Christos Hitiris

October 2026 · Personal project

An interactive brainstorming board that answers the question “What can I do with a degree in Informatics?”. It maps 20 professional fields and 124 job roles for Informatics graduates in Greece — from software development and data to teaching, the public sector and tech sales.

For every role it shows a short description, the main duties, the required knowledge and skills, and links to full job descriptions (Workable, Indeed, SHRM). Fields marked “ΦΕΚ” are based on the professional rights of Informatics graduates as defined by Presidential Decree 44/2009.

A single-page web application (HTML, CSS, JavaScript) that works on desktop and mobile, in light and dark theme. The content is in Greek.

2015 – 2024 · Internet of Things, Smart Cities, Education

The Internet of Things (IoT) became a part of my life through my postgraduate studies, where I explored Modern Telecommunication Systems, Internet Technologies, IoT and System Security. In my MSc thesis I studied sensor systems for smart cities and rural areas, focusing on their potential to assist in wildfire prediction and improve the management of the urban environment (see the MSc Thesis card).

Subsequently, in collaboration with Mr. Dimitris Tzimas, then IT Coordinator of the Western Macedonia Regional Education Authority, I organized activities in schools to introduce students and educators to IoT and Arduino technologies, which led to publications at the Panhellenic Conference of Informatics Teachers.

Building on this work and on the material of our STEAM workshops, in 2022 we created Citizension of Smart Cities: an educational initiative and online platform on the Internet of Things and Smart Cities, with an interdisciplinary approach that combines Mathematics and Informatics. Citizension won 3rd place in the Ph.D. Candidates category of the 3rd Student and University Programming Competition “Kozani 2030: Climate-Neutral and Smart City”.

2013 – present · IEEE Student Branch, Kastoria

IEEE has been a significant chapter in my life, as I have been actively involved with the Student Branch of the University of Western Macedonia in Kastoria since 2013. Through my activities in IEEE, I developed both technical skills and soft skills that proved invaluable in my subsequent professional career. Additionally, I had the privilege of witnessing how such an initiative can positively contribute to the development of an academic community and add value to new students.

I had the honor of representing the Student Branch and the University of Western Macedonia at two IEEE Hellenic Student and Young Professional Congresses: in 2015 at Aristotle University of Thessaloniki and in 2017 at the National Technical University of Athens. The achievements of the Student Branch were highly recognized, as reflected in the IEEE Exemplary Student Branch Awards that we received consecutively in 2017, 2018, 2019 and continue to receive to this day.

After completing my degree, although I was no longer directly involved in project development within the team, I focused on empowering students, mentoring them, and supporting the Student Branch in management-related matters. I had the opportunity to guide students and connect them with professionals in the field through projects related to Web Development, the Internet of Things (IoT), new technologies in education, Game Development, and content creation, such as graphic design, video production, and social media.

Moreover, I presented topics about the IEEE organization and the opportunities it offers its members while organizing workshops aimed at developing soft skills. The workshops covered areas such as CV creation, building LinkedIn profiles, decision-making, presentation skills, time management, productivity, human resources management, and more. My goal was to support both the Board Members and regular members of the Student Branch, helping them grow and prepare for the job market with competitive resumes and portfolios.

2010 – present · Websites

My journey in Web Development started at a young age, initially experimenting with forums and blogs during my teenage years. This early interest grew further as I explored HTML and CSS in school, followed by studies at a vocational training institute (IEK), where I earned the ECDL Web Start certification. My diploma thesis during this period focused on “Developing a Website for Hotel Units” using the Joomla CMS.

After completing my studies in Computer Engineering at the University of Western Macedonia, I delved deeper into Web Development. This passion also influenced my undergraduate thesis, where I worked extensively with technologies such as Angular, Ionic, and WordPress. Concurrently, I contributed to the development, maintenance, and content creation for various platforms. These included the IEEE Student Branch website, which evolved from Drupal to Joomla over two years and ultimately to WordPress, where it remains to this day, and the Robotics Team website (kastoriarobotics.wordpress.com).

During my time as a part-time employee at the department and later as a postgraduate student, I actively maintained and updated the department’s and Master’s program’s websites, initially in Joomla. Later, I was involved in their redesign, migrating to WordPress, where I continue to oversee their maintenance and content updates.

Additionally, I manage the design, maintenance, and content for the Mixed Reality and Networked Systems Lab website (miranet.ece.uowm.gr), ensuring it remains functional and up-to-date.

2015 – 2025 · IEEE Student Branch & professional engagements

As part of my volunteer activities with the IEEE Student Branch and my professional engagements, I have actively participated in the organization and support of conferences. Since 2015, I have contributed to the successful execution of numerous conferences, undertaking roles such as team coordination, technical support, registration management, and the preparation of presentations and workshops.

Through these experiences, I have developed valuable organizational and communication skills while expanding my network within academic and professional communities. Some of the most notable conferences I have supported include:

• Panhellenic Conference of Computer Science Teachers (2015, 2016)
• SEEDA-CECNSM (2016–2017)
• FOSSCOMM – Free and Open Source Software Communities Meeting (2020)
• International Scientific Conference “The 17 Sustainable Development Goals in Education – Teaching, Lifelong Learning, Inclusion and Innovation for the Green and Digital Transition” (2023–2025), diamorfosis.eu

My involvement in these conferences has allowed me to actively contribute to the promotion of research, innovation, and collaboration within and beyond the academic community.

2016 – 2023 · IEEE Student Branch, Department of Informatics

The Romilos Weather Station is a milestone project that started in 2013–2014 within the IEEE Student Branch of our Department. The project was named “Romilos” in honor of a beloved team member who tragically passed away in a car accident in 2014.

The first version was based on the SparkFun Weather Station with Arduino and was presented at the Athens Mini Maker Faire (May 6–7, 2017). The station collected weather data, displayed in real time through a Java application developed in collaboration with Michalis Alexandros Savvanis and Gavriil Mellidis. In October of the same year, a new version of the application was implemented in JavaScript by Thanos Korakas.

The second phase (academic year 2018–2019) had an educational orientation, aiming to introduce new students to Arduino through a Project-Based Learning approach; the team consisted of four students coordinated by Efi Kollia.

The third phase took place in 2022–2023, when together with undergraduate students Christos Anastasios and Polychronis Kotsiopoulos we developed a new IoT version of the station, modernizing the original code and extending its functionality, as documented in the GitHub repository.

The Romilos Weather Station is not just a technological project but also a living example of collaboration, memory, and continuous evolution in the field of Arduino and IoT.

2014 – 2019 · Education, STEAM

During my undergraduate and postgraduate studies I took part in numerous outreach activities for students and teachers in primary and secondary education.

In 2014 and 2015 I had the honor of returning to my high school, the Mavrogeneio Vocational School (EPAL) of Samos, to speak with students about higher education opportunities and technology topics such as Linux and CMS (Joomla, WordPress). In the academic year 2014–2015, together with George Mylonas and Thanos Korakas, we presented educational robotics with Lego and Arduino at the 1st General Lyceum and the EPAL of Kastoria, and in 2016 we continued with Perlat Kotsiai.

From 2015 to 2019 we ran a low-cost STEAM education programme of workshops for primary and secondary schools. More than 400 students and 350 teachers were trained in Western Macedonia (Kastoria, Kozani, Ptolemaida, Florina, Voio) and in Nafplio, Thessaloniki, Samos and Chalkida. The workshops were organized with the local Directorates of Education and School Advisors, and part of them ran within IEEE TISP and the international platform TryEngineering.org. More than ten undergraduate students supported the activities, gaining hands-on experience with the educational community.

The outcomes were presented at the event “Introduction to STEAM Education” and in publications at national conferences, and the material later became the basis of Citizension of Smart Cities (see IoT & Smart Cities).

May 2017 – December 2017

Museum in a Suitcase was held in collaboration with Action Reconciliation Service for Peace and the Center of Studies of Jewish Heritage of Kastoria. We created an Augmented Reality Android application for the Summer Camp “Kleissoura – Kastoria”. In this project I was the team coordinator and was also involved with the registration of requirements and the design of the application.

2019 · MSc Thesis · MSc “Modern Telecommunication Systems, Internet Technologies and Systems Security”, University of Western Macedonia & University of Piraeus · Supervisor: Angelos Michalas

Original title (Greek): «Μελέτη και υλοποίηση συστήματος δικτύου αισθητήρων για την παρακολούθηση συνθηκών σε έξυπνες πόλεις» — Study and implementation of a sensor network system for monitoring conditions in smart cities.

Smart Cities are the natural evolution of every city, in Greece and abroad, offering citizens capabilities that make their everyday life easier while protecting both them and their environment. The aim of this thesis is the study and implementation of a sensor network for the city of Kastoria, in order to monitor natural phenomena and provide timely warnings in case of danger, as part of Kastoria’s evolution into a smart city.

The thesis was carried out with the Arduino microcontroller combined with temperature/humidity, air quality, sound, ultraviolet radiation, fire detection and carbon dioxide sensors, together with the Ubidots and Node-RED cloud platforms, creating two indicative experimental Internet of Things setups: the first for fire detection and the second for monitoring the urban environment.

The thesis also analyses the theoretical background of the Internet of Things and smart cities, as well as the hardware and software used to implement the experimental setups.

Keywords: Internet of Things, Smart Cities, Web Application, Sensors, Cloud Computing, Arduino, Node-RED, Ubidots

2016 · BSc Thesis · Department of Informatics Engineering T.E., TEI of Western Macedonia (Kastoria) · Supervisor: Angelos Michalas

Original title (Greek): «Ανάπτυξη εφαρμογής διαδικτυακού ραδιοφωνικού σταθμού για Smartphone βασισμένη στο cloud» — Development of a cloud-based internet radio station application for smartphones.

The aim of this thesis was to develop a working application for smartphones, mainly running Android (with the option of extending it to iOS and Windows Phone), while all other platforms can connect to the station through a responsive website. The application lets users listen live to the broadcast of the radio station they have chosen and, at the same time, communicate with other listeners and with the producer who is playing music at that moment.

The first chapters introduce the Android operating system — the origin of its name, its history, what Android is, the versions released over the years — and analyse the architecture of the Android platform. They also give a historical overview of radio and describe the main services of internet radio.

The last two chapters present the application developed in the thesis: its operating requirements and the tools needed to build it, how it is used in each case, and the analysis and design of the “PPR Application” with diagrams. The thesis closes with conclusions and suggestions for future work to further improve the application.

Keywords: Android OS, Smartphones, Internet radio, Icecast, Ionic, Responsive site