“Open days” in educational institutions are conducted with an intention to invite the future students and the general public to the campus and introduce them to the ongoing programs, which help them in paving ways for successful careers and gainful employment. Open days also portray the student life on the campus, the facilities that are available at the institution, information about the faculty and above all the creativity that stems out of the training imparted to the students through the exhibits that the current students will display, reflecting their learning process at various departments, centers, sections and units of an institution.

Higher College of Technology had conducted an open day on 07-02-2017 through a formal inauguration   of   the   program   around    10-00  am   by   the honorable Dean of the college,  Dr. Khalid Abdulaziz Ambusaidi at the entrance of the HCT auditorium in the presence of the honorable Assistant Deans, Directors, HoD’s, HoSes, teaching and non-teaching staff members and students. The department of applied sciences had actively participated in the event by specially arranging exhibits at the entrance of the department in which the students showcased their talents through various   exhibits  developed   at the department with a careful planning and strong support of Dr. Mohammed Ali Oueslati, Head of Applied Sciences Department along with the HoS of Applied Biology section, Dr. Afraa Said Al-Adawi, HoS of Environmental Sciences, Dr. Suad Al Kindi, HoS Chemistry section, Dr. Wafa Mustafa Al Lawati and the HoU of Physics unit, Dr. Mohammed Shafiq Ahmed and other faculty members and the help of the “Science Club”. For the details of various exhibits presented by the science club in this open day, the following link may be browsed.

http://www.hct.edu.om/about/the-college/news-archive/science-club-open-day 

The “On Job Training (OJT)” team at the department of Applied Sciences exhibited a special poster and the OJT co-odinator Dr.Gopala Krishna and one of the active members Dr. Dinesh Kada Peela Bheeman answered the questions posed by the students and general public.

There was a “bazar” event in the multipurpose hall (MPH) where many exhibits are showcased from which the students and staff of applied sciences department purchased a variety of items out of which the hot chocolate cake counter was always found busy. A local perfume manufacturer “Alwidad Perfume” exhibited their products and explained that the basic substance was from a plant that was proudly grown in the Sultanate of Oman. There were also some other exhibits in the VIP lounge.

At the center of the departmental buildings of the applied sciences department there was an exhibition on the “Holy Quran” entitled “Fi Reba Al-Furkan” in the self-access center (SAC). The center of attraction was the display of the Holy Quran with the caption “We live with Quran”. An exhibit on the scientific facts mentioned in Holy Quran was another highlight.

The closing ceremony of the open day was conducted from 7-00 pm to 9-30 pm in the HCT auditorium with the sponsorship of “The National Bank of Oman”. The Assistant Dean of Student Affairs Dr. Bassam Khalil Hamdan Tabash was extempore in his speech and invited the audience in the beginning and also thanked the Dean, HCT management, CAB members, Staff and students for actively participating in all the events of the open day. On behalf of the department of applied sciences, Dr. Mohammed Ali Oueslati, Head of Applied Sciences Department received a token of appreciation from the Dean for making the open day a grand success.  

The Dean of the college had distributed tokens of appreciation to the staff and students and a “Trophy” for the Foot Ball Teams. The Dean of the college along with the officials of the NBO had drawn the lottery for eight winners of the “Al-Kanz Youth Savings Scheme”. The event ended with a drama entitled “MAZAR” which had already won six awards at the 4 th GCC Theatre festival for physically challenged persons. The play of emotions by the actors in this drama had shook the audience with joy, sorrow, surprise and appreciation and many audience eagerly went to shake hands with the physically challenged artists and took many pictures with them.

The various events in the open day are conducted to fulfill many goals of the strategic plan. The bazar event promotes entrepreneurial culture among students and staff, which is the Goal-3 of the strategic plan. The participation of the students in all the events will create a sense of responsibility which leads to enriching their values and attributes for making them future citizens who can contribute positively for socio economic development, which is the salient idea of Goal-4. In various events conducted at the open day, there were some points on which mutually beneficial partnerships can be developed in future with various public and private sector organizations, and professional bodies for a larger benefit of the community and this is in line with the Goal-7. In total the event was very successful and met all its objectives.

WRITTEN & DOCUMENTED BY:
Dr. C. Rama Chandra Prabhu

PHOTOS CREDIT:
Mr. Ulyssess Andres, Dr.Suad Al Kindi, Dr. S. K. Sridhar &
Ms. Naima Gharib Bakheet Al Wahebi of Student Affairs, HCT