Mercmarine Training Awards Rs. 2 Million Worth Scholarships to Two Female Merchant Navy Cadets
The Imperial Institute of Higher Education (IIHE), located at No 25 ½ Station Road, Bambalapitiya, enters its 21st year in offering high quality degree and post-graduate programs.
IIHE is a private sector tertiary education institution recognized by the University Grants Commission. The programs conducted are in association with University of Wales and University of Salford , Manchester, England. During a span of 21 years IIHE has produced nearly 500 graduates in Business Management and over 500 post-graduates in MBA from University of Wales. From Salford Business School, University of Salford, Manchester, U.K.
The high standard of classroom teaching, support infrastructure of modern library, IT labs, qualitative entry criteria and establishing a learning culture have resulted in those graduating from IIHE being quickly recruited in to employment in the local prestigious private sector as well as public sector establishments.
Giving careful consideration to the dearth of management skills in the Tourism and Hospitality sector, in Sri Lanka currently, IIHE in association with University of Salford, Manchester, U.K. offer a B.Sc. (Hons) degree in Business and Tourism Management.
A full-time three year program, this course will facilitate to gain an appreciation of theory alongside the practical skills needed for management positions in the tourism sector, especially in hotels, up market restaurants, hospitalityservices, tour operation, aviation and cruise sectors.
The student will gain an understanding on the impact of current international initiatives around tourism leadership and innovation. After the first year they are given the facility to reviewand change options depending on which subjects interest them most. This gives a vital foundation in business disciplines to support the subjects you go on to study in the second and final years.
By the final year , the student will be able to analyze tourism systems and make recommendations to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of operations in respect of stakeholders including consumers, employees, shareholders and the government.
As tourism is Sri Lanka’s fastest growing economic sector, right now, with 2 million tourists visiting the country, the employment prospects are very promising at management and executive levels for those with skills in Business and Tourism Management. Owing to the fact that Tourism is one of the world’s fastest growing industries obtaining the requisite qualifications and acquisition of skills will pave the way for a global career path.
The applicant profile that IIHE is anticipating, are from students who are passionate about learning and interested in the Tourism industry. They are expected to be enthusiastic and dedicated to improve analytical skills, communication capabilities and self-confidence along with a desire to learn about different international environments and cultures.
Teaching is delivered through a combination of lectures, seminars and tutorials using a wide range of learning activities. You will experience small group tutorials during the 1st and 2nd year module studies. This will ensure that the student gain a skill level when reaching the final year of studies.
The reader is encouraged to visit the IIHE web-siteon www.iihe.lkfor further
details.
Mercmarine Training, Sri Lanka’s foremost merchant seamen training institute, presented scholarships worth Rs. 2 million to two female cadet applicants, Ms. KoshilaHerath and Ms. SonaliJayarathne,at an event held in Colombo, recently. The scholarship winners were selected from over 50 applicants, based on their scores and performanceduring the entry selection process for the intake concluded in March 2017 and were officially awarded by Hon. ArjunaRanatunga, Minister of Ports and Shipping in the presence of officials from Mercmarine Training and Mr. ShashiDhanathunge, Chairman of Ceylon Shipping Corporation Ltd.
Mercmarine Training’s special scholarship programmewas launched in line with their 30th anniversary in November last year in a bid to encourage more females to take up careers in the merchant navy. The awarded scholarshipswere worth Rs. 1 million each and covered 90% of the course fee for the first phase of the Cadet Officer programmein the Navigation or Engineering department at Mercmarine Training.
Commending Mercmarine Training’s efforts to promote rewarding careers at sea among Sri Lankan women, Hon. ArjunaRanatunga, Minister of Ports and Shipping, said ‘’Merchant seafaring is one of the most rewarding career paths available to the Sri Lankan youth today. Unfortunately, due to lack of awareness most youth tend to overlook this great career path in favor of more common and most sought after professions. There’s a great potential for Sri Lankan merchant navy personnel to grow professionally at a global level and immensely contribute to the economic growth of the country. I congratulate the two young women on winning these scholarships and wish them good luck in their exciting careers. At the same time, I would like to thank Mercmarine Training for their unwavering commitment to promote this profession among Sri Lankan youth, specially the females.’’
‘’As the foremost seamen training institute in the country, we have always kept pace with the changing industry trends at a global level. Hence, we have been aware of the increasing demand for female seafaring professionals globally. Many international organizations including the International Maritime Organization (IMO) have extensively discussed the advancement of women through maritime professions in both shore-based and seagoing posts.This scholarship programme is an unprecedented initiative and we are happy to see it yielding desired results. We earnestly hope more Sri Lankan female youth would follow the footsteps of KoshilaHerath and SonaliJayarathne and make most of the great career opportunities available to them in the merchant navy’’ said Captain RohanCodippily, COO, Mercmarine Group.
Founded in 1986, Mercmarine Training has continually produced top notch Sri Lankan seafaring professionals and has been a key force in attracting young blood to the industry. Specializing in the areas of training Navigational Officer Cadets, Engineering Officer Cadets, Deck Ratings, Engine Ratings and Catering Ratings at the entry level for the seafaring profession, Mercmarine Training has pioneered many initiatives in the field such as the scholarship programme for female cadets.
Backed by the Mercmarine Group, one of the largest shipping groups of companies, Mercmarine Training intends to continually raise awareness about the merchant seafaring profession among the Sri Lankan youth and provide them with unprecedented opportunities to embark on successful careers.