Inspire To Be True Professionals - Apprentice Phase 2
As said by
Rtr. Jithmi Mayondi,
Apprentice, one of the most important professional development programs organized by the Rotaract Club of University of Moratuwa successfully finished its first session. This is a program which opens the door to the world of professionalism. The sessions are done by the most talented and successful professionals in different industries.
As undergraduates of University of Moratuwa, we have a thorough technical and theoretical knowledge about our subject matter .But most of the problems we face in the industry have nothing to do with our theoretical knowledge. Degrees and work experience alone are not enough to survive in the industry. When we compete with the real world situations, we can’t find the solutions without having a proper understanding about professionalism.
So the best way to have this understanding about professionalism is through the professionals who are at highest positions of their carrier. So the main purpose of the project apprentice is to make professionalized undergraduates before they enter to the industry by providing necessary guidance to undergraduates of university through mentoring sessions with experienced professionals in the industry.
Second session of apprentice 2017 was held on 21st of February. It was conducted by Mr. Palitha Samarasinghe, Assistant Secretary of Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation at Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation Maradana with the participation of 16 students.
Mr. Palitha gave us some valuable advices through his personal life experience. Throughout the discussion he mainly pointed out that graduates from government universities have less knowledge about applications. He mentioned that even in University of Moratuwa, graduates have vital knowledge about theoretical side but they have a very limited knowledge about real world applications. He mentioned the importance of having the practical knowledge and thinking out of the box. He himself also has done some successful changes to the Sri Lanka Railway Department by thinking out of the box.
When Mr.palitha mentioned about his life experiences, one thing that stood out was his risk taking behavior. He has done lot of projects even when the majority was against his ideas. But actually most of them were successful. A professional is one who does his best work when he feels the least like working. We could see it well through Mr. Palitha’s character.
Mr.Palitha is also an engineer. He mentioned that he prefers graduates from University of Moratuwa because of the quality of our graduates. But if we want to compete with other university graduates especially from private universities, we have to improve our communication skills and practical usage of knowledge.
As undergraduates, we need to see things in a fresh perspective so when we enter to the industry we can change the traditional methods into new improved methods which are beneficial to all. As a professional if we want to be successful and go to the top of the ladder, we need to grab opportunities and make right decision at right time.
The first session of apprentice 2017 was a great success. Mr.Palitha is an ideal role model of professionalism. All the undergraduates who joined us had a great experience and many worthwhile ideas to improve their professionalism furthermore.