GRADUATION 2020: MGF Scholarship Programme paves the way for civil engineering student
MGF (Trench Construction Systems) Ltd is an established industry partner for the university with the prestigious scholarship programme for undergraduates being in its 7th year.
The company is a market leader in bespoke evacuation systems and offers scholarships and placements to Salford students. It also employs many of the university’s graduates.
Steve Hesketh, MGF Director said: “The University of Salford continues to attract high calibre students into Engineering and provide them with an excellent education. MGF are very proud to work and be associated with the University.”
Rahul Rahman is an MGF scholar and recently graduated from his four-year civil engineering degree. He said: “Attaining the MGF undergraduate Scholarship really did turn things around for me at university. The extra financial support allowed me give-up my part time job and solely focus on my studies. I saw a substantial increase in my grades and was able to dedicate more time to live project work which gave me a taste of working in the real world.”
After Rahul competed his 2nd year of studies he was successful in securing a summer placement at Kier Design Services in the highway sector. When talking about his placement he said that being on the MGF scholarship programme made him stand-out from other applicants. During his 8-week placement he gained valuable experience working on multiple highway design projects across the UK.
When asked what moment he was proud of whilst he was studying, he said: “I really enjoyed working on the Raven Spurn Oil Platform project. It was a huge success as we finished constructing the platform within the allocated time and we also managed to float the platform at the final location. The scholarship programme opened many doors for me with the biggest one being time and the opportunity to network with people working in the industry and learn from them.”
Like many students who have been studying during the pandemic, university life changed very quickly with Rahul describing this time as being ‘unique’ as learning moved to a digital environment. He said: “I did not let this period phase me, I pulled on everything that I had learnt up until that point. My learning strategies evolved making me more independent, it also perfected my problem-solving skills significantly.”
What now for Rahul? He is hoping to gain a position on a graduate programme and work towards becoming a civil engineer. Reflecting on his time as an MGF graduate he added: “I would like to thank MGF Excavation Safety Solutions for providing me with this scholarship as it helped me succeed throughout my degree. It was my first major accomplishment which kept me motivated to strive forward. I hope one day I am in a position where I can also help students to succeed in their future careers.”