23 December 2024

UP VOICE VOL.50 – October 2020

The Official Newsletter of the University of Puthisastra (UP)-Vol.50 October 2020 Download

UP HOSTS 2ND ANNUAL CAREERS EXPO 2020

This year, the 2nd Annual Career Expo, was held on Saturday October 3rd, 2020. The Expro was hosted mostly online and designed to:

  1. support students exploring job opportunities
  2. allow companies to confirm what they are looking for (skills, soft skills , attitude) in new employees – best fit
  3. allow students to network – selecting the best companies for better jobs and higher salaries
  4. help students write covering letters and CVs to maximize their first impressions

Many guest speakers and professors from numerous organizations, institutes, and companies provided informative lectures on interview skills, developing quality curriculum vitae, critically important employment skills and soft-skills such as critical thinking and mainly communication, and professional networking. In addition, the guest speakers explained different job opportunities for students to have a better understanding of job searching and the current job market. The guest speakers provided very valuable advice with hands-on experience and also included a topic on CV writing and job interview skills. Current indus uide job seekers towards making the best possible decision for our student’s future careers.

The Expo was a university wide Career Conference involving staff and students across all faculties. This year, most of the sessions had 60-80 participants reported as a huge increase in number of participants comparing to participation from last year. There are more than 60 % participants among total participants attended Lab Sciences topics and almost all year 7 dental students take part and also reports of a huge success of participation for the other faculties.

The Careers Expo 2020 demonstrates UP’s commitment towards its students future careers., strengthening its partnerships with international as well as domestic brand names, from both the healthcare and the Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) industries. We are looking forward to see you again next year!

WHAT’S UP ON CAMPUS 15 OCTOBER, COMMEMORATION DAY OF KING’S FATHER

CAREER EXPO, a roadmap for students

How to choose the right career pathway is a controversial topic. Some recommend deciding based on their students’ talents and potentials whilst others suggest following a career and aligning their talents around their future career.

An important source of advice is role models who are currently succeeding in their careers. Other sources of advice are parents, friends, relatives, teachers, neighbors as well as the media – all influencing students’ attitude as well.

However, it is no secret that a critical decision is also supply which must meet demand. There is no point creating hundreds of graduates in areas where there are no new jobs. Another deciding factor is the reputation of the career or selected university. People are living in different situations. Actually, with so many factors affecting career choice no one rule fits all. As educational institution, UP has a strong role to provide quality information so that students can make the best choices for their future. This will not only become a roadmap for their career but also their lives.

For example, UPs Faculty of Pharmacy invited nine speakers divided into 3 panels. Both junior and senior pharmacy students were invited to participate in these discussions. Discussions focused on strategies and keys to success in the pharmaceutical sectors both public and private. Challenges in the COVID-19 era were also discussed. We sincerely hoped that all participants would enjoy the three sessions. At the same time, they could learn new idea and experiences sharing from the speakers, which potentially sharpen their mindset.

UP Online Career Expo 2020 – Careers in IT

On 3rd October 2020, as part of the UP Online Career Expo 2020, the ICT Department has invited professionals to share their experience about their IT jobs to our students. Their daily activities at work were mentioned, but they also shared some tips and explained about their personal career choice. Around 50 people were present on campus and online. The objective of this forum was to get our students familiar with different IT professional activities, job requirements, jobs of the future in order for them to make crucial decisions regarding their career path and their major.

The topics:
Session#01 “DevOps life in Enterprise” – by Mr. Oudam CHEA, Senior DevOps & Cloud Solution Architecture at Clik
Session#02 “IT Role in Modern Business Process” – by Mr. Sim Huysorng, System and Data Manager at Heineken
Session#03 “My responsibility and future of Artificial Intelligence” – by Mr. Kevin YIN, Lead AI Engineer at Slash Foundry
Session#04 “IT Infrastructure Career Field” – by Mr. Praing Senghong, Senior Associate, IT Infrastructure at Chipmong Bank

The slide presentations are available here: https://bit.ly/3lNgCti and the video recording is available upon request. Thanks again to all the participants and especially the speakers for sharing such valuable and interesting experiences.

Medical Laboratory Career Expo

The department of Laboratory Sciences is proud to have hosted our 2nd career expo for Medical Laboratory Technology students and other interested professionals as part of a university-wide career conference involving staff and student across the university, on the 03rd of October.

The Medical Laboratory Hybrid Career Expo was created for the Medical Laboratory Technology student with the main purpose of sharing success stories in the field of medical laboratory, how to set a goal for the future career, advance planning for the post-graduate student, and a panel discussion between the student/audiences and guest-speakers at the end of the session. These events provide students with opportunities to interact with people from relevant companies and organizations.

The Career Expo provided everything that students need to get the ball rolling on their job search. As officially UP has reopened under strict COVID-19 safety guidelines of the Ministry the conference was conducted with speakers physically present at UP and participants watching and interacting online (Hybrid-Career Expo). Even so it was a great experience for all participants and we are looking forward to next year’s event which hopefully can be an all physical conference again!

QLTS Delivers even more Online Mini-Workshops for UP Lecturers

The Department of Quality, Learning and Teaching, and Students (QLTS) has worked closely in collaboration with UP’s Learning and Teaching Champions Committee to host the Online Learning and Teaching Mini-Workshop Series in August and September. The primary aim of the workshops was to advance our teachers’ pedagogies – the way we teach UP students, particularly in an online environment.

To promote different ways of providing teaching and learning opportunities, we delivered sessions about:

  1. Blended Learning and Teaching
  2. Collaborative Learning Including Peer Assessment and Self-assessment
  3. Developing Rubrics
  4. Flipped Classrooms
  5. Innovation in Teaching
  6. Keeping Students Engaged in Large Classes
  7. Online Learning Activities and Classroom Management
  8. The First Day of Class
  9. Types of Learner Assessment in Online Learning
  10. UPOP (Assignment Design)
  11. UPOP (Download and Grade Students’ Assignments)
  12. UPOP (Quiz Design)
  13. Using Effective Questions
  14. Writing Assignments

We also delivered sessions online designed to help teachers develop their technical skills in the use of Gmail, Google Drive, Google Meet and our primary teaching tool – UP’s UPOP Learning Management System. During October, we are supporting whole-of-faculty learning sessions about improving pedagogy both online and in-class. As well, we are formally reflecting on the Drop-in and Online Workshop Series sessions to evaluate our performances in terms of improving the quality, and prepare additional training materials to share within the upcoming virtual workshops. In November, we plan further Online Mini-Workshop Series for UP lecturers.

The QLTS teams in Learning and Teaching and the Learning Centre, together with our Learning and Teaching Champions colleagues willingly support all our UP lecturers in regard to the effective implementation of contemporary, evidence-based innovative teaching practice, either virtually or physically.

We love to share our knowledge and practices with colleagues either individually, in small groups, or as an entire Faculty.

UPs new Rotaract Club meets with Rotary Club of Phnom Penh Central

The Rotary Club of Phnom Penh Central is the only Khmer speaking Rotary Club in Cambodia. Over the past year it has been working with the Rotary Club of Phnom Penh Capital and UP dental students and new graduates to form Cambodia’s first ROTARACT club.

Rotaract clubs bring together people aged 18 to 30 years to exchange ideas with leaders in the community, develop leadership and professional skills, and have fun through community service. Around the world Rotary and Rotaract members work side by side to take action through service.

Last week 9 UP Rotaract board members, including President Dr. Chray Mengkheng and President-elect Dr. Bun Sophealeak, were invited to a dinner meeting of Rotary Club of Phnom Penh Capitol by President Kong Nimol and Past President CP Yuan. The meeting was held at the ESSENCE Hotel and was a good chance for each group to get to know each other, and to start the process of planning the future activities of the new Rotaract Club. Rotaract club is open to any of our UP students and new graduates who wish to volunteer for charity work, with support from Rotary Club of Phnom Penh Central and Rotary International. During the dinner meeting the mission and function of the Rotaract Club were explained, and there was discussion about finding a worthwhile community project. It is hoped that the first activity can start in November 2020.

Medical Laboratory Simulation Room

Medical Laboratory Technology students depend on the practical experience to improve their skills for success in their careers in the health sector so UPs Clerkship/Internship program plays a vital role in providing students with opportunities to observe hospital and laboratory room processes. In particular students are able to learn about the real practice and explore new opportunities for learning that they haven’t previously undertaken.

Before the start of the clerkship/internship program, the students train in UPs Simulation Room to which is based on hospital workflow and National Curriculum. The Simulation Room was created primarily for student training before clerkship/internship and as a sample preparation room. It plays a significant role in the build-up of student’s abilities in general lab management and practice. To prepare the next batch of students for their internship the Department of Laboratory Sciences’ staff organized for the Medical Laboratory Technology students to practice in the simulation room by testing the real patient sample with manually and semi-automated machine, and perform some troubleshooting exercises. Students really enjoyed their experience in the Simulation Room!

UP Students’ testimonies

Hello everyone my name is Y Sopharith. I am a dentist student. My impression about UP after the reopening is change into a good quality especially the prevention for the students, staff and teacher all are follow to the policy of the university that everyone need to have their own protection in anywhere even in lab or UP campus. I believe that UP will update more for students very soon and is now going on the right track.

Y Sopharith, Faculty of Dentistry, Year 3

I’m Roniza Ty, I am a dentist student. I’m really grateful to be back at campus to practice at sim lab and I am so happy to see what UP staff have been working to ensure that everyone is safe from the covid-19. Staff and also lecturer always make sure that students are in social distancing while in campus even in classroom. They also provide us hand sanitizer at the gate, moreover, they check our temperature, wearing masks before we can get into the campus. At last, wearing your mask, Stay cleaned, social distancing to protect yourself, your family and your friend. I’m really appreciate what UP have been doing for us.

Ty Roniza, Faculty of Dentistry, Year 3

UP Pharmacy, an official CPD provider in Cambodia

Continuing Professional Development (CPD) is a continual process of lifelong learning, which is focused on implementing learning within professional practice and improving outcomes for patients. CPD is involved in maintaining appropriate knowledge, skills and experience, keeping up-to-date with continuing education and professional competency and undertaking appropriate development and training opportunities that are relevant to graduates careers. CPD also ensures that the professional standard of their qualifications and registrations is maintained. Moreover, it contributes to their professional sense of direction. Completing CPD helps build confidence and credibility, allows showcasing of achievements and equips participants with tools to cope positively with change.

For example all pharmacists have to undertake continuing professional development (CPD) in order to be eligible to continue their registration as a pharmacist on an annual basis and continually provide reliable healthcare services. UP Pharmacy is officially recognized as a CPD provider in the country through an MoU with Pharmacist Council of Cambodia (PCC).

UP is officially recognized by Royal Government of Cambodia. UP is a high quality provider and has been recognized

  • UP was awarded full accreditation (5th May 2020) fulfilling the requirement of the national standards for 5 years which will be valid from 2019 to 2023 by Accreditation Committee of Cambodia (AAC).
  • On 31 July 2020, Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport (MoEYS) has certified the full quality of UP E-Learning system.
  • UP was one of the first universities certified by MOEYS to reopen and re-opened on 21st September

UP has sufficient human resources, including lecturers, trainers, trainers and facilitators who are competent and qualified in accordance with the principles of continuous professional development. To date, we have trained five batches of pharmacy graduates. So far, University has been investing in sophisticated lab equipment and facilities to train pharmacy students in research in line with national and international curricula. University of Puthisastra is improving its curriculum in line with international standards, has create an eLearning Center, developed its very own learning management system – UPOP- established a Research Hub creating research opportunities for pharmacy students to achieve their dreams, established a Learning Lounge and Career Corner to help motivate students to succeed. UP provides the best infrastructure for students, staff as well as partners of the University of Puthisastra to develop. With this new collaboration, UP is ready to open a new page to provide education particularly CPD to registered pharmacists.

UP SIGNS MOU WITH AUSTRALIAN NGO AHHA

Australian Health Humanitarian Aid (AHHA) is an Australian registered non-profit charity organization. In Cambodia they provide free eye surgery, eye care, and medical and dental treatment to the underprivileged, as well as training to local students and doctors using the technology from Australia and the skills of Australian health professional volunteers. For the past 4 years AHHA has been partnering with UP by sending a dental team to work with our staff and students in the UP Dental Clinic, with a focus on helping underserved and special needs children. They also provide an educational workshop focusing on pediatric dentistry. However, in 2020 their visit had to be cancelled due to Covid-19.

However, AHHA did not forget about us, and have recently signed an MOU to provide support for a large number of disadvantaged adult patients to have complete and partial dentures made in the UP dental clinic. This project not only provides a very important service for those who normally cannot afford such treatment, but also helps the UP dental students to learn these important skills.

Just before the Covid pandemic started, AHHA sponsored two students to go to Australia for two weeks on a study tour. The students, Nam Virak and Sary Saney, are now helping to recruit patients in need of dentures to come to the UP dental clinic for subsidised treatment. Thanks AHHA for being such a generous partner!

UP represents Cambodia at AASMT

ASEAN association of Schools of Medical Technology (AASMT) was established to improve Medical Technology curriculum and promote medical technology within Southeast Asian regions. University of Puthisastra (UP) is a representative for Cambodia.

On the 1st of October, 2020, AASMT management board arranged a special meeting conducted online focusing on the 5th AASMT Congress in Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam, Voluntary Accreditation of AASMT Member Schools by the AASMT Committee on Voluntary Accreditation, ASEAN Professional Standards for Medical Technology Educators for International Practice, and initial review of the collated MT/MLS curriculum. The UP representatives were Dr. CHEA SIN, Dean of Pharmacy and Mr. OUK SOKSEREIVOTANAK, Director of Laboratory Sciences.

Different board members from different countries in ASEAN also attended the meeting. It was a productive and wonderful meeting to move MT/MLT to another step forward.

UP Dental Graduates Excelling in Private Practice

Dr Chea Senghuy recently defended this thesis at UP and is now working in a good dental practice with several classmates. He recently sent this photo showing an example of one of his cases. He is developing his skills in aesthetic dentistry, based on what he learnt as a student at UP. You can see from these photos how good he is already.

UP is training all its dental students to do high quality aesthetic dentistry like this – and you can get similar treatment in our own UP Dental Clinic. Thank you Dr Senghuy for sharing your case with us.

UP Online Careers Expo 2020

Career Preparation Workshops From The Department Of English

Alongside colleagues from the various Faculties here at UP, the Department of English was delighted to be able to host two afternoon workshops at this year’s Online Careers Expo. The invited speakers for this year were Mr. Jeffrey Siggins, Ms. Mariana Ganusiak and Mr. Jason Dark, all of whom are lecturers of the English Department. Topics covered included the creation and maintenance of high quality Curriculum Vitae (CV’s), and how to write high quality Cover Letters – two practical areas that make a big difference for students and graduates of UP when they apply for their first jobs in their chosen professions.

The sessions were enjoyable, and practically focused, with strong students participation and interaction, and they concluded with a short role-play, centred on how to appear positive and professional in job interviews! Jeff, Mariana and Jason greatly enjoyed their afternoon sessions, and the Department of English looks forward to contributing again next year. Thank you to QILTS, the Faculties and especially our wonderful students for helping us make our contributions possible, and equally importantly, fun for everyone!

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