SLIIT hosts Outbound Student Mobility Programme for Deakin University Students
An Outbound Student Mobility Programme is a unique opportunity for students to combine an overseas travel and cultural experience, while focusing on an area of study. SLIIT’s Outbound Student Mobility Programme, hosted a group of students from Deakin University, Australia. The theme for this credit based programme was ‘ICT for Rural Community Development in Sri Lanka’ and was organised by the SLIIT International Office in collaboration with the Faculty of Computing with the Information Systems Engineering Department conducting the programme.
Commenting on the programme, Prof. Lalith Gamage, President and CEO, SLIIT said, “Short-term international study programs, are worthwhile education endeavours that have self-perceived impacts on students’ intellectual and personal lives. Our strong relationship with Deakin University enables us to conduct successful Outbound Student Mobility Programmes that provides a safe, unique study experience for students to earn credit towards their studies. During the programme conducted recently students visited Hikkaduwa, NuwaraEliya and Anuradhapura and engaged in a tour of Colombo. It also provides an ideal platform for our students to interact with these foreign students and enhance their cross-cultural communication skills.”
The visiting Deakin students were introduced to Sri Lanka’s ICT roadmap, challenges faced and relevant technologies used locally. Their assignment during the programme was based on developing ICT in a rural infrastructure framework including areas such as Agriculture, Education, Fisheries, Governance and Health.
The field visits helped the students gain an understanding of the work already being done in these sectors. Based on their findings and analysis, the students were tasked with presenting their projects based on Problem Elicitation, Impact/ Business Analysis component, new ideas and concepts, and schematics to support their claims.The students also had the opportunity to experience Sri Lanka’s rich cultural and scenic beauty during their stay.
Elaborating on the benefits of such a programme, Prof. Lakshman Ratnayake, Chairman SLIIT, said, “It is well documented that overseas study experiences enhance students’ engagement in academic affairs and life-long learning. We firmly believe the student mobility programme provides invaluable experience to all participants, overseas and local students. As a premier educational institute we understand these programme contribute to create the right environments and opportunities for young people to develop global competencies and a globally-tuned mindset.”