EDUCATION
Another success story of IIT from Malaysia
IIT has been able to consistently maintain a record of achieving top
standards, both in education and the industry as a versatile
Institution. IIT’s past pupils have proven their spirit in the corporate
world beyond the University.
Omar Reyal |
Omar Reyal who currently serves as a Director of Business Development
at Zone24x7, joined the IIT in 1999 with the aspiration of obtaining the
BSc (Hons) in Information Systems offered at IIT and today, he stands
tall with great pride, achieving nothing but the best. Omar was the gold
medallist in 2003 and is a past student of Mahanama College and the
Royal Institute of Colombo.
When asked what made him select IIT, Omar stated, “Good reputation in
the industry. Even in 1999, when I joined, there were many IIT graduates
holding key positions in the industry. The atmosphere there was
extremely relaxed and inviting and certainly conducive to intense
learning, yet with a certain ambience that encouraged friendship and
camaraderie. The students are also selected through an interview process
b the faculty”.
Omar is Director of Business Development at Zone24x7 Malaysia. Having
joined Zone24x7 in 2005 as a software engineer, Omar rapidly climbed the
ladder being promoted to Project Manager by 2007. Reflecting the past,
he emphasized that ‘Zone24x7 was one of the few technology companies in
Sri Lanka with hardware and software development taking place under the
same roof, providing true end-to end exposure of the technology
spectrum. The company also boasts a senior management, who encourages
exploration of disruptive technology and has a great track record of
successes. This combined with a strong team of highly talented and
spirited individuals, made it a great place to kick-off a career in the
IT sector and I have not looked back since. Zone24x7 continues to draw
the cream of IT talent in the country, including many of the top
graduates from IIT, over the past several years.’ Omar moved to Malaysia
in 2009 to develop Zone24x7’s Malaysian and regional business. His
responsibilities include penetrating new business domains and overseeing
the execution of regional projects.
Omar emphasized on the structuring of the courses at IIT, ‘It’s a
good course structure that touches on a wide spectrum of verticals in
the industry, giving enough knowledge in all key areas. Third year
placement brought out a whole new perspective in the approach towards
final year subjects and the project. Reminiscing his internship, he
said, “I was part of a team developing frameworks using the latest
technologies of the time, some of which were used for years afterwards.
The internship was a great stepping stone towards a well-rounded degree,
as it exposed me to the practical aspects of applying technology to
solve real business problems. This helped bring out a whole new
perspective in the approach towards final year subjects and projects,
which would not have been possible without the internship.
He also shared his experience on the final year project which he had
submitted, ‘Framework for rapid prototyping with minimal technical
intervention which could cut down significant pre-sales time and cost on
software projects and help capture requirements more effectively. As a
result, the outputdesign serves as a foundation for a software team to
continue building the solution.’ He believed that the IIT was the best
choice when it came to obtaining the degree and moving on with
employment.
‘The ability to present a pitch well and respond to questions
effectively, was fine tuned by the presentations and spoken exams
carried out with most module projects at IIT. Also the excellent
reputation set in the industry by past IIT students, had set the stage
to be prolific candidates at job interviews. The fundamentals of the IT
industry acquired at IIT have made it easier for me to make that
transition from software development to project management to business
development roles smoothly throughout my career,’ he said. Omar strongly
believes that Sri Lanka has an enormous pool of talented individuals
with the right attitude to do well in the industry. ‘I would like to
intervene to enable more of these individuals reach the heights of their
potential and help Sri Lanka gain a reputation as a nation of innovative
thinkers. Technology is ever changing and evolving and will continue to
do so. Sri Lankan IT graduates should aspire not just to take advantage
of this evolution, but to be effective contributors towards it by using
the fundamentals learned in academia to always think ahead with a focus
towards solving problems.’ ‘I am happy to see IIT continue to produce
well rounded students since its inception.
Zone24x7 has also employed some wonderfully talented graduates and
interns who have shown the skill, adaptability and most importantly the
attitude to be successful IT professionals, IIT has truly served the
cause of education and if there is one place you must go to obtain your
degree in this field, IIT should be right up there on your list, he
concluded.
More details on Web: www.iit.ac.lk, email:
[email protected]
Student exhibition at Raffles Institute
Elements of typography, fashion, jewellery and interior design,
fashion marketing and merchandising, photography, multimedia and graphic
design will be exhibited at the Raffles gallery, Galle Road, Colombo, as
part of the ‘Open House’ event on the November 24 at Raffles Institute
of Higher Education.
This exhibition brings together a range of work which explores many
aspects of the overall design process, ranging through the use of
recycled materials for jewellery, to producing scaled models for
furniture, to understanding basic elements of typography and the
relevance of this design principle in all areas of design.
As the title suggests, ‘Imagine’ is what we constantly encourage our
students to do in all areas of design at Raffles.
The work exhibited reflects examples of design, where students have
pushed boundaries in their creative fields, to express innovation and
professionalism at all levels.
Raffles Education Corporation was established in Singapore in 1990
where it continues to produce award winning graduates. With branches in
33 countries in the Asia Pacific region, students have the option to
transfer to one of the Raffles network colleges to complete their final
year in the Bachelor of Design degree programmes. |