FIRST BATCH: Students register at UCTS.
THE CAMPUS: Phase one of the UCTS construction is expected to be completed by December.
HIGH TECH: One of the laboratories at UCTS.
COMFY: The lectures theatre at UCTS.
Professor Dato Dr Hakim Juri
SIBU: The first batch students of University of Technology Sarawak (UCTS) are heading for huge challenges, being the pioneers.
Speaking to the Borneo Post and See Hua Daily yesterday at his office, UCTS vice-chancellor Professor Dato Dr Hakim Juri said UCTS expected much from these pioneering students.
“We have to develop certain culture. When they are living and studying in this university environment, we expect them to contribute towards maintaining the facilities and infrastructures.
“Basically, we are trying to transform them or change them from just being a student into a more responsible person,” he said.
“During their stay and study in UCTS, it is not just about understanding what they learn, but what they do outside the classroom, in terms of activities and how they could contribute to the university.”
He said all these would be explained to the students during the four-day orientation which was to begin last night.
He said apart from giving the students more details about their course and the rules and regulations, the orientation would give the students a bigger picture of what the university expected of them.
“The students will be informed about their responsibility as students in the university, and how they should play their role well because university life is different from the life in school or when they are taking diploma courses,” he pointed out.
He said the students would be told how they would be assessed.
“UCTS aims to turn the students into independent learners who will acquire skills needed to survive in the competitive world,” added Dr Hakim.
Currently, UCTS offers three degree programmes, namely Bachelor of Civil Engineering, Bachelor of Business Administration, and Bachelor of Quantity Survey.
Dr Hakim said the university started off with 69 students this year with the first class to start on Sept 23. Yesterday was UCTS registration day.
“I am not sure whether all 69 students will register, but the response was quite good,” he said.
The students are mainly diploma holders from Kolej Laila Taib, and other colleges from Kuching.
There were also polytechnic students, STPM leavers, and holders of the Unified Examination Certificate (UEC).
“We may also run the Electrical and Electronics course. We are waiting for a letter from the Ministry of Education, so the intake for E&E subject is slightly delayed,” he said, adding that intake for E&E is expected to be in early October.
According to him, 87 students had enrolled for the two foundation programmes, namely the Foundation in Arts and Foundation in Science which started in June.
After the one-year foundation programme, students may go for the degree programme.
Civil Engineering is a four-year course; Business Administration (three years) and Quantity Survey (three-and-a-half years).
“This is if the students come in fresh from Foundation programmes or STPM. If they come in with Diploma, some students might get credit transfer or credit exemption, depending on their achievement in their diploma studies, so the course duration will be reduced accordingly,” he explained.
UCTS has about 70 staffers who include 43 lecturers.
Meanwhile, Dr Hakim said there would be more degree programmes for the September 2014 intake.
Among them are Bachelor of Architecture, Mechanical Engineering, Computer Networking, Software Engineering, Accounting, Food Technology (subject to funding of the food technology), and Electrical Engineering.
There are two intakes every year – September and February.
“So, next year February we will have another intake for those who missed the September intake,” he pointed out.
On the construction, he said the whole phase 1 project is expected to be ready by December.
The Phase one is divided into two categories 1A and 1B.
He said Phase 1A is about 95 per cent completed, while the Phase 1B is about 70 per cent completed.
“In Phase 1A, the rooms that are ready to be used for this intake are 10 classrooms, two lecture theatres, two studios, one exhibition hall, two electrical laboratory, physic, and chemistry labs, and three labs for Civil Engineering,” he said.