News Releases

“Failure is not an option” says UWI Astronomy Professor at Mission World of Work: Prepare to Launch

For Release Upon Receipt - July 3, 2023

St. Augustine


Professor Shirin Haque, The UWI’s first ever Professor of Astronomy and Senior Lecturer in the Department of Physics at The UWI St. Augustine interacts with the audience at The UWI RBL World of Work (WOW) 2023 Seminar & Panel Discussion

ST. AUGUSTINE, Trinidad and Tobago. July 3, 2023– Amongst the many student engagement activities of the second semester, The University of the West Indies (The UWI) St. Augustine campus Co-curricular and Community Engagement Department, Division of Student Services and Development (DSDD) hosted The UWI RBL World of Work (WOW) 2023 Seminar & Panel Discussion. As part of the annual tradition, the event focused on preparing students for a rapidly changing workforce, skills, and competencies to thrive in the new workspace.

The featured speaker was Professor Shirin Haque, The UWI’s first ever Professor of Astronomy and Senior Lecturer in the Department of Physics at The UWI St. Augustine. She explained that while human beings think in a linear fashion, life contains many milestones and sometimes “moments of failure lead to great success”. Professor Haque outlined the importance of soft skills including communication, self-motivation, leadership, responsibility, teamwork, problem solving, decisiveness, ability to work under pressure and time management, flexibility and negotiation and conflict resolution which are the ingredients making a person successful. She underscored the need for “grit” which includes resilience, effort, mental toughness, intensity, positivity, guts, character, and tenacity in the workplace as being more important than IQ. “To be a superhero in your story, your superpower is you must be tough and competent”, she advised.

Panel members discussed the necessary skills needed in today’s workplace drawing on pre-covid and post-covid skills as well as the issues surrounding mental health and other important matters in the workplace. 

Ms. Denyse Ramnarine, General Manager of Data Governance and Management Unit, Republic Bank Limited noted that students should always be patient with themselves and others in their environment, “always learn from failure as life is all about experiences which we learn from”. She emphasized the need for technological competence and creativity in the workplace to identify trends and possibilities.

Ms. Cavelle Joseph, President, Human Resource Management Association of Trinidad and Tobago (HRMATT) expanded the notions of work life balance and flexibility. She highlighted the need to understand your professional colleagues, employ interpersonal skills, managing the ability to work well with others and learning how to get approvals. “Effective communication helps you distinguish yourself, your ability to accept constructive criticism and bouncing back from failures is essential” said Ms. Joseph. Resilience, agility, adaptation, networking and negotiating with key stakeholders within and outside of the organization are all aided by effective interpersonal skills.

Mr. Hans-Eric Schulz, Chief Executive Officer for the Caribbean Industrial Research Institute (CARIRI) further supported that “adaptability and creativity towards problem solving must become part of our DNA” and this is aided by expanding one’s skill set beyond their core competency. “Constant learning is required to adapt to the dynamic changing world you are going to meet” he accentuated.

Panellists agreed that the Covid-19 pandemic has changed the dynamics of the world of work and recognition of what students are dealing with and reaching out to the appropriate organizations for help is crucial. Managing mental health is as important as managing physical help. Students should become aware of aspects of time, how to relate to individuals, the amount of rest, diet, and exercise needed, all of which are in their sphere of control, and this includes seeking help.

“Failure will not be an option; when bad things happen, lay out all the options and failure should not be one of them”, a lifelong mantra students should employ, Professor Haque emphasised.

Relive the inspiring moments of The UWI RBL World of Work (WOW) 2023 Seminar & Panel Discussion by visiting The UWI St. Augustine YouTube Channel:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GcBkxgE4IhU

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About The University of the West Indies

The UWI has been and continues to be a pivotal force in every aspect of Caribbean development; residing at the centre of all efforts to improve the well-being of people across the region for the past 75 years.

From a university college of London in Jamaica with 33 medical students in 1948, The UWI is today an internationally respected, global university with near 50,000 students and five campuses: Mona in Jamaica, St. Augustine in Trinidad and Tobago, Cave Hill in Barbados, Five Islands in Antigua and Barbuda and its Open Campus, and global centres in partnership with universities in North America, Latin America, Asia, Africa and Europe.

The UWI offers over 800 certificate, diploma, undergraduate and postgraduate degree options in Culture, Creative and Performing Arts, Food and Agriculture, Engineering, Humanities and Education, Law, Medical Sciences, Science and Technology, Social Sciences, and Sport. As the Caribbean’s leading university, it possesses the largest pool of Caribbean intellect and expertise committed to confronting the critical issues of our region and wider world.

The UWI has been consistently ranked among the top universities globally by the most reputable ranking agency, Times Higher Education (THE). The UWI is the only Caribbean-based university to make the prestigious lists since its debut in the rankings in 2018. In addition to its leading position in the Caribbean in the World University Rankings, it is also in the top 25 for Latin America and the Caribbean and the top 100 global Golden Age universities (between 50 and 80 years old).  The UWI is also featured among the leading universities on THE’s Impact Rankings for its response to the world’s biggest concerns, outlined in the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including Good Health and Wellbeing; Gender Equality and Climate Action.

2023 marks The UWI’s 75th anniversary. The Diamond jubilee milestone themed “UWI at 75. Rooted. Ready. Rising.” features initiatives purposely designed and aligned to reflect on the past, confront the present, and articulate plans for the future of the regional University.

Learn more at www.uwi.edu 

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