BAKU, Azerbaijan: The Representatives of Saudi Arabia’s King Fahd University of Petroleum & Minerals (KFUPM) visited the Baku Higher Oil School (BHOS) and met its Rector Elmar Gasimov to discuss the possibilities of establishing cooperation between the two Universities and prospects for effective collaboration, Azerbaijan State News Agency AZERTAC reported.
The meeting was attended by the Dean of College of Petroleum Engineering & Geosciences of KFUPM Dr. Abdulaziz Al-Kaabi, the Doctor of Philosophy in Geology and the Deputy Head of the Geological Sciences Department Dr John Humphrey, the Doctor of Philosophy in Geophysics Dr SanLinn Kaka, the Head of the Oil and Physics Program at the Center for Integrative Petroleum Research Dr Jack Dvorkin, the Special Assistant to the Dean of College of Petroleum Engineering & Geosciences of KFUPM Mohammad Al Maziad, and BHOS employees.
The BHOS Rector Elmar Gasimov noted that Baku Higher Oil School is the first English-language technical University in Azerbaijan, which conducts training based on the double diploma program of the British Heriot-Watt University.
The Rector also noted that every year most of high school graduates who have scored highest points in group I choose Baku Higher Oil School, which occupies one of the leading places in the country in the number of presidential scholars.
During the meeting, Elmar Gasimov gave the guests detailed information about Baku Higher Oil School’s fruitful cooperation with a number of local and international companies operating in the Country, the favorable conditions created for students to undertake an internship at these companies, the participation of students in international exchange programs, the research projects implemented jointly with international companies and universities.
The Dean of College of Petroleum Engineering & Geosciences of KFUPM Dr Abdulaziz Al-Kaabi, in turn, noted that it is important to teach students, along with technical knowledge, social skills (effective communication, presentation, leadership, teamwork, etc.), and that these skills should be taught in a not-traditional learning format. He said that the university organizes three-module summer schools in this regard.
“We hope that in future KFUPM students will undertake an internship in Baku within the framework of cooperation with Baku Higher Oil School,” the dean added.
The sides noted the importance of signing a Memorandum of Understanding for implementing joint activities within the cooperation between the two universities.
The meeting also reached a decision to organize a summer school for local and foreign students in the summer season. The goal of the summer school, in which more than 50 students will take part, is to develop students’ leadership and teamwork skills.
The Saudi Arabian delegation also familiarized themselves with the BHOS Campus and the conditions created at the school.
The KFUPM is considered to be a university that provides quality education in the fields of science, technology, energy and business management in the Middle East and North Africa. The University trains bachelors, masters and doctors in the above-stated fields.
