“The intense passion to assimilate knowledge makes the individuals to become academicians and when the acquired knowledge is coupled to the creativity, the individuals transform to researchers and the teaching departments in which the researchers are working can be elevated to the status of a research institutes”.In a process of bringing the culture of inventiveness among the staff and to initiate and sustain the transformation of the department of the Applied Sciences into a research center by promoting the objectives of the newly formed Staff Research Committee (SRC) at the college level, the Head of the Department of Applied Sciences, Dr. Samiya Al-Jaaidi in co-ordination with Dr. Suad Al Kindi, Head of the Departmental Research Committee had arranged a series of staff research awareness sessions’ for various sections at the department of applied sciences.

Dr. Syed Samiuddin, lecturer in environmental Science and a member of Departmental Research Committee was nominated as the presenter for the environmental sciences section by Dr. Afraa Said Al-Adawi, Head of Section of environmental sciences section. The presentation on 19/04/2016 was facilitated by the Staff Development and orientation co-ordinator, Dr. C. Rama Chandra Prabhu and was conducted at the departmental seminar room (M-316) from 11:00–12:00 pm.

The session was successful and almost all the teaching and non-teaching staff members of the environmental science section had attended the session. The staffs who had attended the session were benefited from the insights on the research and the information on the possibility of publishing the generated research that was conducted at the Higher College of Technology (HCT). The presenter started the presentation by introducing the newly formed Staff Research Committee (SRC) at college level and had emphasized on the importance of the research. He was successful in discussing the various aspects of students’ research projects and other research possibilities at the HCT.

The presenter stressed on the need of getting the funds from “The Research Council” (TRC) under the FURAP program in order to promote the student research at the department of Applied Sciences.  He also mentioned that one of the lecturers of the applied sciences department, Dr. Syed Najmul Hejaj Azmi had already applied for the FURAP program. He also informed the audience that Central Analytical and Applied Research Unit (CAARU) at Sultan Qaboos University (SQU) can be contacted for any special research equipment (such as SEM/TEM and others). The research samples of any interested staff members can be analyzed at CAARU with nominal charges. He had shown a video on the facilities at CAARU that was provided by Dr. Suad.

At the end of the presentation, Dr. Syed Samiuddin, informed the audience that it is mandatory for those individuals’ funded through FURAP research projects to take part in an annual  TRC science competition and to present their research work. The best project will be awarded by the TRC. It was also discussed that the individuals having the projects funded by the Open Research Grant (ORG) of TRC have to publish their significant findings in the form of research publications in the journals of international repute as approved by TRC. The journals usually approved by TRC will have a valid ISI impact factor, and also will be listed in the Thomson Reuters (web of science) or the Scopus. The research awareness session for the environmental sciences section ended with a productive question and answer part, where the presenter was successful in answering the queries raised by some the staff members. During the question and answer session, Dr. Pankaj urged that the staff members to encourage the second year diploma students to explore the possibility of getting the funds for their B. Tech research project from TRC through the FURAP program.

Please click here to view the photos from the event

PHOTOS CREDIT:
Dr. Pankaj Sah