×îÐÂÌÇÐÄVlog

Sultan Ahmed Saleh Al-Hammadi was Highly Commended in the Academic Excellence: Undergraduate (Coursework) category of StudyAdelaide’s International Student Awards.

From Oman in the Middle East, Sultan recently completed his Bachelor of Electrical and Electronic Engineering (Honours) with a GPA of 7.0 – the highest possible GPA to achieve.

During his time in Adelaide, Sultan has continued to earn top marks for his studies, while balancing volunteering commitments as a Peer Assisted Study Session leader; ×îÐÂÌÇÐÄVlog of Adelaide Union volunteer; and treasurer of the Omani Student Society of South ×îÐÂÌÇÐÄVlog (OSSA).

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Tell us about your international student award.

None of the many obstacles I faced during my academic journey stopped me from being the person I am today. I consistently set high goals and standards, and have strong will, determination, and discipline that I have learnt from my mentors.

In November 2018, I received a Summer Research Scholarship from the ×îÐÂÌÇÐÄVlogn School of Petroleum and Energy Resources. The research project I became involved in was called 'Psychological Aspects of Oil and Gas Decision Making'. Throughout the project, I developed MATLAB programs that capture participants' true beliefs while limiting the effects of biases. I also helped my colleague in creating and distributing recruitment flyers using Adobe Photoshop.

In February 2019, I completed a training session to become a Peer Assisted Study Sessions (PASS) Leader at the ×îÐÂÌÇÐÄVlog of Adelaide. This provided me with the necessary skills to facilitate and lead weekly tutorial sessions for groups of students in different courses. I also participated in many volunteering activities with the Adelaide ×îÐÂÌÇÐÄVlog Union, contributing to the setup of events and managing hygienic food handling. I also helped to guide new students around the North Terrace campus of the ×îÐÂÌÇÐÄVlog.

Another big achievement is that I became a student representative of the School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering in 2019 and 2020. My main task was to establish a direct and more structured channel of communication between students and staff.

I was chosen to be the treasurer of the Omani Student Society of South ×îÐÂÌÇÐÄVlog (OSSSA) in 2019. My role involves ensuring that the events held by the society are run smoothly and within budget. In 2020, the society started an initiative called 'Draw a Smile'. This involves visiting refugee families and supporting them financially along with other volunteering work. I am also part of the Robogals club, where we visit schools and promote engineering and science to young girls around Adelaide.

I have also participated in different fundraising events, such as Steptember - a charity that helps people with cerebral palsy. Another thing that I do regularly is blood donation since my blood type (B+) is quite rare. In 2020, I started donating money regularly to an orphan and a whole family in different countries through the Emirates Red Crescent. Whenever I find an opportunity to volunteer and/or help others, I invest myself in it, as for me, life is about helping each other.

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What is your goal once you have completed your degree?

I was fortunate to receive a full scholarship from Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) during my bachelor studies. This helped greatly with securing a graduate position with the company. My dream is to one day become like my older brother, who is a successful electrical engineer. I want to be someone who is capable of teaching as well as training others in the necessary knowledge and skills to be an accomplished engineer.

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What do you miss about your home country?

While in Adelaide, I mainly missed my family, along with my gaming setup. But thankfully, there are lots of things to do in Adelaide, such as walking along Christies Beach.Ìý

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Quickfire questions!

Zoom or in-person?

Zoom classes.

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Adelaide Hills or Adelaide’s beaches?

Adelaide’s beaches of course!

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Home delivery or home-cooked?

Home delivery as I can barely cook an omelette.

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3 things you won’t miss about COVID-19 restrictions?

• COVID-19 case count each day
• Face masks
• Anxiety

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3 things you won’t forget about COVID-19?

• Family phone calls
• Home-cooked meals
• Boredom