From university to the professional world, Maria Cardoso shares her transition to The Light Rebar Company, where she applies academic knowledge in a real context, grows with purpose and discovers in innovation, quality, people and sustainability the meaning of making things happen.
Hello, I’m Maria Cardoso, I’m 22 years old, I’m from Guimarães and I’m currently taking the first steps on my career path.
I have a degree in Environmental Sciences and I’m finishing my Master’s degree in Quality Engineering and Management, both from the University of Minho, and I’m currently a Quality, Environment, Health and Safety Technician at The Light Rebar Company.
Although university gives us a solid base of knowledge, the truth is that it doesn’t always fully prepare us for the reality of day-to-day life in a company. The transition between academia and the professional world was a moment of discovery for me, where I began to understand how the concepts I had learned take shape in practice, through real decisions, deadlines, responsibilities and teamwork.
Entering the job market marked a very special phase for me, It represents the start of a new cycle, full of challenges, learning and personal and professional growth.. In The Light Rebar Company I found a project with which I truly identify: a company with an innovative and more sustainable product, which combines technology, quality and responsibility, and which intersects very naturally with my academic career.
Working in the Quality area has been an extremely enriching experience. I learn new things every day, whether it’s analyzing processes, organizing documentation or observing production with a more critical and attentive eye. At the same time, this experience allows me to consolidate and apply, in a practical way, the knowledge I have acquired throughout my studies, making my work more conscious, structured and geared towards continuous improvement.
The company also teaches me what no book can fully convey: industrial reality, teamwork, the responsibility of decisions and the importance of growing step by step, with consistency, more than books and theory, there are people, projects and voice, and this humanization serves as an intensive course in the daily business environment that greatly enriches and completes me professionally..
More than applying what I’ve learned, I feel like I’m learning every day – from people, from mistakes, from challenges and from practice. Fortunately, this beginning has been lived in an environment of great support and sharing. At The Light Rebar I found people available to teach, clarify and accompany me, which made this transition much lighter. What could have been a “seven-headed bug” turned into a beautiful phase of safe growth and learning.
On a personal level, I’m someone who dreams of seeing the world, growing as a person, building a family and finding a balance between professional and personal life. At work, I’m looking for stability, but above all I’m looking for a place where I can evolve, gain skills, take on responsibilities and actively contribute to the company’s growth making things happenwhich is becoming increasingly difficult in our fast-paced world, making it happen is an advantage beyond compare.
The future is still being mapped out. I’m young, I’m at the beginning of my journey and I’m fully aware that there’s a lot to learn. What I hope is to continue growing in a solid way, aligning my personal values with those of the company, and contributing to a project that is committed to innovation, quality and sustainability.
I believe that success is built on time, commitment and a willingness to learn. And it is in this spirit that I face this stage: with curiosity, responsibility and enthusiasm for what is yet to come.
Basically, like our motto – Changing The World One Rebar at a Time, in my case it’s my world that changes with every meter produced, every meeting with departments, every check, every process, one day at a time.
The Light Rebar Company®
Changing The World one Rebar at a Time.