MANY students start their academic studies dreaming of trips to exotic locations once they complete their qualification.
For Kai Thomson, graduating with a first-class honours degree in sustainable environmental management at SAC’s recent awards ceremony in Glasgow has helped to make this dream a reality.
Kai, from Kirkinch, near Meigle, enrolled as a student at Aberdeen SAC’s Craibstone campus straight from Webster’s High School in Kirriemuir.
Enrolling for the four-year course has proved to be a fantastic decision for him. On finishing his studies, Kai immediately started work as an environmental systems analyst with DOF Subsea, working on environmental audits and management systems.
Having spent a few months working in Aberdeen, he is set to travel to Houston to carry out environmental audits and will be going on to perform similar functions in Norway – all within months of graduating.
The course covers a wide range of subject areas, including a variety of environmental subjects such as environmental awareness, climate change, ecology, waste management, pollution control, sustainable transport, resource economics, GPS and ISO14001.
Kai (pictured) also took the prize for the best honours student studying on the environmental programme and the Quayle Munro Quaich.
The quaich is a special award for producing the best environmental audit and essay on Quail Munro – an Edinburgh financial institution which opened its doors and provided students with an opportunity to carry out a realistic exercise, reporting on the environmental aspects of the business and suggesting ways it might reduce its impact and become more sustainable.
Kai said: “SAC has a unique blend of research, academia and strong links with the businesses world.
“The college is perfectly positioned to offer all its students a well grounded skill base beyond the purely academic. For me, this has been a key feature of the SEM course and I feel well prepared to take all future employment prospects head on.
“Companies and individuals face both challenges and opportunities for good environmental practices. I am so fortunate to be able to now have the skills and to work with a company which has the foresight to approach these challenges with enthusiasm. This course has allowed me to expand my horizons and to have the confidence to believe in the value of my skills. I am focused and prepared for the future. It has been the hardest, yet the most rewarding, few years, and it has been great fun.”
John MacDonald, programme manager at Aberdeen for the SEM course, added: “Kai has a very well developed understanding of how practical decisions made by individuals, governments and businesses impact on sustainability. He is astute and an excellent communicator. I expect him to go on to achieve great things working with industry to reduce environmental impacts – and improving the efficiency of businesses to the benefit of everyone.”
An active footballer as well as being a high-achieving student, Kai found time to contribute to the social side of life at the campus, enjoying the company of those on other courses such as agriculture and countryside management.
He also achieved the first part of the John Muir Award during a trip to Knoydart last year and is keen to continue to the next stage with a trip to the north-west of Scotland in August. He certainly deserves a few days off this summer.
SAC’s environmental programme is externally verified by Edinburgh University, which issues the degrees.
For details of SAC’s full-time and distance-learning environmental programmes, contact SAC on 01224 711000, or e-mail John.macdonald@sac.ac.uk