01/17/2018
By Edwin Aguirre
After an extraordinary semester studying at the Czech Technical University (CTU) in Prague, what could former electrical engineering major Gregory Ensom do for an encore?
How about staying in Prague for an internship in the research and development department at Valeo, a multinational automotive supplier that specializes in smart vehicle technology and innovation?
During his two-month internship, Ensom helped develop the software and hardware that goes into autonomous and assisted-driving cars for companies such as Volkswagen and Renault.
“I can’t begin to express how rewarding this experience was,” says Ensom, who graduated from UMass Lowell in May 2017. “You hear the cliché that people find themselves when studying abroad, and it really is true. Through my experience, I have grown to be a more motivated and confident person.”
Ensom was one of three Francis College of Engineering students to participate in the student exchange program at CTU in spring 2016. They were joined in the Czech Republic by Prof. Martin Margala, chair of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE), who was on a one-year fellowship in Prague after being awarded the Fulbright-Czech Technical University Distinguished Chair in Electrical Engineering in 2015.
The goal of the UMass Lowell–CTU partnership, established in 2011, is to promote student and faculty exchanges and research collaboration in areas such as nuclear engineering, advanced manufacturing and cybersecurity. This spring semester, two undergraduates from the Francis College of Engineering – Anne Souza in mechanical engineering and Brianna Fahrenkopf in computer engineering – are studying at CTU.
To provide opportunities for professional, hands-on engineering experience, UMass Lowell and CTU have set up co-op programs for undergraduates and internships for graduate students with companies that have major centers near both the Lowell and Prague campuses.
For example, Red Hat, a leading provider of open source enterprise software, has R&D centers in Westford, Mass., and in Brno, the second-largest city in the Czech Republic. Aside from Red Hat and Valeo, other participating companies include Honeywell, Rockwell Automation and Eaton, Margala says.
The relationship between UMass Lowell and CTU has gone so well that they have decided to take it a step further.
“Under a newly signed agreement, the partnership has been extended to 2021,” Margala says. “We will soon start offering undergraduate and graduate students joint degree programs. Right now, we’re working on a dual-degree – master’s and doctorate – program for grad students.”
Because of the success of this partnership, UML has also teamed up with another Czech institution, Masaryk University in Brno.
Margala notes that employers are increasingly recruiting graduates with global awareness and multicultural experiences.
“These young engineers are already accustomed to working in teams with diverse backgrounds. Companies are now pushing for diversity in the workplace, because it provides different types of training and thinking and a variety of points of view. Employers are really seeking out these kinds of skills,” he explains.
Margala says study abroad experiences are very desirable to help students’ résumés stand out, especially when applying for jobs at large international companies. “Employers know you already have the experience and training, so you need less mentoring and you can transition easily into your new job. This is a huge advantage for UMass Lowell graduates over other applicants.”