A sponsorship program for the fresh graduates of NED University of Engineering & Technology, Karachi, Pakistan

Overview
NED Alumni of Texas in DFW has always strived to support NED University of Engineering and Technology (NEDUET) and its students through various initiatives.

It has been identified that sometimes the fresh graduates of NED University have difficulty in finding a suitable engineering job due to lack of required skills and contacts in the engineering community. To help these graduates NEDEAN has established this program to sponsor a certain number of candidates and place them in well established engineering firms in Karachi, as ‘Engineer in Training‘ for six months. During this time NEDEAN will provide a monthly stipend to these candidates, the stipend will be equivalent to the average fresh graduate monthly salary in Karachi. During this time the engineering company will not provide any direct monetary benefit to the trainee.

We hope that after six months of training with an engineering company the candidates will have enough experience that they will be able to find a professional engineering job.

Purpose
The program is specifically targeted to help graduates that come from low/middle income families or those who are first in their family to complete a university degree program. These graduates, at times, need some grooming in personal communication skills and therefore have difficulty in finding a job relevant to their field of studies. Some of these graduates get disheartened and decide to give up their pursuit of finding an engineering job. We believe that with a little assistance and mentoring of these graduates can prepare them to excel in their own field of study. EIT program will provide them with their first job, it will enhance their resume and will prepare them for success in their future endeavors.

The purpose of this program is not to provide free engineers to the host organization, its sole purpose is to help the individuals who are having difficulty in finding their first engineering job. EIT program gives an opportunity to host organizations, imparting training, to evaluate these graduates and if appropriate, offer permanent positions to those trainees, whom they find suitable for their organization. The expectation is that 6 months of training at reputed organization will help the trainee engineers to improve their technical expertise and enhance soft skills required for success in the corporate sector, such as:

• Organizational skills
• Strategic planning and scheduling
• Time management
• Verbal & written communication skills
• Critical thinking

Framework
The success of this program depends primarily on three items, which can be considered as three building blocks for this program.

1. Generation of adequate funds through donations, required for paying the stipends
2. Fair and transparent selection process of candidates
3. Adequate pool of hosts engineering organizations in Karachi, capable and willing to train the selected candidates

These items require support of NED Alumni in Pakistan and in USA and for this program to be successful.

The Board of Directors of NEDEAN will manage and drive the activities of this program through committees comprising of NED Alumni volunteers.

1. Fund Raising Committee
   Comprised of NED Alumni from Texas or DFW area, responsible for raising funds for the program
   
2. Candidates Selection Committee
   Comprising of NED Alumni from Pakistan and DFW, responsible for screening and selection of potential candidates
   
3. Host Engineering Organizations Committee
   Comprising of NED Alumni from Pakistan and United States, responsible for engaging with companies in Pakistan through our Alumni Network and convincing them to be part of this program

Criteria for Applicants
Following is the selection criteria for applicants.

1. Completed a Bachelors or Masters degree from NED
2. Graduation date within the past one year of date of application
3. Two letters of recommendation from NED faculty members
4. Admitted to the NED University on the basis of merit (not self-finance)

Note: Candidates who haven’t completed their degrees or haven’t graduated yet, do not qualify to apply for EIT program.

Selection Process
Below is the selection process for this program.

1. Candidates shall apply through NEDEAN website by filling out an online application form (linked below)
2. Candidate shall upload transcript and letters of recommendation
3. Candidate shall provide an essay covering accomplishment, goals and challenges they face in professional growth
4. Applications shall be reviewed by the selection committee and selected applicants will be screened through phone interviews
5. Selection committee will consist of three to five NED alumni members from Pakistan and North America. The Selection Committee will be approved by the Board of Directors of NEDEAN
6. Candidates that make it through phone screening will be interviewed in person by the selection committee members residing in Karachi
7. Those selected from the interview process will be then interviewed by the host organization and if successful will be offered a ‘Engineer in Trainee’ position

Host Engineering Organization Pool
A pool of host engineering organizations, willing to host and train EIT candidates, will be created and managed by the Host Engineering Organizations Committee. This committee shall be comprised of NED Alumni and approved by NEDEAN Board of Directors.

1. The host engineering organization shall have at least 20 active engineers on their staff
2. The main business of this organization shall be engineering
3. Only organizations approved by the BoD will be used for this trainee program

Financials
Following are relevant financial details of the program.

1. A dedicated fund will be created for this program
2. Fund will be generated by fund raising through NEDEAN platform
3. An accounting firm may be hired in Pakistan to distribute funds to host organizations and provide audit reports for the fund

Any feedback or questions: Send us an email!