University of the Visayas to offer Power, Safety Engineering Course in June

CEBU, Philippines - The University of the Visayas will be offering an Alberta, Canada-based curriculum on Power and Safety Engineering starting next school year.

The university partnered with Engr. Ron Gallardo, the planning and scheduling team leader of Canada-based Husky Energy for the said course offerings. Engr. Gallardo is also the president of Strategic Project Management Ltd., a company he put up in Canada, which provides consultancy, training and employment.

The Power Engineering and Safety Engineering courses, Gallardo said, is offered to high school graduates and graduates of any engineering course.

“The course will run for five years for high school graduates. Those who have graduated from any engineering course will have to take an additional two years to complete the Power Engineering or Safety Engineering course,” he added.

UV President and Cebu 1st District Representative Eduardo R. Gullas said this new course offering will give their students and graduates the opportunity to have on-the-job training or work in Canada, as well as the advantage of being exposed to a curriculum that is based on the curriculum used in Alberta, Canada.

“UV is the first to offer such course in the country. This will be an advantage to our students,” he added.

Power and Safety engineers in Canada receive an average of Canadian $150,000 to 250,000 salary a year, said Gallardo. Work schedules are usually seven days on and seven days off, and employers provide accommodations and living expenses while at work.

Aside from using a Canada-approved curriculum, the students will also have practical training on the use of the different equipment.

UV Executive Vice President Jose “Dodong” R. Gullas said Engr. Gallardo’s company will provide the equipment to be used by the students in their studies.

“The course will not be all theory because the students will really be able to see, touch and learn how to use the very equipment used by their counterparts in Canada. This way, when they have their OJT or get employed there, they are already familiar with the equipment,” said Gallardo.

He added that the program offering is equivalent to a first class engineering course in Canada, the highest engineering course there.

“The likelihood of being hired is very high and the job opportunities are not limited to Canada but also extends to other countries that have a petroleum industry,” he said.

Engr. Gallardo graduated Magna Cum Laude in Civil Engineering from the University of the Visayas in 1988. He has lived in Canada for 14 years and worked on the offering of the Power and Safety engineering course in UV as a way of giving back to this alma mater.

“I want to help the students. This is also a way of eliminating the educational gap between Canada and the Philippines. This can help the country and at the same time give hope to a lot of engineering graduates out there who are still unemployed,” he said. – (FREEMAN)