Students from the College of Engineering at the American university completed an intensive programme from 23 May to 2 June

This Study Abroad programme is entitled A Primer in Engineering Management and it is the first time that it has been offered at the URV. It was designed in collaboration with staff from Lamar University (Texas, EUA) and offers content on the management skills that will be required by the engineers of the future. The thirteen participants belong to the College of Engineering and are students in the second, third and fourth years of degrees in Chemical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Civil Engineering, Electrical Engineering and Industrial Engineering.

The programme is coordinated by Professor Bernd Theilen from the Department of Economics and was taught at the School of Chemical Engineering. It consisted of theoretical sessions on techniques related to engineering management. After the classes, there were working sessions with multidisciplinary teams during which students worked on a project to be presented at the end of the course. To help students gather information and get to know the sector first hand, the course involved technical visits to the locally based industries of Applus IDIADA, the Port of Tarragona, Schwartz Hautmont and Dow Chemical.

In addition to this intensive academic programme, the students participated in cultural activities to get to know the local area, including a visit to the monastery of Poblet and a session on civil engineering during Roman times.

The URV Foundation is responsible for managing the Study Abroad programmes.