The Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) has signed an agreement to use the USC Viterbi School of Engineering's state-of-the-art infrastructure for technology-enhanced classroom access to provide education in petroleum engineering and petroleum geosciences for its employees.
Qualified M.S. and Ph.D. students sponsored by the company will enroll in the Viterbi School’s Petroleum Engineering Program, directed by Prof. Iraj Ershaghi. The Viterbi School's Distance Education Network (DEN) will enable these students to continue to work in Kuwait while pursuing USC degrees.
Viterbi School administrators interact with KOC representatives via a video link.
Viterbi Associate Dean for Master's and Professional Programs Kelly Goulis said that the agreement with KOC not only reflected highly on the quality of the school’s Petroleum Engineering Program, but was also an endorsement of the value of DEN.
"The KOC is a major international petroleum producer," said Prof. Theo Tsotsis, chair of the USC Mork Family Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science. "For them to choose the Viterbi School's Petroleum Engineering Program to educate their staff is a great compliment."
Said Dr. Adel E. Al-Abassi, KOC Manager, Research and Technology: "As the difficulty of meeting the technology challenges increases, I am pleased that the Viterbi School and its distinguished faculty can now provide KOC engineers with an advanced educational program incorporating new technologies. DEN will enhance our ability to develop these needed capabilities in our workforce while KOC can benefit from their continuous service,"
The partnership will be co-directed by USC’s Ershaghi and KOC’s Dr. Mohamed Osman. USC's unique smart oilfields M.S. degree program will be a major focus.
DEN, part of the USC Office of Master's and Professional Programs, enrolls students working at major companies in the U.S. and around the world, including energy concerns such as Chevron and Occidental Petroleum.
KOC is one of the world's leading energy companies. With about 10% of the world’s oil reserves, KOC produces and transports crude oil and natural gas, and markets and distributes fuels and other energy products. KOC is based in Ahmadi City, Kuwait. More information is available on http://www.kockw.com
