Saudi students complete training program in US

Four Saudis and one student from the United Arab Emirates have just completed the 2014 Global Externship Program under the Northrop Grumman Corporation and University of Maryland in Baltimore County in the United States.
“The program gives international students exposure to career fields in cyber, program management and computer engineering,” Walid Abukhaled, Northrop Grumman Saudi Arabia chief executive officer, said.
He added that the program, which was for Saudi and Emirati students studying in the United States, supports “our commitment to identify and develop talent in cyber and other technical disciplines.
The five students included Badreya Al-Marzouqui, a chemical engineering major at Drexel University; Jamela M. Alsheri, a polymer science and engineering major from Case Western Reserve University; Ashwag Alasmari, an information systems major from UMBC; Hasan Dabour, an electrical engineering graduate from Northeastern University; and Wael Badeghaish, a materials science and engineering major from Catholic University of America.
The students worked with three Baltimore-based start-up companies at the bwtech@UMBC Research and Technology Park. These companies included RedShredTM, Blue Wave Semiconductors, and RELI Group.
During the eight-week course, the students also received leadership training in other business skills such as English technical writing and professional communications.
“It has been a remarkable experience to be part of the Northrop Grumman-UMBC Global Externship Program,” said Al Marzouqi.
He added that “We are at the stage where we cannot solve an issue by only being engineers. Therefore, diversifying our knowledge and communicating with experts from various nations across the globe help us better understand how cultural differences impact the running of a business.”
Dabour added, “The program expanded our knowledge, gave me an idea of what is good for me in the work environment, and taught many significant skills such as the training from writing workshops.”
He added that the experience “made us aware of our strengths and provided the opportunity to network with professionals and make new friends. Working for start-up companies also brought my attention to the basics of how to start my own company.”