Complete Report - University of New South Wales

ARCPHOTOVOLTAICSCENTRE OFEXCELLENCE2010/11ANNUAL REPORTSome of the students attractedto the School by the sponsorshipoffered by the AustralianCommonwealth Department ofthe Environment, Water, Heritageand the Arts, through the AsiaPacific Partnership for CleanDevelopment and Climate. Alsoshown in the group photo are MrDemin Zheng and Ms Feng Junying,Consuls, Education Office of theConsulate - General of the PeoplesRepublic of China in Sydney, MrMatthew Hopkins, Department ofEnvironment, Water, Heritage andArts and UNSW staff.Six MEngSc students completed the APP programat end of Semester 1 2009 and a further tenMEngSc and five undergraduate completed theAPP program at end of Semester 2 2009. In 2010,10 MEngSc students completed the APP programat end of Semester 1 and 12 at the end of Semester2 and 8 and 26 BEng students finished their studiesin Semesters 1 and 2, respectively. Several of thegraduating students have intended to enter theSchool’s PhD program but the numbers able todo so has been restricted by the availability ofscholarships.5.3.2 Co-Op Scholarship ProgramThe Co-Op Program is an industry-linkedscholarship program where students obtainextended work experience with industry sponsorsas part of their undergraduate studies, throughtwo summer placements, and two six monthplacements (prior to final year of coursework),with sponsor companies. In addition to theiroutstanding academic achievements, studentsare selected based on their involvement in schooland community activities, their demonstratedleadership and teamwork skills and their abilityto communicate. Participation in this programenables students to apply the knowledge theyhave gained during their studies in real industryprojects, as well as opportunities for networking,recruitment and professional development throughleadership camps. This program is also highlybeneficial to industry sponsors, who have access toexcellent students, can observe these students intheir workplace, and have the first opportunity ofrecruiting the best new graduates.Co-Op sponsors currently include, BP Solar, a globalcompany that has been supplying PV systems toAustralian markets for 30 years, CSG Solar, a newtechnology startup with an innovative crystallinesilicon on glass PV product, Suntech Power Co. Ltd.,the leading Chinese photovoltaic manufacturerand Renewable Energy Corp. (REC), a Norwegianbased silicon and photovoltaics company thatis establishing photovoltaics manufacturingin Singapore.A new sponsor, Infigen, awarded its first Co-Opscholarship and the School’s first for the RenewableEnergy Engineering Program in 2010.5.3.3 Rural Scholarship ProgramThe Faculty of Engineering established the RuralScholarship Program in 2001 to encourage highachievingstudents living in rural and isolated areasto study engineering. The scholarships are valued atapproximately $9,500 per annum for four years offull-time study which eases the financial hardshipof relocating to and living in Sydney. Two new ruralscholars began their studies in the School in 2010.5.3.4 Thyne Reid FoundationScholarshipsDuring 2008 two new undergraduate four-yearscholarships were awarded to the School by TheThyne Reid Foundation, one for Photovoltaics andSolar Energy Engineering and one for RenewableEnergy Engineering. The two students beganstudies in Semester 1 of 2009 and will proceed intotheir third year in 2011.5.3.5 Taste of Research SummerScholarship ProgramThe Taste of Research Summer Scholarship Programis primarily for high achieving 3 rd year studentsand, in exceptional cases, 2 nd year students may beconsidered. As part of the program, engineeringschools offer 10 week projects for students tocomplete during their summer break. Theseprojects provide students with scholarship supportto gain experience working as part of a researchteam, for example in the laboratories of theCentre. In addition to providing an opportunityfor checking whether research is their ideal careerpath, participation in these projects helps studentsfurther develop their technical skills and theirwritten and oral communication through writtenreports and poster presentation.From December 2009 to February 2010, theCentre hosted 12 students, taking advantage ofthe growing interest in the it’s research programsamong outstanding undergraduates, particularlyfrom those in this School. Again, in the 2010/2011summer the Centre was keen to retain for researchtraining as many as possible of the outstandingsenior undergraduate students and took on 10students through the Taste of Research program.5.3.6 Research ScholarshipsSowbaranigha Chinnusamy Jayanthi, a studentfrom India, was awarded an e8 Sustainable EnergyDevelopment Masters Scholarships for oneacademic year so that she may study for a Master ofEngineering Scienceion in Photovoltaics and SolarEnergy, at the School. The e8 is an organizationof leading electricity companies from the globalelectricity sector that wish to help in protectingthe global environment, and to promote theefficient generation and use of electricity. Thee8 has established a scholarship program tosupport outstanding students from developingcountries who plan to study at the Masters level114