MIDDLE EAST • SAUDI ARABIA Cadets hard at work


‘These two facilities will increase our capacity and will help us reach new levels of education and training in the region,’ Timraz tells Seatrade Maritime Review.


The faculty has also launched an outreach programme to encourage students into maritime courses, and has adapted its courses – all of which are offered in Arabic and English – to meet the demands and expectations of the Millennial generation.


Bridging the gap between industry and academia


An often heard complaint is that academia does not properly equip students with practical skills to carry into the world of work, but the King Abdul-Aziz University’s Faulty of Maritime Studies is building strong links with the industry.


The faculty recently signed cooperation agreements with French shipbuilding giant DCNS, which will see the two organisations work together on research and development, with students benefiting from hands-on training. DCNS will also take on a number of graduates for employment.


Similarly, a partnership has


been formed with Jeddah Islamic Port, with students being trained at the port, while port staff will visit the faculty to offer students practical advice.


‘The two agreements stand out as real highlights from the last 12 months,’ says Hatan Timraz, who was very recently appointed Dean of the Faculty.


‘We have a number of cooperation agreements with different organisations, which I think highlights the strong links that the faculty has established and maintains with industry.’


While the industry may be going through a challenging period, Timraz says faculty is somewhat insulated from temporary market conditions,


54 Visit: seatrade-maritime.com Seatrade Maritime Review • Quarterly Issue 2 • June 2017


and, encouragingly, there has been no evidence of a fall in jobs for the faculty’s graduates.


‘We are very well supported by the government and by the University’s upper leadership, so we thankfully haven’t felt a direct effect of the difficult market conditions, nor did we see a direct effect on the employment of graduates thus far.’


In fact, the faculty is taking steps to improve its courses, having just a commissioned simulator centre for the Regional Maritime


Hatan Timraz


Examination Centre, which should be operational in the coming months. Two new


buildings are expected to be completed before the end of the year, too.


King Abdul-Aziz University’s Faculty of Maritime Studies


‘The new generations are not aware of the excellent job prospects that the maritime industry has to offer. We want to connect with the youth and high school students to enlighten them on the opportunities that they may want pursue in the maritime industry,’ says Timraz.


‘The way that the new generation approach problems and the type of solutions they come up with is very different to that seen previously. The baby boomers and my generation, Gen X, are arguably the last generation that knows how things are done and can see where things are heading.


‘So it is our duty to think hard and decide what knowledge and which skills that we deem necessary to retain, and thus we need to be creative and come up with ways to pass it on to the next generation. The faculty is exploring ways to adapt our courses and our delivery methods to be more relevant to the new generations.’ 


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