Keeping the community connected with IET On Campus UET Lahore
Published: Thu 1 Jul 2021
We hear from the President of the IET On Campus (OC) group from UET Lahore on how the group has stayed united and continued to champion engineering during the Covid-19 pandemic, and their plans for the rest of 2021.
Established in 1998, the UET Lahore OC group has been operating for more than two decades. It’s seen generations of young engineers pass through and contribute to their engineering and technology community.
“I joined the group in 2017 during my freshman year,” says President Azeem Azmat. “As the President of the group, I administer all the activities and events we carry out. My main responsibility however is upholding the vision of the IET.
“I get to network with the amazing people in the IET Young Professionals community and act as the focal person between the university officials, advisor, and the group members. In a nutshell, I oversee everything my group is involved in, provide direction, and connect the group members with the IET and the real world.”
Achieving great things – virtually
With the Covid-19 pandemic impacting life across the globe, the UET Lahore OC group’s pre-Covid activities had been altered completely. “Like a lot of the world, we switched to a more sustainable approach: virtual meetings, webinars, and workshops,” says Azeem.
“The support provided by our members and the governing body of IET On Campus UET Lahore was truly remarkable.
Throughout 2020 and 2021 so far, we’ve conducted several events: Environmental Art Competition, Essay Writing Competition, Quizmania, PSSE Workshop, Freelancer’s Camp, Gaming Competitions, Marketing competition, Webinar on Entrepreneurship, Webinar on Getting Started with AI, Recycle Art Competition… and the list goes on!
“Although all the activities were exceptional, my favourite was the Freelancer’s Camp and Virtual Arduino Workshop. Freelancer’s Camp was all about stabilizing monetarily through freelancing, which we felt was important due to the economic fall and financial instability due to Covid.
All of the workshops received a positive and encouraging response from the attendees.”
For the rest of 2021, Azeem shared that the OC group will be more research-oriented: “Our members will be involved in mutual learning activities,” says Azeem.
“Technical skillset development through extensive workshops will be the focus in the future. We aim at encouraging the personal and professional growth of our members.”
The main thing that has kept the group unified? “The unwavering determination of our members to rise, learn, and not allowing these unfortunate scenarios hinder the path of growth,” says Azeem.
“Engineering is not all about drawing diagrams and writing complex equations; it’s also about solving real life problems - that our members did by rising in these uncertain times.”
More than just members
“As we know, the IET provides a global platform for the development of the next generation of engineers and young professionals,” says Azeem.
“The vision to promote engineering and creating a better world is remarkable. Also, the best thing about the IET is how they care for the mental well-being of its members. I have personally experienced the services of IET Foothold, and the support is truly appreciated.
“The OC group has collaborated with the IET for so long as they provide a global platform for promoting technological advancements in addition to focusing on the well-being of its members.
The IET is one of the best and most unique platforms for the young and professional engineers to excel, and we look forward to continuing our collaboration for the rest of 2021 – and beyond.”