Helping Maintain Energy Efficiency through Renewable Energy Knowledge Gained on Exchange
Ain Shams University senior, Daniel Magdy, wants to apply what he learned on exchange to support Egypt in its green energy transition and increase energy efficiency when he graduates this year. He says the exchange program changed what he wants to do after graduation.
“At the beginning I was thinking of working in the electrical engineering generally. Now I want to focus more on the renewable energy technologies that are not available here in Egypt.”
He says he learned a lot on exchange, including how to live on his own and manage his time, but also from the instructional methods and technical course work.
“All the lectures were more practical than we were used to in Egypt,” said Daniel. “We were able to meet different professors using different teaching methods. They were all very enriching and helped us develop.”
He also said meeting students from different backgrounds helped widen his horizons. He learned how to act in different situations and to be flexible and open-minded. He also appreciated the visits to natural and historical landmarks and technical sites.
“We learned a lot about the practical work during our visits to the different power plants in Arizona,” he said. “It was very beneficial to get in contact with engineers with different training techniques than you typically find in Egypt.”
Daniel finished his semester at Arizona State University in December 2023. Although he enjoyed all his course work, including his technical courses, and the two “soft” courses in energy transition and entrepreneurship, he says his favorite course was in wind energy.
“The professor was teaching us the course from a very practical point of view since he used to work in wind farms,” says Daniel. “He tried to pass on his experience there rather than just the theoretical background about wind energy…different techniques, different devices that were used there.”
He says this type of practical knowledge helped him better understand the theory behind some of the renewable energies about which he is so passionate. He says the exchange program, and interaction with industry experts at Arizona State University inspired him to alter his career path to renewable energy projects.
“I want to focus more on the renewable energy technologies that are not available here in Egypt,” he says. “We have similar environments and similar resources with Arizona, so knowing more about the technologies that were implemented there, and how they are implementing them on large scale mega projects there, changed the way I want to work in Egypt.”
He thanks the Center of Excellence for Energy and USAID for giving him the chance to participate in the program and says after graduation he will be applying knowledge garnered from the exchange in the renewable energy field in Egypt. He says he would like to help develop high efficiency power to support the grid and benefit all Egyptians.