JOHOR BAHRU, 28 October 2014 – Participation of Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) civil engineering students in a number of competitions both at the national and international levels is a learning and teaching approach which incorporates the concept of New Academia in producing graduates with a holistic, global and entrepreneurial mind.

Dean of the Faculty of Civil Engineering, Prof. Dr. Shahrin Mohammad said that the participation in these competitions will test students’ ability to meet challenges within a short duration of time. Students are also required to apply theories learnt, to produce quality, innovative and attractive products that are able to attract the interest and attention of the jury.

Prof. Shahrin was met after the 54th Professorial Lecture Session held at UTM Johor Bahru today.

According to Shahrin, this approach represents a new style in academia towards a learning method that is not static, which do not rely primarily on conventional lectures.

“Exposure to external challenges are needed to prepare students in  facing real challenges at the workplace.

“These efforts can foster personal development of students through teamwork, ethical and interpersonal communication skills that are critically needed by today’s employers to face global competition in the business world,” he said.

He added that throughout 2014, the faculty has sent more than 40 teams of students to participate in various competition either locally or abroad.

“We are confident that these efforts will generate a positive impact on the marketability of our graduates. There is in fact evidence to support this belief as our records show that 86 per cent of UTM FKA graduates have either been employed or chosen to continue their studies.

“Besides participating in  competitions organised by outside parties, we also have an internal annual competition for students of civil engineering, which is held biennially, namely, the UTM Bridge Model Competition. The next competition will be held on April 5 to 8, 2015,” he said.

The deadline for submission, comprising a summary of the project together with the diagram of the  proposed bridge,  is on February 19, 2015. A notice of receipt of entry will be released on March 6, 2015. For further information students can visit  website www. http://civil.utm.my/blog/utmbridge-model-competition-2015.

“We are also planning to hold several annual events to attract students in the field of civil engineering in an effort to enhance students’ character building who will be our future leaders,” said Prof. Shahrin.