The IEEE Student Branch of University of Western Macedonia, Kastoria was founded in 2012 by Professor Michalas Angelos and a group of students from the then Department of Informatics (formerly TEI of Western Macedonia). Currently, our Student Branch counts members from three departments of the University of Western Macedonia in Kastoria (UoWM). Specifically, our members are students from both the departments of the School of Science of UoWM (Departments of Informatics and Mathematics), as well as from the Department of Communication and Digital Media.

The main goal of our team is to help student-members come into contact with new technologies, science, and the job market.

Our Activities

To achieve this goal, our Student Branch organizes activities in various fields of technology. During our operation, we have implemented seminars, workshops, and projects related to:

• Programming: Specifically, members come into contact with the world of web development, Competitive Programming, and IoT.
• Networks and Cybersecurity: With examples such as the Cisco Networking Academy and the configuration of network devices (Routers, Switches, and WiFi Access Points).
• Hardware Utilization: Such as Arduino, Raspberry Pi, and PC hardware.
• Education: Specifically through our activities, members come into contact with educational robotics, STEAM (Science Technology Engineering Arts Mathematics), and become familiar with the logic of out of the box education.

Thus, student-members have the opportunity to choose which of the above activities and projects they will participate in and join, according to their own interests, with the main goal of getting to know and experimenting with cutting-edge technologies.

Outreach & Competitions

Apart from experimenting with new technologies, the team invests in the outreach of its members. With this logic, the students take part in competitions (either under the auspices of the IEEE organization or within the local community). Some of the competitions we have participated in are IEEEXtreme and Smart Kozani, with multiple participations and distinctions during the operation of our branch.

At the same time, we have participated in and organized a plethora of activities such as:

• Conferences: Paper submissions or attendance (e.g., SEEDA-CECNSM, Panhellenic Conference of Informatics Teachers, FOSSCOMM, SFHMMY, Voxxed Days).
• IEEE Activities: At the national and international level (e.g., IEEE HSYP Congress and IEEE R8SYP Congress).
• Technology Festivals: Such as the Athens Makers Mini Faire Festival.
• Professional Networking: Such as the Skywalker Job Festival.

Through these specific activities, our student-members are faced with topics that have the sole goal of broadening their horizons, acquiring soft skills, and producing material that will make them stand out in the job market.

By building a “strong” portfolio, the members who are highly active in our student branch, by common consensus, also have an intense activity in their professional careers. This is directly reflected in our team as well, as we have distinguished ourselves both at an International and Panhellenic level (with several awards from the IEEE organization, Panhellenic competitions, and conferences) due to the implementation of our members’ projects.