Shell makes careers in engineering more attractive to students, parents

MANILA, Philippines - Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp. (Shell) is making an engineering career more attractive to public high school students and their parents.

“There is a future in an engineering career and it holds promise for the student, his family, as well as for the country,” says Gerrard L. Ortega, general manager for human resources of Shell.

The prospect of a bright future for engineers is why Shell embarked on a campaign to encourage public high school students to take up engineering and science courses in college without making it a burden on their parents. The energy company is sponsoring “Project Tuklas,” a science project contest for third-year public high school students.  Project Tuklas aims to raise the students’ interest and aptitude in science and technology as well as qualify up to 60 of them for engineering scholarships. Shell is funding the scholarships, which await the winners of Project Tuklas’ preliminary and final rounds.

The scholarship is beneficial to both students and parents, according to Japhet Edward Kariuki, former president of the Kenya chapter of international student organization AIESEC (Association Internationale des Etudiants Sciences Economique et Commerciales). The group’s local chapter, AIESEC University of the Philippines-Diliman, supported by AIESEC Philippines, is handling Project Tuklas for Shell and PhilDev, or the Philippine Development Foundation.

The scholarship is offered to public high school students who lack the resources to enrol in engineering and science courses, explains Ortega. It allows parents to send them to schools like University of the Philippines (Diliman and Los Baños), Ateneo de Manila University, De La Salle University (DLSU), Mapua Institute of Technology, Central Luzon State University, Mindanao State University-Iligan Institute of Technology, and University of San Carlos. Students will first have to pass the entrance examinations of the engineering courses in these schools. Ortega estimates the cost of taking a five-year engineering program at DLSU is P1.5 million per student. The amount covers tuition, books, allowance, and dormitory expenses.

Studying engineering is a challenge by itself, which is why Shell plans to partner its engineers with the scholars to provide them mentorship during their college education.

Shell will also hold summer camps for scholars to build their leadership skills and allow them to draw learning and inspiration from each other. Upon graduation, Shell will offer them employment. Shell’s engineers, according to Ortega, get a very competitive salary and benefits package, exposure to the company’s different businesses, and promotion to local or overseas positions.

More engineers will also boost the country’s manufacturing, transportation, IT and infrastructure industries.

AIESEC Philippines is providing foreign mentors to help competing high school teams in Project Tuklas produce a prototype and presentation of their project concept, which is based on the contest’s theme, the “Future of Energy.”

The 32 Project Tuklas teams from 18 public high schools in Metro Manila have projects on biofuels, biomass and solar power research that qualified for the preliminary round of the contest. Canadian-Indonesian mentor Dwie Steffyanti says, “There is a possibility that these little projects can support the development of renewable energies.”

To know more about Shell in the Philippines, visit www.shell.com.ph. To learn more about Shell’s various social investments in the Philippines, visit www.shell.com.ph/home/content/phl/environment_society/sustainability_report/.