Some words about CETAC from the Swedish and American business world

"The trainee program CETAC is one of the outstanding student driven organizations that we have at Chalmers. Here our talented students are able to get experience from trainee placements in USA and Canada. Today, international experience provides a value that is unmeasurable both in the ability to adapt in the global world and in the understanding of the industrial working places, in this case, in north america. This experience will add to a high quality network for the participating students and also add unique possibilities for themselves and other Chalmers students/alumni in their careers through life. As president of Chalmers, I like to take this opportunity to express my deepest gratitude and appreciation to the students that administer and run the CETAC program to the benefit of their fellow students and the way it adds to the attractiveness of Chalmers."

Karin Markides President of Chalmers University of Technology

"En stor del av vår framtida utveckling kommer att ske genom unga och välutbildade människor som lärt sig förmågan att växelverka över nationsgränser och över verksamhetsgränser. Vid Chalmers har högsta prioritet givits till ansträngningar som avser att utveckla och förbättra både undervisning och forskning vad gäller internationellt utbyte, tvärvetenskaplighet samt växelverkan med näringsliv och övrigt samhälle. Möjligheten för teknologer att få ta del av industriell verksamhet i USA är därför ett värdefullt komplement till utbildning vid Chalmers. På sikt kommer också den kunskap som studenterna erhåller vad gäller kultur och levnadssätt att ytterligare fördjupa banden mellan Sverige och USA. Eftersom resorna och praktikplatserna helt administreras av studenterna själva skulle jag personligen vilja framföra ett stort tack till den hjälp och det stöd studenterna erhåller. Studenterna och programmet har mitt och Chalmers fulla och helhjärtade stöd."

Jan-Eric Sundgren Professor Former President of Chalmers University of Technology

"I was asked to write a few words supporting CETAC. We have had extremely good experiences with CETAC students so I am very happy to do this. At NVI Inc., we work developing data acquisition systems for, analyzing data from, and writing scientific papers on Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI). VLBI is a radio astronomy technique used to map quasars at radio frequencies and to study geophysics. We work at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center where the international program (about 15 countries are involved) to study geophysics with VLBI is coordinated. We also participate in international VLBI programs for astronomy. Over 20 years, we have had about 10 CETAC students. Some have stayed for just the summer, some have stayed for a whole year. We have been extremely pleased with all the students who have worked here. They have been very bright, good self-starters, and quick learners. We give them just a high level description of a suitable task and some suggestions about how to attack it. They have, with only a little advice, been able to carry on the projects themselves. Depending on their interests and backgrounds, they have contributed with technical studies, hardware development, and software development. Their contributions have continued to be valuable to the international scientific community for years after the students' work has been completed. I should not fail to mention that they have been very interesting and fun people as well. We plan to continue our involvement with CETAC as much as possible. We are looking forward to having our next students from the program."

William E. Himwich Project Manager/Chief Scientist NVI, Inc.

"I wish to express my support for CETAC and the work being done by the committee. Hopefully, it will be evident to everyone that an activity aiming at providing international student exchange must be encouraged, not least for those in postgraduate engineering courses. In addition to intensified trade, we see a future with increasing industrial cooperation across borders in several areas - pure research, production and marketing. Here the Saab Group is by no means an exception. There is a high degree of internationalisation in our operations and 60 percent of sales go to foreign markets. Being able to recruit capable personnel who already have international experience is naturally very valuable."

Bengt Halse Former President and CEO SAAB

"Since 1984 every summer at Merlin has been enlivened by the arrival of a summer student from Chalmers. These young people are welcome not only for their technical capabilities but also as representatives of another culture. Merlin is a small engineering company with a diversity of projects. The Chalmers students have always proved able to meet our challenges. They arrive with very sound technical training behind them, with an open willingness to learn and eager for new practical experiences. They always make a significant contribution to our work. At the end of the summer we are always pleased with the quality and quantity of work they have accomplished. We do try to show the Chalmers students something of what the American culture is for us, but this is always matched by their presentation of the Swedish culture. They have all been fine ambassadors, and we look forward to the arrival of future Chalmers summer students."

John Streets Merlin Engineering

"It is absolutely essential that a high-tech company like ABB is able to recruit talented engineers and scientists. Many of our employees, both now and previously, received their education at Chalmers University of Technology. Our experience with graduate engineers and scientists from Chalmers has always been extremely positive. The ABB group is an internationally active company and consequently we have a great need for international experience among our employees. In my view it is very important that Swedish engineering students - as well as students from other countries around the world are given the opportunity to establish contact and gain experience in the United States."

Percy Barnevik Former chairman of ABB Asea Brown Boveri Ltd

"SWECO är ett internationellt konsultföretag som ständigt söker ny kunskap och nya erfarenheter från andra länder. Vi prioriterar alltid internationella erfarenheter vid rekrytering av nyutbildade civilingenjörer. Ett internationellt utbyte under studietiden stärker inte bara kunskaperna, utan resulterar också i ökad förståelse för andra samhällen, kulturer och levnadssätt. För oss är det därför viktigt att studenterna ges möjlighet att komplettera studierna med utlandspraktik."

Wigon Thuresson VD och Koncernchef, SWECO

"En ny generation ingenjörer, IT-proffs, tekniker och andra specialister för med sig nya värderingar in i näringslivet. Typiskt är att de ser världen som öppen och att arbetsmöjligheterna finns över hela jorden. Därför är det viktigt att de redan under högskoleutbildningen ges en chans till studieresor och praktikplatser utomlands. Semcon har genom åren fortsatt satsningen på en långsiktig internationell expansion, där kunderna följs utomlands. Genom en rad utvecklingsuppdrag runt om i världen får många av Semcons medarbetare en chans att skaffa sig internationell erfarenhet. Det är ett viktigt led i Semcons målsättning att behålla och utveckla medarbetare genom utmanande uppdrag. Allt eftersom Semcon växer anställs också fler medarbetare med skilda kulturella bakgrunder. I takt med att vår marknad blir mer global är denna kulturella bredd och våra unga medarbetares internationella erfarenheter en stor tillgång för Semcon och våra kunder."

Hans Johansson Koncernchef, SEMCON AB