Curtin Sarawak engaging students outside the classroom

Miri – 21 October 2015 – 54 final-year chemical engineering students of Curtin University, Sarawak Malaysia (Curtin Sarawak) attended a seminar at Grand Palace Hotel Miri recently as part of the CHEN 4016 Process Economics and Management unit of their undergraduate chemical engineering programme.

The seminar was facilitated by chemical engineering senior lecturer Freddie Panau and lecturer and CHEN 4015 unit coordinator Dr. Bridgid Chin Lai Fui of the university’s Faculty of Engineering and Science.
The seminar was aimed at exposing the students to contemporary issues faced by the chemical engineering industry, particularly plant management issues.

Topics such as project management, leadership and employee engagement, as well as business and the engineer, were elaborated during the seminar. In addition, the students participated in activities such as ice-breaking sessions, brainstorming, discussions on real-life engineering case studies and group oral presentations.

The Process Economics and Management unit covers the structures of national and global industries; market assessment; project management; production planning and cost control; financial resources and management; sales and marketing; quality control; and risk management.

The unit outcomes require the students to understand that the management of a plant is only made possible by managing the relationships of the people involved.

According to Dr. Chin, the seminar provided the students good learning motivation and a unique learning experience outside the classroom.

“Such teaching and learning outside of the classroom not only enhances interaction between the lecturers and students but also encourages more active participation from the students and ultimately enhances their learning process,” she said.

Meanwhile, Freddie remarked that the objective of the seminar was to introduce the students to the business, human resource and management aspects of the chemical engineering industry.

“Such knowledge will be of great benefit to them in their future careers, especially when they move from technical work to management roles,” opined Freddie.

Overall, the students enjoyed the learning experience. One of them, Aaron Lim, stated that the relaxing environment of the hotel allowed for better communication between the students and academics.

“We found it was easier to conduct group discussions and brainstorming sessions. I’m certain it had a positive impact on all the students,” remarked Lim.

Fellow student Sam Tze Mun, meanwhile, said the seminar provided useful insights into business and project management and hoped that such events can be organised on a regular basis for the benefit of students.

For more information on Curtin Sarawak, visit its website (www.curtin.edu.my), its Facebook page (Curtin University Sarawak Malaysia), Twitter profile (curtinsarawak), YouTube channel (CurtinUniSarawak) or Instagram (curtinsarawak).

Students presenting their case study on real-life engineering issues.

The lecturers and students posing for a group photo at the end of the seminar.

Repost: Media Release 2015