Courage, Commitment, and Excellence: A Technion Student’s Path to Success

Last month, the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology held its President’s Excellence Ceremony, honoring undergraduate students with outstanding grades in the previous semester. Among the honorees was Rotem Kendel, 28, a married father of two boys – the older three and a half, and the younger just seven months old. Alongside raising his children and coping with the demanding studies at the Technion, Kendel has completed 270 days of reserve service in the Combat Engineering Corps since October 8, 2023.

Kendel grew up in Beit El, attended high school at the Makor Chaim Yeshiva in Kfar Etzion, and then enlisted in the IDF Combat Engineering Corps. He married before joining the army but did not shorten his service; instead, he signed up for additional time. After completing his military service, he improved his matriculation grades, began studying at the Open University. After a year, he transferred to the Technion, choosing a particularly demanding dual degree – Physics and Electrical and Computer Engineering.

Then came October 7. “On October 8, I was called up for four weeks of clearing and recovery operations around the Gaza Envelope. We returned home for three weeks and were then called up again for another three months. We were released and then called up again with the first barrage from Iran in April 2024. By the time we were released, I had already missed an entire semester. Then, during the attacks from Lebanon and Iran in June, we were mobilized again – this time for three months and twenty days, respectively.”

In recent months, he’s had to part not only from his eldest son but also from his pregnant wife – and later, from the newborn – something that made things even harder. “I had to take almost all my exams during the special reserve duty sessions the Technion arranged, and it’s hard to describe how difficult it was to prepare for them. First, there’s simply no time – you’re either on reserve duty, or at home with a small child, or at home with two small children. Beyond that, it’s very hard to explain how difficult it is to switch between reserve duty and civilian life. One day you’re on the front lines, seeing terrible sights and sometimes facing mortal danger, and the next day you have to sit in class and understand equations. It’s a very complex dissonance.”

He has only praise for the faculty members in his departments.
“They were considerate and offered makeup lessons and meetings for reservists, but in most cases, I simply didn’t have time for them. As a result, my average grades dropped by more than 10 points during the reserve periods.”

The Technion, he says, also showed great understanding, offering grants, tuition and dormitory discounts, and various academic accommodations. “But ultimately, it’s clear that the Technion doesn’t want to compromise the level of education and knowledge. You still have to master the material, regardless of how many days of reserve duty you’ve done. As reservists, we also suffered from not always knowing in time what academic adjustments we’d receive, and our grades were affected by that. Again, I understand this is an unprecedented national and security situation, and the Technion made great efforts to support us, but in the end, the academic toll is real.”

A week before the war broke out, Kendel began working as an engineer at Nvidia, where he is now employed full-time. “True, I learned much of the specific practical knowledge at Nvidia,” he says, “but there’s no doubt the Technion does an excellent job preparing students for the workforce. – in terms of learning new things and tackling challenges. I have one more year left at the Technion. I’m happy and grateful that Elkana Bohbot and the other surviving hostages have returned home. I hope that the remaining deceased hostages will be returned soon, and that this coming year will be better and easier for all of us.”