Celebrating Waikato University’s work placement partnerships

university-of-waikato

Fri Jun 10 2011 12:00:00 GMT+1200 (New Zealand Standard Time)

Celebrating Waikato University’s work placement partnerships

Friday, 10 June 2011, 1:46 pm
Press Release: University of Waikato

June 8, 2011

Three exceptional companies have recently been awarded Outstanding Employer Awards for their support of the work placement programme run by the Faculty of Science & Engineering’s Cooperative Education Unit at the University of Waikato.

The awards commend the companies for supporting the scheme in which students from the Bachelor of Science(Technology) and Bachelor of Engineering degrees spend three to nine months at a time employed with the company, completing paid work experience. The awards are a new initiative, which will be given out annually.

This year’s winners are Genesis Energy (Huntly Power Station), New Zealand Starch and the Plant Protection Group at AgResearch.

All three companies have been employing work placement students for more than 20 years. “Each company has a very sound picture as to what a student can do and how they can contribute to what the company is doing,” says Prof Richard Coll, Director of Cooperative Education. “They know what our students are capable of and give them work which is suitable. This benefits both the student and the company”.

Genesis Energy at Huntly Power Station has been employing students from Waikato University’s bachelor degrees for around 25 years. Students generally begin their placement in the laboratories, completing routine analysis, followed by working on plant assurance, to keep the plant functioning.
“We always enjoy meeting new placement students and take pride in offering them the opportunity to experience not only a large number of new technical concerns and systems on site, but also to liaise with people from many backgrounds whose views have to be listened to and considered. I have frequently seen students’ self-confidence grow considerably in their time here”, says Keith Hopkins, Station Chemist at Huntly Power Station. “The placement programme provides a valuable link between us and the University, and I hope the relationship continues for many years to come”.

Advertisement - scroll to continue reading

New Zealand Starch Limited has been employing Waikato placement students since the 1990s. The company is based in Onehunga and produces corn starch, glucose, gluten, vegetable oil for the New Zealand and overseas markets. It was first established in 1958 for processing wheat, and was upgraded between 1969 and 1973 to produce glucose, and in 1976 to process maize.

Neil Rogers, general manager of NZ Starch, was a graduate of Waikato, and is an enthusiastic supporter of the work placement programme. “I recall my own student days and the need to earn during the holidays in order to make ends meet, so it became 'my turn' to offer the opportunity. I have firm beliefs on what graduates need to be armed with when they start looking for employment. Awareness of the industrial environment, ability to work with people of different ethnic and educational backgrounds, having a practical view on life and what other people have to do to get along e.g. work on shift to be the money winner, are but a few.”

Students are generally employed as process operators in the glucose and corn starch plants during the summer. After a week or two of training, students are often in sole charge of the plants, working nightshifts and overtime as needed. Initially, the concept of looking after critical parts of the plants with the associated maze of pipes, pumps, gauges and valves is quite daunting, but usually by half way through the placement, students have mastered most of what there is to know about the process.

The third winner of an award is Plant Protection Group at AgResearch, located at Ruakura Campus in Hamilton. The Plant Protection Group was one of the original companies to sign on to supporting the work placement programme and have taken sometimes as many as five students every year since the programme began.

Many of the placement students work on specific questions that the Plant Protection Group scientists do not have time to investigate themselves. The group is lead by Dr Anis Rahman, who says that students “really put their heart, mind and body to completion of the project. They are very conscientious, hard working and dedicated to the task.”

The group has also experienced the benefits of bringing fresh, enquiring minds to the team. “This in turn enthuses and refreshes the science team making them realise why they chose science as a career and how genuinely interesting the research is. Hosting placement students has also meant that the group gets a chance to look at potential recruits and has, over the years, gained several full-time staff, masters students, and been part of PhD studies.”

ends

Advertisement - scroll to continue reading

a.supporter:hover {background:#EC4438!important;} @media screen and (max-width: 480px) { #byline-block div.byline-block {padding-right:16px;}}

Using Scoop for work?

Scoop is free for personal use, but you’ll need a licence for work use. This is part of our Ethical Paywall and how we fund Scoop. Join today with plans starting from less than $3 per week, plus gain access to exclusive Pro features.

Join Pro Individual Find out more

Find more from University of Waikato on InfoPages.