INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION
By Roger Bartholomew

Roger Bartholomew spends his life talking with students - both as a teacher and as a counselor. His position as president of International Education Specialists, Chairman of Southville Foreign University and Director/Teacher at Southville International School all involve listening to students and parents and advising them on their studies and careers. He is a frequent speaker in schools, colleges, universities, public forums and focus groups. He can be reached at rogerb@inter-ed.com.

ENGINEERS & GEOLOGISTS – There’s Money in that Rock

“Chartered Engineers are characterized by their ability to develop appropriate solutions to engineering problems, using new or existing technologies, through innovation, creativity and change. They might develop and apply new technologies, promote advanced designs and design methods, introduce new and more efficient production techniques, marketing and construction concepts, pioneer new engineering services and management methods. Chartered Engineers are variously engaged in technical and commercial leadership and possess effective interpersonal skills.” So states the Engineering Council of the UK, just before it tells God that his throne was badly constructed and made from the wrong materials and that it could be radically improved by a Chartered Engineer.

I jest (of course), but it does bring the point home that Engineers have recently achieved a near God-like status as the demand for their knowledge and skills gets larger and larger. You may have seen pictures or programs on the developments in Dubai with the Palm Tree stretching out into the Persian Gulf, or the rotating condominium block where each condo owner can decide which way he wants his condo facing at any time of day. If you think that is large, in South Australia a mine is being dug that is three kilometers wide, seven kilometers long and three kilometers deep!!! That is an awesome hole in the ground, even bigger than the Bougainville mine in Papua New Guinea. If you watch the National Geographic Channel or the Explorer Channel you will see that Mega-projects like this are going on all the time, all over the world. Let’s do a quick analysis of the mine in South Australia to see what’s needed to make it happen…

Firstly, the ground itself needs analysis, so Geologists are needed; this is assuming that the site has already been properly surveyed by Geodetic Engineers. Then underground rivers, aquafers, waterflow and drainage needs consideration so Hydrologists or Hydrological Engineers are needed. Then there is the aspect of the actual excavation, so Mining Engineers are required; then the infrastructure for the movement and removal of the rock and minerals, so Mechanical Engineers have to be there; then the roads and bridges leading hundreds of kilometers to the site over difficult terrain require Civil Engineers; and then power is constantly needed so Electrical Engineers need to compute and design electrical delivery and distribution systems; on top of that Construction Engineers are required for the huge variety of structures required to support the project; Electronic and Computer Engineers are essential to monitoring a project this large, frequently using satellite mapping techniques plus remote sensing. Having extracted the minerals being mined, these need to be processed and depending on their composition this might be a job for Chemical Engineers, Mechanical Engineers or even Metallurgical Engineers.

Olympic Dam Project – South Australia

One can just imagine how scintillating the conversation would be on site with the entire area for miles in all directions swarming with Engineers. However, they have the last laugh on us because it is unlikely that any of them are earning less than AUD$200,000.00/year. And there’s the rub. If just one project needs all these people with engineering skills where are the engineers going to come from? Whether its Diamond Mines in Namibia, Gold and Uranium Mines in Australia, creating entirely new islands in the Persian Gulf, digging tunnels between countries in Asia, building Airbus 380s in France, or constructing the South Luzon Expressway between Alabang and Calamba (though I suspect this requires a different type of engineer who is professionally licensed by St. Michael) in the Philippines, engineers are needed.

Engineers always wear hard hats, even when sleeping!

Here’s the good news….. licensed engineers from the Philippines ARE MUCH SOUGHT AFTER ALL OVER THE WORLD and can command the same salaries as anyone else. But there is a Caveat (warning)…… With good jobs and great salaries comes high expectation. Scratching through your BS Eng. degree with a 2.89 GPA, 75% in the Board exams, poor English and a bad attitude/employment record isn’t going to get you there. Re-read the opening paragraph….. They are not joking. True Engineers are a breed apart. We can thank them for making the world a more convenient place to live in, but also be thankful you don’t have one as a next door neighbor! There is a much truth in the comment heard at a Computer Engineer’s Conference in the USA: “What is the different between God and Larry Ellison (CEO of Oracle)?” “God doesn’t think he is Larry Ellison”.

Where is this all leading? If you are a licensed engineer (or any of the categories that I have mentioned) with some work experience under your belt, there are some much better places to work than the Middle East – and they will encourage you to bring your family. One of those places is Australia. If you want to know more, e-mail me on ccpc@inter-ed.com. I will be happy to share with you all the information you need for a brighter future. And….. should you by chance be assisting your kids what to take up in college next year, don’t jump over engineering and geology and go directly to nursing! Give these disciplines some serious thought, even for the girls! They have a fantastic future. And the future is even brighter if they can study in the UK or Australia for their engineering qualification.

Until the next upload when I will be talking about “What Philippine High School Students Want To Do”, this is Roger Bartholomew, desperately looking for engineers who are prepared to sacrifice x number of years of their life to complete the South Luzon Expressway, before the Lord returns!