15th convocation: 1,000 SSUET engineers leave academic portal for real life

The graduating students described the event as the first milestone of their professional life.

KARACHI:

The zest and zeal at the Sir Syed University of Engineering and Technology’s (SSUET) 15th convocation remained unhampered as intermittent reports of violence poured in from around the city on Saturday.

The hall of Karachi Expo Centre was bursting at the seams as hundreds of graduating students along with their families gathered in the morning. However, the event’s chief guest and patron of the university, Sindh Governor Dr Ishratul Ebad Khan, was absent from the ceremony.

Almost 1,000 graduates of the 2008 batch were awarded degrees in the disciplines of electronics, computer, civil, bio-medical and telecommunication engineering along with computer science.

Undeterred by nonexistent public transport on the day, almost hundred percent of the graduating students marked their presence while wearing black convocation robes with mustard and white selvages on them.

“I would have attended the convocation even if I had to fly in,” said a grinning Minhaj Anwaar, who received a gold medal in computer science. “I have been anxiously waiting for this day after studying strenuously for the past four years.”

Anwaar told The Express Tribune that he aims to excel in his field by pursuing an MS degree locally or internationally while other graduating students also described the convocation as the first milestone of their professional life.

Apart from building a career in the field of computer science, Anwaar also has plans to pursue teaching. “As far as teaching is concerned, my first preference would be my alma mater because I want to give back what I have learned at the institution over these years,” he said. “SSUET has a distinctive fraternal bond- it owns its students while the students own the university in return.”

Saniah Rehan, also a gold medal recipient, had another perspective as to why SSUET is different. “Institutions like the NED University mostly enroll academic achievers to begin with, so it is not a big deal to make exceptionally good engineers out of them.” Sharing her own example, Rehan said that she managed to score 70 per cent marks in her Intermediate examination but SSUET pushed her to be exceptionally good in her academics.

Rehan also aims to pursue an MS degree in computer engineering and dispel the perception that most female engineers do not practice their profession. “To pursue our [female engineers] endeavors, all we require is a supportive family,” she said while her father stood next to her proudly. He said that the very reason he allowed his daughter to pursue engineering, was so that she could work as a professional.

Vote of confidence

The university’s chancellor, Zille Ahmed Nizami, while addressing the students said that good engineers and technologists have the capability to fight the weak economic conditions of the country. “They are the ones who can find ways to transform poverty into plenty.”

Nizami encouraged the new graduates to come forward and accept the challenges being confronted by the country; whether it is energy crisis, shortage of water resources or the nation’s dependence on foreign assistance.  The SSUET vice chancellor, Prof. Dr Saiyid Nazir Ahmed, told the audience that although the university started with merely 200 students in 1994, it currently has 5,600 enrolled students and has provided 9,820 graduate engineers to the nation. “Out of the 8,660 graduates till 2011, around 77 per cent have landed lucrative jobs while the remaining proceeded for higher studies or started their own business.”

Nizami conferred medals to Saniah Rehan for securing the first position in computer engineering, Muhammad Tarique Saleem in electronic engineering, Obaid Shakeel in telecommunication engineering, Farrukh Ali in biomedical engineering, Husam Bin Arshad in civil engineering and Minhaj Anwaar in computer science.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 1^st, 2012.