Internship
DeKUT GRADUATE ENGINEERS INTERNS PROGRAM IN COLLABORATION WITH THE ENGINEERS BOARD OF KENYA.
INTRODUCTION
Dedan Kimathi University of Technology (DeKUT) in her endeavors to equip her students with relevant industrial skills for job market established the Siemens Training Centre (DeSTC) which is the first of a kind in Africa.
DeSTC strives to create a bridge between academia and the industry. On one hand, many Africa industries are using some modern technologies which are not taught in classroom. On the other hand, innovations and research findings remain in the Universities’ premises. DeSTC comes in to create a direct link between Universities and Industries by providing training in new emerging technologies in collaboration with Siemens AG (Germany).
The Centre has since been accredited by Engineers Board of Kenya (EBK) to offer the following courses as Continuous Professional Development (CPD) for Graduate, Professional and Consulting Engineers:
- Siemens Cooperates with Education (SCE)
- Quality and Supply Chain Management
- Production and Process Engineering
- ISO and OHSAS Implementation for engineering applications
Moreover, with the current need to develop a larger pool of skilled and professional workforce in the field of Engineering, DeSTC has established a collaboration with the EBK to offer Graduate Engineers Internship Programme (GEIP) for 24 Months. The GEIP is designed to enable the interns to acquire requisite hands-on skills and prepare them for professional practice in their respective engineering fields.
This programme is aimed at developing manpower with capacity, knowledge, desire and ability to address critical technical issues associated with energy, manufacturing, agriculture, health and the environment for enhanced national development.
OBJECTIVES
- To offer a smooth transition from the normal school education to the industry (class to work) through skills development.
- To enable interns upon successful completion of the program to register with EBK as professional Engineers.
BACKGROUND
The Engineers Board of Kenya (EBK) has developed the Graduate Engineers Internship Program (GEIP) which is a structured internship program for graduate engineers that is designed to enable them acquire requisite hands-on skills and prepare them for professional practice. https://ebk.or.ke/geip-internship-opportunities/
The program will run for 24 months and the interns will be trained under professional engineers who are registered by the Board. To ensure the success of the program, the Board needs Mentors from the fraternity whose role in the implementation of the GEIP is critical. The importance of the mentors is derived from the fact that they are the ones who will work with the trainees, giving the trainees the necessary guidance and assistance in their professional development.
DeSTC MENTORSHIP FACILITIES
DeKUT Siemens Training Centre (DeSTC) has the capacity and resources to serve as a mentor of GEIP. We pride ourselves as the home to state-of-the-art training facilities which include but not limited to: 7 station valve assembly line, Siemens 1200 PLC training kits, Electropneumatic & Electrohydraulic system, Motor Control system, Mechanical drives system, Power and Control electronics, Process Control systems, CNC machines, Milling machines, Lathe Machines, High Voltage training kits and Transmission Line Training systems.
Fig.1: Mechatronics Mentorship Lab
Fig.2: Mechatronics training systems
Fig.3: Control systems and 3D printer
Fig.4: Electrical and Electronics Training Facilities
Fig. 5: Mechanical Mentorship Workshop
RECRUITMENT
Target group
This internship programme targets the already registered graduate engineers or those with interest in the registration as well as in developing skills in their area of study. The Centre promotes gender equality and cultural diversity, therefore, all applicants including those living with disabilities will be treated equally.
Qualifications
A Candidate who has graduated with a 5 year Bachelor of Science/Engineering degree in Mechanical, Electrical & Electronics, Control, and Mechatronic Engineering is qualified to apply for the internship program. Prior to the commencement of the internship program, one must register with EBK as a graduate engineer.
Duration of the Internship
The internship program will run for a duration of 24 months.
Fig.6: Mechanical Training Facilities
BENEFITS OF THE INTERNSHIP PROGRAM
- Skills Development: Through this internship programme a student gains requisite hands-on skills/various job-related skills which are not taught in the classroom but are of significant value in the industry.
- Career Development: The Graduate Engineer Internship Programme is designed to enable the interns to prepare for professional practice in their respective engineering fields. An intern learns and understands the duties and responsibilities associated with his or her chosen field of interest.
- Personal Development: The training of this programme is structured to be a learner centered training with the Intern working with a professional engineer as a mentor. This enables the learner to develop his or her persona by learning decision making and decisive thinking as well as time management skills in completion of the tasks assigned.
- Professional Engineer Registration by EBK: With successful completion of the programme, the graduate engineers will be ready to register and practice as professional engineers, which shall be facilitated by the Engineers Board of Kenya.
- Networking: Interns during training will get to interact with their mentors who are professional engineers and other professionals from their field of study who they make connections with and could use these contacts for future references or for work related advice. This will also offer a platform for the interns to get to know the dynamics in the real world and this knowledge will help them find opportunities in the workplace.
ADVISORY AND MENTORSHIP
All Graduate Engineers Interns will work under the advisory and mentorship of a registered professional Engineer during the training period. The advisor will meet interns on a regular basis to check on the progress and to address matters of concern by guiding the interns on the objective of every given task as well as assessing the performance. The mentor will contribute on the motivational aspect by discussing the intern’s personal and professional development goals.
PAYMENT
The interns enrolled in this program are expected to pay Kshs27,915 per semester (3 Months).