Purdue University (USA) professor Fillip Sanger will train KNRTU students the project management

Fulbright grant programme and KNRTU have been partners for many years. From 2011 in KNRTU have been organized Fulbright all-Russian summer schools of science in the fields of nanomaterials and nanotechnologies. Besides, an active academic exchange of professors is realized.
For two semesters Fillip Sanger will train the project management the students of the Department of Innovations in Chemical Technology. The professor’s author’s course is aimed at the creation of the bridge, connecting the academic knowledge and real-life problems, which future specialists may come across with at the production.
On the October 15th the professor gave the first classes for the 4th course bachelors, training on the Faculty of Chemistry and Polymer Technology in Medicine and Cosmetics “Innovation Theory” programme. At the lecture students learnt about five types of a person’s behavior in a conflict situation. Mr.Sanger offered to students to pass the test on a type of a person’s behavior in conflict for the development of their teambuilding skills.
At the practical classes there was organized a teambuilding business game “Skyscraper building”. In the groups of 5 to 6 persons students had to develop a skyscraper project using the foamed polystyrene blocks and pencils. Each group took its own decision about the materials worth spending their budget on. So, the construction should have had a fundamental strength, as well as an ability to withstand the “earthquake” and a bottle of water on its top. By the end of the class all teams submitted documentation on their projects. Next time they will build skyscrapers according to already created schemes.
During the further training the students will divide into groups to prepare projects on foamed polystyrene recycling for LLC “Egida+” plant. As an exporter to European markets, this enterprise should meet the challenge of the circular economy and offer innovative decisions on collection and disposal of its goods, sold in the European countries. Exactly this task will be developed under Pr.Sanger guidance.
Another important aspect is the mandatory participation of Department of Innovations in Chemical Technology professors in the realization of education project. The concept of project training “Learning by doing”, that our professors master under the guidance of Pr. Sanger, will let them to realize this educational model in the future at the “Project Management” classes with KNRTU Master’s Degree Students.

After classes we interviewed the professor
“That will be real projects, now we have a dialogue with a company about the problems that it runs into and the fields, that they would like to improve and need modern ideas for that,- noted the professor. So, surely, all our projects will be real, but the fact of its realization by company will depend on its decision and on the students’ abilities of creating innovative and original project”.
The professor also told that educational programs at Purdue University and at KNRTU are very similar, but not the same, because in America the classes’ duration is less as the courses are divided into shorter periods and the students have more time for self-instructional.
“I have great work experience both with American and Russian students, -went on the professor. – There is much more similarities than differences between them. Both here, in Russia and in our universities there are good students, and those who are not interested in study at all, and somebody who are somewhere in between. I guess that both in America and in Russia the students take their study seriously. I think that in some way Russian students are better at theory and scientific aspects, while my students (in America) more often are capable of thinking outside the box and creating something new”.

For two semesters Fillip will give classes for the 1st and 4th year students. On the first course it will be introduction, and by the fourth one the students will have already had their skills developed. The 1st year students program includes 6 hours of lectures, the 2nd year students- 16 hours and the 3rd year students program includes 30 hours. For the final-year students Pr. Sanger will give 60 hours’ classes within two semesters. He is sure that after a while the students will be able to present projects on their own and that they definitely will be of another level of difficulty and become more and more scale with every course.
The students will have an opportunity to choose the topic of the project, and on their basis teams consisting of 4 to 5 people will be created. “We will take into account the preferences of students and create teams basing on their interests, but the only thing is that they will not be able to choose a team,” the professor added.
“We are hoping to attract people from the USA embassy and other government institutions as members of the jury and for the award ceremony”, - noted the professor in conclusion.

For reference
Fulbright program is aimed at the Russian universities graduates, postgraduates, scientists, men of art, professors, staff of Russian universities International Affairs Departments. It also provides educational and research grants, as well as lectureship and traineeship in any world’s university.

Источник: KNRTU