2 November 2011 Jade prize winners great example of student achievers

Two Lincoln University students have shared the 2011 Jade Prize for topping their Software Engineering class.

Alice Churcher of Christchurch and Muhammad Nda, originally from Nigeria, share a $2000 prize in the 13th year that the award has been offered by Jade Software Corporation. 

Alice is studying for a Graduate Diploma in Software and Information Technology and Muhammad has just completed a Bachelor of Software and Information Technology degree.

“Alice and Muhammad are great examples of what students can achieve,”  says Software Engineering course examiner Dr Stuart Charters. “The students put a fantastic amount of effort into their studies and it was impossible to distinguish between their performances. Both are worthy winners of the Jade Prize.”

Jade Corporation’s Hiren Patel, who presented the prize, said his company valued its partnership with Lincoln University.

“We believe that a close relationship between industry and academia helps to produce graduates who have relevant and practical skills. The company congratulates Alice and Muhammad. They have continued the strong tradition of excellence established by winners of the Jade Prize.”

Alice, a past pupil of Burnside High School with an honours degree in music from Otago University, is setting her sights on a career as a software developer and software architect after gaining more work experience.

Of the course that led to the Jade Prize she says:  “I have really enjoyed getting my head around a large piece of software and working in a team to develop it.”
 
Outside of university Alice enjoys snowboarding, indoor soccer and composing music.

Muhammad, who attended Ulul Albad Science Secondary School in the northern Nigerian  state of Katsina, started at Lincoln University in 2009 and has now completed his degree.

He too enjoyed the teamwork involved in the Software Engineering course.

“Exposure to the software industry through the course was also a great benefit,” he says. “It provided good experience for moving on into the workplace.”

Muhammad now has a position with Christchurch based software development company Contec Group International Ltd.

In April this year Muhammad was a member of the Lincoln University team which made it into the final round of the national Microsoft event to select a team to represent New Zealand in the world’s largest student technology competition, the Microsoft Imagine Cup, held in New York.

Outside of study and work, Muhammad’s interests include soccer and polo.