems for Management) at UPT enabled me to explore the two main areas in which I have always had the greatest interest – management and technology, whilst applying the use of information technology to business and the corporate world. The well-balanced curriculum enabled me to develop a foundation in management, business accounting and financial analysis, whilst also honing my skills in general programming and business process analysis. This pathway helped me enter the job market at one of the country’s leading retail companies, where I am applying my IT knowledge and experience within a human resources management team, working in direct contact with the company’s management processes through information systems.

I am completing my degree in Information Systems for Management at Universidade Portucalense, knowing that I am leaving this institution not only more confident and better prepared for the job market, but also a better person. I owe my personal and professional development over the past three years not only to the rigour of the Management Information Systems degree programme, in both its theoretical and practical aspects, but also to the teaching staff, who have always been helpful and attentive to students’ needs, and who have provided us with all the knowledge necessary to complete this demanding degree. Furthermore, it was through my academic journey at Universidade Portucalense that I gained a broad understanding of all aspects of the programme’s curriculum and, in particular, realised which area most appealed to me and which I have chosen for my professional future. Thanks to the ‘Work Placement’ module, I was able to graduate from this course already in employment, in a role and at a company that I love. And I can say that, even though I already have a job, I have not stopped receiving job offers, due to the high demand and limited supply of Management Information Systems graduates in the labour market. I would also like to extend a special thank you to Universidade Portucalense and the teaching staff for helping me secure employment and ensure my professional future.

It feels as if it were only yesterday that I first enrolled at Universidade Portucalense on the Information Systems for Management course, full of doubts about the choice I’d made and whether I’d really made the right decision. Four years on, I can assure you that I couldn’t be more satisfied with my choice, given everything that Universidade Portucalense has given me, both academically and now professionally. Throughout my academic journey, the lecturers were always extremely willing to help students with whatever they needed; specifically regarding the Management Information Systems course, I can attest to the excellent career prospects this programme offers, the fact that it includes a curricular work placement – which is vital for entering the job market – and, finally, the various modules taught, which ensure students acquire the knowledge needed to work in different areas; in my case, this led to a position as a Junior Programmer at the renowned consultancy firm Deloitte Portugal. Finally, I would like to express my gratitude for the education that Portucalense University has provided me with.

I completed my degree in Business Management at Universidade Portucalense in 1995. Even before finishing my degree, I applied for and was accepted by Coopers & Lybrand (C&L), a firm which, in 1998, merged with Price Waterhouse to form PricewaterhouseCoopers, or PwC, one of the world’s largest professional services firms. When I was recruited as an audit assistant in 1995, C&L was recruiting around 50 young people every year for the audit, tax and consultancy departments. Today, PwC recruits more than 400 people a year, including recent graduates with bachelor’s or master’s degrees and professionals who already have several years’ experience. Throughout my career spanning almost 27 years, 12 of which as a Partner at PwC, I have always placed great value on my education, in particular everything I learnt in terms of technical and behavioural skills at Universidade Portucalense, which helped me lay the foundations for building my career at this firm.. With recruitment needs increasing every year, I know that PwC is very active in engaging with the country’s leading universities to identify and recruit students whose profiles meet our requirements and who share our values. As a former student of Universidade Portucalense, I am delighted to see PwC recruiting students from the university, initially from the Information Systems for Management programme. The performance of these young professionals has been regarded as very positive, and the technical skills they bring from their academic training have been highly rated, which paves the way for a deeper relationship between these two organisations.