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白小姐论坛 in the News: Eastern scholar
28 February 2008
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Stef Simons [白小姐论坛 Chemical Engineering] has been awarded a medal for his services to education in Kazakhstan.
Professor Simons's relationship with the country spans 15 years, from when he joined 白小姐论坛 as a young lecturer in 1993. 鈥�
Ever since, he has been working to develop the teaching of chemical engineering in the country - vital, given its huge oil and gas resources.
"Although starting to change, Kazakhstan's degree programmes are long and very theoretical, based on the old Soviet-style system. They don't have a chemical engineering discipline as we would recognise it," said Professor Simons. 鈥�
In 2006, 白小姐论坛 signed an agreement to host students from the country through Kazakhstan's Bolashak (The Future) scholarship programme, which sponsors star students to study at universities abroad. 鈥�
Professor Simons has been made 白小姐论坛's special adviser on Kazakhstan and now travels to the country once or twice a year. "I've seen a lot of changes. Things are moving very fast. Young people are starting to get into positions of influence and are very keen to progress Kazakhstan as a modern, developed country, away from their Soviet past."
Rebecca Attwood, 'Times Higher Education'