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Weronika Janowicz, who graduated from the Faculty of Mechanical and Power Engineering, and Tomasz Szandała, PhD Eng, a graduate of the Faculty of Management, are the main winners of the competition for the best graduates of our university in the academic year 2023/2024.
The best undergraduate graduate in the academic year 2023/24 was Weronika Janowicz, who graduated with a degree in renewable energy sources from the Faculty of Mechanical and Power Engineering.
- ‘I chose this major because I wanted to understand the principles of energy conversion systems based on renewable energy sources,’ says Weronika Janowicz. - ‘I realise that they will play an increasingly important role in the energy transition, so I believe that their sensible use is one of the main opportunities to combat climate change,’ she adds.
Weronika Janowicz's engineering thesis ‘Water cooling system for photovoltaic modules’, written under the supervision of Michał Pomorski, PhD from the Faculty of Mechanical and Energy Engineering, was an attempt to assess the possibility of cooling photovoltaic modules with water and the impact of this cooling on the module's operating parameters, including the increase in their efficiency.
The main part of the work was devoted to experimental research. - On a test rig I designed and built, I carried out measurements under various atmospheric conditions to determine the effect of liquid cooling of the modules on their parameters, explains the winner.
Weronika Janowicz is currently pursuing a master's degree in power engineering in English, with a specialisation in computer-aided engineering in mechanics and power engineering. She has decided to focus on heat transfer and fluid mechanics. She is also involved in a project at the Department of Thermodynamics and Renewable Energy related to the study of fluid flow structures using the Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) technique.
- In the future, I plan to further my scientific development and start studying at the Wrocław Tech Doctoral School,’ says Weronika Janowicz, who enjoys hiking in the mountains in her free time. - I am in the process of conquering the Crown of the Polish Mountains, and I also cheer on Polish athletes and tennis players whenever I can,' she adds.
Tomasz Szandała, PhD Eng from the Faculty of Management, who graduated with a specialisation in managerial behaviour and decisions, has been selected as the best second-cycle graduate at our university. Two years earlier, he had defended his doctorate in artificial intelligence at the Faculty of Information and Communication Technology, where he now works in the Department of Technical Informatics.
I pursued additional master's studies mainly for myself, and I was inspired to do so by my fiancée, Natalia - says. - We have many outstanding students at Wrocław Tech and I hope to one day create a promising startup with them, similar to Revolut, Tesla, or OpenAI.
The award winner admits he learned a lot by being on the other side of the desk. I will use this experience in my teaching - says our researcher. - I even have an idea for a new business and IT course at our faculty.
He combines his work at the university with a career in the industry as a DevOps engineer. In his master's thesis, "Motives and Consequences of Multiple Job-Holding among IT Professionals," written under the supervision of Dr. Beata Bajcar from the Faculty of Management, he decided to investigate the phenomenon of dual employment in the IT industry and analyze the reasons why specialists in this field take on additional jobs. Spoiler: it's not always about money! - notes Tomasz Szandała. - Surprisingly, a common motivation is a hobby, the desire to try something new, or an escape from professional burnout.
Tomasz Szandała is currently on a government scholarship in Lugano, Switzerland, where he is working on detecting deepfakes in photographs. AI-generated images are a threat to society, and I believe I can help and do something beneficial for everyone - he says. - Moreover, I would like to bring many elements from Swiss universities to our campus, such as engaging young students in research through university micro-grants or encouraging working students to share their knowledge – for example, by leading the labs to their peers. Students are great; it's worth trusting them and giving them the chance to do something extraordinary. I also know that I will encourage young people to pursue similar exchanges. It's an amazing experience, but it also shows that there are pros and cons everywhere- he adds.
As for his free time, he firmly states that it is a rare commodity. - If I have spare time, I mainly enjoy all kinds of games, especially board games, which I play with friends and family. I'm always looking for people eager to play, like the board game Everdell - he says.
