USP Press Release

Tuvalu students at the USP Laucala Campus in Suva.

USP’s Laucala Campus will soon see the return of more regional students as the Governments of Kiribati and Vanuatu allow their citizens to travel and resume studies in Fiji

Approximately 200 IKiribati and 110 Ni-Vanuatu students are currently in quarantine in Nadi and will soon begin studies at Laucala Campus.   91 more Ni-Vanuatu students are expected to arrive on 23rd March and will go into 14 days quarantine.

These students are sponsored by their respective Governments and will be undertaking various undergraduate programmes at USP.

Whilst the students are in quarantine, every effort is being made by their course coordinators and Heads of Schools to ensure that these students have access to all learning material.  Course coordinators will work closely with their students to allow them time to catch up with missed classes.

 

Issued by the Marketing and Communications Office, University of the South Pacific, Laucala Campus- Suva. For further queries please contact: (679) 3232148 or email communications@usp.ac.fj

Project Management participants with the United States Charge d’ Affaires, Tony Greubel and the Fiji Permanent Secretary for Women Jennifer Poole after the official launching of the project management cohort.

The US Agency for International Development (USAID) and The University of the South Pacific (USP) launched an all-female Project Management Practice cohort for 30 members of the Women in Maritime Association (WIMA) and presented completion certificates to 23 women who completed a USAID Project Management Cohort in Suva on International Women’s Day (8 March)

Ms Susan Sela, Director USP Pacific TAFE, represented USP at the launch of the cohort. USAID was represented by the Charge d’ Affaires of the US Embassy in Suva, Mr Tony Greubel

Delivering her remarks, Ms Sela acknowledged all women for their determination and perseverance.

“I would like to acknowledge all women in this room on this internationally celebrated day for women,” she said. “Happy International Women’s day – Choose to Challenge is such an appropriate theme when one considers that you have chosen to challenge yourselves by taking up this programme of study – and you have come out successfully completing this challenge. At the same time, we remember those women who are deprived of opportunities to realise their full potential.”

Ms Sela expressed her gratitude to USAID on behalf of USP Pacific TAFE in providing people a path to self-reliance and resilience especially during Post COVID times.

She also emphasised that the upcoming cohort for WIMA which will begin on 22 March in Suva will showcase both the University and US Climate Ready’s commitment to women empowerment.

“Both the University and USAID recognises the critical role women play in communities,” she said.

Giving an overview, the Director highlighted that project management cohorts have received overwhelming response from regional countries and the programme continues to grow in strength.

“Project Management has been one of Pacific TAFE’s most popular programmes across the Pacific region,” she said. “Since the programme’s inception, Pacific TAFE has been able, through funding by USAID, to deliver Certificate IV in Project Management qualifications in Fiji, Vanuatu, Kiribati, Tonga, Samoa, Republic of the Marshall Islands and Solomon Islands.”

Through bilateral agreements with USAID we have also delivered this programme to two countries outside of the USP region, in Papua New Guinea and the Federated States of Micronesia, said Ms Sela.

So far, Pacific TAFE has successfully delivered 3 cohorts in PNG, with the most recent one completed a month ago in Lae.

 

Issued by the Marketing and Communications Office, University of the South Pacific, Laucala Campus- Suva. For further queries please contact: (679) 3232148 or email communications@usp.ac.fj

Staff and students of the USP School of Information, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics and Physics (STEMP) who played a central role in collating information for WSCUC.

The Bachelor of Engineering (Civil) programme at the University of the South Pacific has received final approval by the WASC Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC).

The WSCUC is an institutional accrediting agency serving a diverse membership of public and private higher education institutes throughout California, Hawaii and the Pacific as well as a selected number of institutions outside the US. WSCUC is recognized by the U.S. Department of Education (USDE) and by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) as a reliable authority concerning the quality of education provided by member institutions of higher education offering the associate degree, baccalaureate degree and post-baccalaureate degrees

Receiving this approval by WSCUC signifies that the Bachelor of Engineering (Civil) programme is keeping with the WSCUC Standards of Accreditation.

The Acting Vice-Chancellor and President, Dr Giulio Paunga thanked the Head of School of Information, Technology, Engineering, Mathematica and Physics (STEMP), Professor Maurizio Cirrincione, Dr Kabir Mamun and Dr Sumesh Narayan as well as STEMP staff for the work put in by them to get the programme WSCUC approved.

“The approval process was a two-year review to ensure that our engineering degree programme meets defined standards, said Professor Cirrincione. “We collated data and met local stakeholders from industry and public institutions regularly before applying to WSCUC for approval.”

WSCUC through its work of peer reviewing encourages continuous institutional improvement to ensure its members and the public that accredited institutions are fulfilling their missions in service to their students and the public good in compliance with US and international standards.

“An approved engineering degree offers students and employers an important mark of assurance that the programme meets the high standards set by the engineering profession, says Dr Sumesh Narayan, Senior Lecturer at STEMP.

The Bachelor of Engineering (Civil) is a 4-year programme. Currently about 500 students are enrolled in the program of Civil Engineering at USP. “The first batch will be graduating in 2022 which will give them the possibility to receive professional membership from the Fiji Institute of Engineers (FIE) or other such professional bodies overseas,” says Dr Kabir Mamun, another Senior Lecturer at STEMP.

The USP engineering programme is well placed in the region as STEMP has also produced high quality research papers in international journals and STEMP can claim to be equal to other Universities in some areas of engineering.

STEMP has also produced some very high level staff who are now teaching or conducting research in other universities or research institutions either abroad or within the Region, contributing to capacity building. Moreover, there are numerous engineering alumni serving important roles in several industries nationally and globally.

The USP 4 –year Civil Engineering degree programme specialises in structural engineering, water resource engineering, geotechnical engineering, road and transport engineering.

In 2022 STEMP will apply, through FIE and facilitated by the Engineering New Zealand, to have the Civil Engineering programme accredited under the Washington Accord. This will give students the possibility to have a degree equivalent to that awarded in New Zealand or Australia. Currently STEMP offers programmes of Electrical and Electronics Engineering as well as Mechanical Engineering already accredited under the Washington Accord.

 

Issued by the Marketing and Communications Office, University of the South Pacific, Laucala Campus- Suva. For further queries please contact: (679) 3232148 or email communications@usp.ac.fj

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