TVU – On October 3, at Tra Vinh University, the Institute of Environmental Science and Technology of Tra Vinh University cooperated with Saxion University of Applied Sciences in Enschede, the Netherlands, to organize the program “Sharing learning opportunities in the field of Environment.” The program aimed to create learning, working, and scholarship opportunities for students majoring in Environment and extensively implement the project “Student exchange” between the two universities.
At the program, students had the opportunity to interact with professors and PhDs in the field of Environment and water treatment technology, including Professor Harry Futselaar from Saxion University of Applied Sciences, Dr. Tran Thi Ngoc Bich and Dr. Nguyen Thanh Tuu – Deputy Directors of the Institute of Environmental Science and Technology, Tra Vinh University.
Professor Harry Futselaar said: “Water is an important resource. Therefore, it is necessary to have an effective plan to protect and reuse it.” According to him, the demand and the shortage of clean water worldwide are alarming. He shared the water purification technology currently applied in the Netherlands – Nano water purification technology, with its advantages of filter system destroying harmful micro-organisms and removing the water’s color and taste, helping the water return to its pure, colorless, odorless appearance.
Previously, in collaboration with Ton Duc Thang University, Saxion University of Applied Sciences conducted a successful test on water samples belonging to the Saigon river systems, Ho Chi Minh city. The technology will soon be deployed for students of Tra Vinh University to go on a field trip and directly filter the water of Long Binh river in Tra Vinh province shortly.
According to Professor Harry Futselaar, students are generations of knowledge, easily absorbing new technologies. They are dynamic and dare to try and do new things. The cooperation with the Institute of Environmental Science and Technology – Tra Vinh University to implement the project “Exchange students” between the two schools is one of the opportunities for students to interact with real technology outside. Specifically, Saxion University will bring 2 to 25 students, including students of Saxion University of Applied Sciences and some from Indonesia to Vietnam to study and research at the Institute of Environmental Science and Technology of Tra Vinh University. At the same time, Tra Vinh University will send the corresponding number of environmental students to the Netherlands to study and research at Saxion University of Applied Sciences. And if students are skillful enough, they can completely practice in several companies related to water treatment technology in the Netherlands according to the CO.OP model, studying and working within 5 months.
During the meeting, Tran Minh Nhut, an alumnus of the Environmental Engineering course 2017 at the Institute of Environmental Science and Technology, shared his experience of studying and doing research at the Saxion University of Applied Sciences within the past 5 months. It is known that Minh Nhut is fortunate to receive a full scholarship from the Erasmus + program for students with achievements in scientific and technical research.
Minh Nhut confided: “In the first two weeks of living in the Netherlands, I was completely lonely and shy because of the differences in culture, Environment, and especially language. Learning English from books and real English is very different. There are many specialized English words that I can’t understand, and it makes things harder for me in the early days.” However, Minh Nhut emphasized: “The difficulties don’t make me give up, but they soon become the force that helps me cultivate, change to adapt to learn new things in a new environment. I think if we have enough determination, we can overcome all the obstacles in life. In addition, living far away from home is also a chance for us to improve our soft skills and independence. Without taking care of our family, we learn how to do it ourselves and create our value in a foreign country. It is a very good opportunity for us to grow and thrive. I tried my best, and it worked. You, too. Let’s think and do!”
Professor Harry Futselaar also shared that to be able to study abroad, the first thing students need is an attitude. They needed a solid determination to research and prove it with concrete actions such as improving foreign languages because it was a 100% English communication environment. If students were not good at English, it would not be easy to communicate, research and study.
According to Dr. Tran Thi Ngoc Bich – Deputy Director of the Institute of Environmental Science and Technology, in the upcoming days, students must connect with teachers in the Institute, participate in research projects of the Institute to familiarize themselves with the working environment and demonstrate their ability to absorb and positive energy, so that teachers can give more development opportunities to potential students who need it.
Dr. Nguyen Thanh Tuu – Deputy Director of the Institute of Environmental Science and Technology, said: “in the coming time, the Institute of Environmental Science and Technology – Tra Vinh University will continue to organize training sessions “Improving students’ awareness of solutions to renewable energy and energy efficiency adapting to climate change,” to raise awareness of environmental protection through practical activities, including the economic and rational use of clean water resources, recycling domestic water, building green agriculture, eliminating the use of pesticides, taking advantage of natural organisms to preserve the purity of groundwater.”
By My Nhien
