Engineering Students Seek Bright Future At UNSW

Bandar Seri Begawan - The career opportunities for petroleum engineering graduates are bright. Many students are taking advantage of the strong partnership between the Institut Teknologi Brunei and the University of New South Wales (UNSW), Australia.

UNSW is located in Sydney's eastern suburbs and is the destination of choice for international students, looking to combine a top quality education with lifestyle advantages.

The UNSW Bachelor of Engineering (Petroleum Engineering) degree is internationally recognised and enjoys strong support from the global petroleum industry.

In fact, the key to the UNSW School of Petroleum Engineering's ongoing success is its close industry links.

UNSW is one of Australia's top ranked universities that offer a vibrant campus life.

Over 120 countries are represented amongst the student body, with one in every four students from overseas.

Currently, there are 43 students studying at UNSW from Brunei, many holding sponsorships from Brunei Shell Petroleum and the Brunei Ministry of Education.

Nadiah Haji Mohd Ya'ani, 20, and Azimah Jofri, 20, are both second year UNSW petroleum engineering students, sponsored by Brunei Shell Petroleum.

Arriving at UNSW can be a rollercoaster ride for students. Many students are excited to be a part of their new surroundings, however for many; it is their first experience living away from home.

Azimah says, "I am very family oriented - I was very homesick in the beginning."

UNSW offers many mentoring and peer support schemes to help with the transition. Azimah and Naidah are personally guided by Dr Yildiray Cinar, Senior Lecturer in Petroleum Engineering.

Additional support is offered through UNSW Student Development International (SDI). SDI assists international students with services from airport pick up to assistance with housing.

Shell-sponsored student, Ak Muhd Amal Nur Qasman Metussin, 22, was part of the first group of ITB Petroleum Engineering students to join the ranks at UNSW.

Qasman lives in the recently completed UNSW Village with six other students, mostly fellow compatriots from Brunei.

In addition to the convenience of living on campus and the proximity to his classes, Qasman also enjoys the "good facilities (including) study rooms and fast Internet connection".
There are plenty of facilities for students at UNSW.

Naidah says, "For me, everything is here. Even if I'm not on campus, everything is online." Naidah is referring to the My UNSW portal, where students can access their notes, assignments and even interact with other students.

The extended opening hours of UNSW's world class library are a definite advantage for Azimah, as studying without the distractions of home increases her concentration.

Azimah and Naidah live in Randwick, just five minutes from the university.

Azimah says, "It's a good place to stay. It's safe and quiet."

The beachside suburb Coogee is also just minutes away, and the girls like to visit the beach when they are not busy studying.

Yusri Efandi Ibrahim, 23, lives in the nearby suburb of Kingsford.

He says living in an area as diverse as Kingsford has definite advantages, one of which is the availability of good quality, Halal food in the area.

"I wasn't expecting to find that in Sydney!" Yusri says.

Yusni began his career in Bruneian bank before assessing his future prospects and deciding to instead study petroleum engineering. Indeed, UNSW alumni enjoy challenging and successful careers around the globe.

Petroleum engineering graduates command excellent starting salaries between A$60,000 and A$110,000, and it is common for graduates to progress quickly through company ranks.

With so many opportunities awaiting hard-working UNSW graduates, Naidah offers some sage advice: "Always remember what your priorities are, study hard, but once in a while, remember to do something fun for you."

-- Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin dated 09th June 2011

(Some of the information in the above article were incorrectly stated)