The DCC student began her journey with a bachelor's and master's degree in Computer Science and is now pursuing a PhD, focused on a theoretical component.
Ana Jorge Almeida, a PhD student in the Doctoral Programme in Computer Science at FCUP, is among the 12 students selected to receive a scholarship awarded under the 5th edition of the CMU Portugal Affiliated PhD Programmes.
“The programme appealed to me greatly, because I find the possibility of carrying out part of the work in the United States of America particularly attractive, both due to the research tradition and the contact with different academic communities (as well as the fact that it’s simply the USA),” explains the doctoral student.
She is pursuing her PhD in the theoretical area of Computer Science, with research focused on the use of computational resources and improving their management through linearisation and concurrency techniques. “My work can be applied, for example, to programming languages, enabling them to manage their resources more efficiently without the need to handle ‘garbage’, as is usually the case,” she explains.
Her interest in the theoretical area existed even before entering the programme. When she was told that the Computer Science degree placed strong emphasis on logic, Ana Jorge Almeida did not hesitate. During the degree, she fell in love with the subject, specialised in “Reliable Computing” and went on to write her dissertation entitled “Linear Calculi: a comparison approach”, with the support of professors Mário Florido and Sandra Alves, who are now her PhD supervisors.
With the CMU Portugal scholarship, the student will also be co-supervised by Jan Hoffmann, a researcher at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, with whom she will work for one year. “This opportunity will strengthen the ambitions and the scope of my research project,” she believes.
All candidates were selected following a rigorous evaluation process conducted by a panel of faculty members and researchers from Portuguese universities and CMU.
About the CMU Portugal Programme
The CMU Portugal Affiliated PhD Programmes focus on strengthening collaboration between Portuguese higher education institutions and Portuguese companies, through a solid partnership with Carnegie Mellon University.
The PhD scholarships, funded by the Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia, fully cover tuition fees, in addition to providing a monthly grant for a maximum period of four years, including financial support for a 12-month research period at CMU. After completing the PhD, candidates will receive a degree awarded by the Portuguese host institution.