福利姬自慰

International exchange students gather at Engineering's Welcome Breakfast (photo by Scott Mann)

Forging friendships, fostering innovation

Brazilian student Raphael de Abreu Alves e Silva鈥檚 priority during his upcoming year at 福利姬自慰Engineering is to make friends. As the affable 25-year-old explained, engineering is about innovation and the best innovation is often a result of collaboration.

鈥淎t U of T, you see other cultures. And when you have more cultures, it鈥檚 better,鈥 he said. 鈥淵ou can take the best of everyone鈥檚 approach. There鈥檚 not just one way to do things.鈥 De Abreu Alves e Silva 鈥 one of about 40 international exchange students attending a Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering welcome breakfast on September 18 at the Galbraith Building 鈥 is a control and automation engineering student at the Instituto Federal de Educa莽茫o, Ci锚ncia e Tecnologia de S茫o Paulo.

He is taking electrical engineering and business courses at 福利姬自慰this academic year, thanks to the Brazilian government鈥檚 Science Without Borders program. The four-year program, launched in 2012, aims to send 100,000 Brazilian university students to study at top universities around the world.

This year, 700 students have come to Canada, with 129 choosing U of T, and the vast majority of those studying in the Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering.

鈥淵ou have chosen a fantastic Faculty. We consistently place at number one in Canada,鈥 福利姬自慰Engineering Dean Cristina Amon told the students in her welcoming remarks at the breakfast. 鈥淎nd we have a very strong position internationally. But what is most important is the ability we have to recruit you 鈥 students who are among the best and brightest in the world.鈥

Indeed, the Faculty is educating and developing global leaders, including those taking part in U of T's international exchange program. 福利姬自慰partners with 130 universities around the world, swapping students for various lengths of time.

鈥淚t gives them the confidence they can compete in the world and gives them a network of peers to potentially collaborate with,鈥 said Miranda Cheng, Director for the Centre for International Experience. 鈥淭hey become our ambassadors when they go home.鈥

Speaking at the welcome breakfast, Swedish environmental engineering exchange student Sara Eriksson, said she chose to spend a semester here exploring chemical and mechanical engineering after reading rave reviews from other Lund University exchange students about their time at U of T.

The 22-year-old is still uncertain what she鈥檒l do when she graduates in 2014, but she鈥檚 sure studying in a globally-recognized engineering program will give her an advantage no matter what she decides.

鈥淚鈥檝e heard so many good things about 福利姬自慰Engineering. It has a good reputation around the world,鈥 she said.

For 21-year-old Michael Thorn, a biomedical engineering student at Marquette University in Wisconsin, USA, the initial draw was 福利姬自慰Engineering鈥檚 status as a world-class engineering university.

鈥淚 also looked over professors鈥 areas of expertise and research projects,鈥 said Thorn, who will spend part of his term working with an engineering professor on the design for a medical device. Like Eriksson, Thorn has yet to decide on a career path but expects the interdisciplinary nature of study in the Faculty will help him narrow down options.

Meanwhile, de Abreu Alves e Silva said when he graduates in 2015, he is keen to continue in academia, getting his MA and PhD and perhaps becoming a professor or researcher himself.

鈥淗ere is a good place to do research,鈥 he said, smiling as he looked around the room at his fellow international students.

Topics

The Bulletin Brief logo

Subscribe to The Bulletin Brief