The “Honoring Academic Excellence” Award ceremony was held at the University of Piraeus, with great success, organized by the Department of Statistics and Insurance Science in collaboration with the MSc in Actuarial Science and Risk Management and the MSc in Applied Statistics. The event aimed at highlighting students and graduates who distinguished themselves through their outstanding academic performance and their contribution to the advancement of knowledge in the fields of Statistics and Actuarial Science.
The event opened with a welcome address by Associate Professor and Chair of the Department, Alex Karagrigoriou. The Rector of the University of Piraeus, Professor Michail Sfakianakis, greeted the assembly, expressing his joy and pride at the presence of faculty members, emeritus professors, alumni, students, and representatives of the professional community. He emphasized that the event constitutes tangible evidence of the University’s extroversion and commitment to excellence. He characteristically stated: “Today highlights the effort that we, as academics, and you, as students, make together. Our graduates are the best ambassadors of our University, not only for the knowledge they acquired but also for their ethos. I warmly thank the sponsors and all those who support our mission. We continue with consistency and vision so that the University of Piraeus remains a model of quality and excellence in higher education.”
Next, the Vice-Rector for International and External Relations and Director of the MSc “Actuarial Science and Risk Management,” Professor Georgia Verropoulou; Associate Professor Ioannis Triantafyllou, Director of the MSc “Applied Statistics”; and Alexander Sarrigeorgiou, Chair of the Board of Directors of the Hellenic Association of Insurance Companies (HAIC) and CEO of the Eurolife FFH insurance group, welcomed the audience.
During the ceremony, scholarships of the HAIC were awarded to top graduates of the undergraduate program for the year 2024, to top graduates of the MSc “Actuarial Science and Risk Management” of the same year, as well as to a PhD Candidate of the Department who published part of her dissertation in a high-impact international journal in the field of Actuarial Science. In addition, scholarships were awarded to the top postgraduate students of the 24th cohort of the MSc “Applied Statistics,” as well as to the top undergraduate graduates of 2025 who successfully completed their studies within four years.
Marianna Anyfanti, President of the Hellenic Actuarial Society and CEO of Anras P.C.; Aristidis Semsiris, Senior Manager at PwC and graduate of the MSc “Actuarial Science and Risk Management”; Georgios Bartzis, R&D Data Science Manager at CIRCANA and graduate of the MSc “Applied Statistics”; as well as the President of the Department’s Alumni Association, continued by sharing their professional and academic experiences and highlighting the importance of the high-quality education provided by the University of Piraeus.
The event was organized with the support of the Department’s postgraduate programs, the Hellenic Association of Insurance Companies, and the Hellenic Actuarial Society, reaffirming the strong ties between the academic community and the insurance market.