OU Engineering

David Sabatini, a long-time member of the American Oil Chemists' Society and the Surfactants and Detergents Division, has been introducing technology that can remove contaminants from water supplies in remote villages in southern Cambodia and Ethiopia.

Beginning in May, the University of Oklahoma will offer a field methods course designed to help prepare engineering students to work in developing regions. Coordinators hope to see other universities around the country create similar programs. BY SILAS ALLEN Published: January 18, 2012 NORMAN — About two years ago, members of the engineering faculty at the University of Oklahoma saw a problem. Students attending the university's engineering school were graduating and going to work in developing countries. But in many cases, these students didn't have sufficient training to work in those environments, said David Sabatini, a professor in OU's School of Civil Engineering and Environmental Science. “You hear the stories about students who arrive in-country with the best of intentions, but are not fully prepared,” Sabatini said. Later this year, the university plans to roll out a program it hopes will help solve that problem. Beginning in May, the school will offer a...

Architecture and arts degrees topped the list of recent graduate jobless rates in a Georgetown University study released last week. Oklahoma higher education officials say many of those trends are reflected across the state. BY SILAS ALLEN, sallen@opubco.com Oklahoman January 10, 2012 Although a bachelor's degree is still a good hedge against unemployment, job prospects for recent college graduates vary drastically by major, according to a recent study. The study, “Hard Times, College Majors, Unemployment and Earnings: Not All College Degrees Are Created Equal,” was conducted by Georgetown University's Center on Education and the Workforce. It was released Wednesday. The jobless rate for recent college graduates with bachelor's degrees stands at about 8.9 percent, the report states. Although the report characterizes that figure as “unacceptable,” recent graduates still fared better than job seekers with only a high school diploma, who saw an unemployment rate...