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10 BHOS students studying in Chemical Engineering Programme took summer internship at Petkim, Turkey in two groups. The first group of five third year students took internship between 1-24 July, while the second one was trained from July 27 to August 14. BHOS was the first amongst higher educational institutions of Azerbaijan sending its students to take internship abroad. Being a leading HEI, BHOS attaches great significance to career perspectives of its students and the students enjoy the opportunity to do internship in local and transnational companies. During 25 day internship programme, the students closely familiarized themselves with the construction and completion operations, as well as various technological equipment specifications available at the structures of Petkim, SOCAR’s biggest facility in Turkey. Upon completion of the internship, Petkim granted certificates to the students. Ahmad Galandarli and Amail Mamedova, the fourth year BHOS students and the group leaders shared their impressions with us.

 

How were you selected to be sent to Petkim? What were the selection procedures based on?

Ahmad Galandarli - the selection was carried out based on two categories: annual exam results and social activities. I turned to be amongst the students who were sent to take internship because of my educational performance and successful participation at scientific conferences. Moreover, I was appointed a group leader due to the fact that I was quite an active member of the Students Senate, SPE, etc.

Amail Mamedova - During the current academic year BHOS administration announced that 10 students with the highest GPA would take internship at Petkim, Turkey. This was how the top Chemical Engineering students got this opportunity. I was really excited to hear about my inclusion into the list of these students.

 

What feelings did you experience when you learned that you would join the internship at Petkim? Have you been abroad before?

Ahmad Galandarli - No doubt, I did feel responsibility of taking internship at international level. I thought about never making any mistakes and I was a bit excited. Also, I was very glad to be selected to represent BHOS abroad. I used to live in Russia, but I’ve never been abroad since then.

Amail MamedovaI was very excited before my trip to Petkim, as it was not only my first visit to Petkim, but also the first one to Izmir. Being appointed a group leader even multiplied my responsibilities.

 

How did they welcome you?

Ahmad Galandarli - We were very pleased of the attention and care rendered to us. We were placed in A category rooms. We really experienced a specific attention and care. For instance, we were provided with a driver who used to take us to the downtown for sightseeing.

Amail Mamedova - We were welcomed hospitably when we landed in Izmir. We really felt at home there, since the accommodation, food, internship programme and sightseeing tours were organized very well. We were very pleased and happy to see their attention and care to our students and our higher school.

 

What did you learn during the internship?

Ahmad Galandarli - We learned about the production methods of various chemicals. We visited all 15 plants, apart from seeing the additional eight supporting equipment. We were also introduced the STAR PROJECT, a new SOCAR initiative.

Amail Mamedova - The internship was so interesting that not only me, but also all our team members wished the programme would not end. We visited the plants and during the internship we had to go to two or three plants per day, where we closely familiarized ourselves with the production processes, while learning about the structure and operation principles of every equipment, as well as the applied procedures, raw materials, basic substances and additives which helped us to apply our theoretical knowledge gained during the studies in practice. This programme was a unique experience not only in terms of enriching our knowledge, but also in terms of acquiring new skills of conducting a study, improving our team working abilities, as well as the communication, adaptation, problem solving and leadership skills.

 

What kind of impressions do you now have about Turkey, the region where you have been to and Petkim?

Ahmad Galandarli - The first thing that mostly attracted me were the flags on the apartments and buildings. People hang flags on the balconies of their apartments. Generally, the city is very green and despite of the fact that Petkim, SOCAR’s huge oil company, is located in this city, it is very well organized and has many green surroundings.

Amail Mamedova - Well, in general the internship was significant in terms of improving our personal qualities and world view, along with our knowledge, as Petkim is one of the biggest leading chemical complexes in Turkey specialized in production of chemicals in demand. Moreover, this experience helped the students to closely familiarize themselves with the SOCAR’s overseas activities, as well as the work of the young at Petkim.