Students take part in week-long study experience to Oman as part of transnational education trip

Students had the experience of a lifetime after being selected to represent Glasgow Caledonian University during an intensive week-long study trip in Oman.

A multidisciplinary group of third years from the School of Computing, Engineering and Built Environment (SCEBE) visited the University's partner institution in Oman for an intensive week-long study trip, as part of ‘Promoting Excellence in Employability and Transversal Skills’.

During the trip, students had the opportunity visit the National University of Science and Technology (NUST), where they were asked to consider various hypothetical solutions to ensure uninterrupted availability of energy sources at an affordable price.

As well as this, students had the opportunity to visit industrial sites, landmarks and places of interest – such as the British Embassy and Wadi Dayqah Dam, which allowed students to truly experience the culture of Oman.

Electrical and Electronic Engineering student Zac McCafferty was one of the students selected to attend the trip, describing the experience as “an experience of a lifetime”. He explained: “Prior to going to Oman, I had never been outside of Europe before, so I was extremely excited at the prospect of going somewhere so far from anywhere I’ve ever been.

In the summer between my first and second year at GCU, I went on a trip with the university to Saarbrücken in Germany. That trip was so incredibly rewarding and has stayed with me ever since. The idea that I would be able to experience something like that again; to go to another country (or another continent) and work on a project with other students, meet other people and see really amazing things, was irresistible.

As a result of the Saarbrücken trip, I grew in confidence, cultural awareness and self-awareness, so I knew I had to try to have an opportunity to experience something like that again.”

Despite being far from home, Zac realised that they all had a lot in common with the people they met in Oman. He said: “ I expected the cultural differences to be greater, and while in some circumstances there were considerable differences, in many circumstances there were virtually none.

At some point on the trip this was commented on, to which Professor Bob Gilmour replied “We’re all just people”, and that was pretty much it - there was often a language barrier, but, especially with the students and staff at NUST, the conversations and the jokes were very similar to those I would have with friends at GCU.

He added: “I had an expectation that the trip would be entirely serious, and during the time at the NUST, industrial visits like the Mall of Oman and Oman LNG, it was. However, there were lots of times for fun and personal connections which only added to how rewarding the trip feels to me.”

Whilst enjoying the culture, students discovered some of Oman’s major industry sites such as Innotech; a company which specialises in industrial 3D printing.  Zac explained: “It was eye opening to see how passionate the team were, and really exciting to hear them talking about the potential they see in their technology. I definitely came away from that visit feeling a renewed excitement for my future career in engineering!”

Reflecting back on the trip, Zac highly recommends taking advantage of opportunities like these. He said: “ Absolutely do it! Experiences like these will stay with you for a lifetime and I’ve discovered lots of new things about myself, made lots of new friends, and had the privilege of exploring new culture.  I have no doubt any other student will feel the same.”

By Rachael McAlonan

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