Soran Technical College Nursing Students Visit AUK
The American University of Kurdistan (AUK) continues its outreach efforts to other regional institutions and their students. The latest event was February 23’s visit of nursing faculty and students from Erbil Polytechnic University’s satellite program at Soran Technical College. The visitors received an overview of AUK’s many merits and services, with an emphasis on AUK’s nursing program.
The formal presentation, staged in the AUK Auditorium, was hosted by sophomore Victoria Hessin from the College of Nursing. The first of the several speakers she called to the stage was AUK President Randall Rhodes, for a general welcome to and introduction of the University. He spoke of the “American style” of the University, manifested in students’ “active participation in classroom discussions and curriculum-building,” and the College’s responsibility to contribute to the regional development of the health sector.
The following, more focused presentations were by Hany Taha, Sales Coordinator for AUK’s Center for Academic and Professional Advancement, which addressed the English proficiency sequence, and Fatima Osman, Student Recruiter, which focused on admissions procedures and scholarship opportunities. Ms. Osman mentioned that these awards aim to attract and retain the best and the brightest while reflecting the diversity of Iraq.
In his presentation, Chief Nursing Administrator Dr. Jervy Bernardino stressed the importance of continued training in nursing. His slides identified different kinds of nursing specialties, like hospice, toxicology, and radiology, and tracks, like research, clinical, and informatics, to illustrate the diversity of the field and areas of critical need. He detailed some distinctive traits of AUK’s nursing program, mentioning that the practicum starts in the sophomore year and that the program strives to produce graduates with the “3C” professional dispositions: caring, compassionate, and competent.
The AUK nursing students got to meet and greet the visitors at the end of Dr. Bernardino’s presentation. These interactions continued throughout the tour of the AUK campus, led by the Nursing Society, a group of College of Nursing student delegates. The first and longest stop on the tour was the Nursing Skills & Simulation Lab, a state-of-the-art facility equipped through the United States Department of State Grant titled “Support for American-Style Higher Education in Iraq.” Other stops included the likewise grant-funded Biological Sciences Lab (where a class on “Microbial Genetics” was in session), and the Library. The tour ended on the steps of the Mustafa Barzani Building, with a group photograph.
