SriLankan internships for IT undergrads in universities

IT: SriLankan Airlines is supporting undergraduates of the Universities of Ruhuna, Moratuwa, and Peradeniya by providing internships to enhance their skills through on-the-job training.

Approximately 100 undergraduates in their 3rd and 4th years of study have gained considerable experience at the National Carrier since the programme began in the year 2000. At any given time, about half a dozen undergrads are working with SriLankan for six-month period at its offices both in Colombo and Katunayake.

Manager Network Engineering & Development at SriLankan, Panduka Weeraratne, said: “We are happy to see that those who have followed our internship programme have been employed throughout the private sector. Our programme is designed to impart real-life IT training to these youngsters, working with the latest sophisticated hardware and systems.

“It is also a win-win situation since they design advanced solutions together with our engineers which are of practical use for the airline. At the same time, they receive exposure to the modern work environment and corporate culture,” he said.

As a global player in a competitive industry which constantly updates itself with the latest technology, SriLankan provides work experience at a more sophisticated level than most private or public sector institutions in Sri Lanka.

The National Carrier works with its strategic partner Emirates Airline to obtain the latest systems. Director, Industrial Training and Career Guidance Unit, Faculty of Engineering, University of Peradeniya, W. R. M. U. Wickramasinghe, said: “It is with great satisfaction that the University of Peradeniya acknowledges the kind gesture by SriLankan Airlines in training our undergraduates and supervising their final year projects. We are hopeful of continuing this close relationship into the future.”

Head of the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering of the University of Peradeniya Sanath Alahakoon, said: “The industrial Training provided by SriLankan Airlines for the Electrical and Electronic Engineering undergraduates is of high quality and it gives full exposure to state of the art technology involved in the airline industry today.”

SriLankan Airlines has made education, from pre-school to university, its priority in community service activities. It re-built a Tsunami-ravaged school, Al-Bahriya Maha Vidyalaya in the eastern town of Kalmunai, teaming up with Lufthansa Technik and HelpAlliance to raise the Rs. 75 million funding.

The National Carrier’s efforts at Meepagama Jayanthi Maha Vidyalaya in the Ratnapura District since 2002 have completely transformed the school with new buildings and modern amenities. The airline also works closely with several universities to promote the career development of undergraduates in other fields besides IT.