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Engineers of the future: sustainability and social responsibility.

This is a Engineering and technology Subject Spotlight with Professor Abdulnaser Sayma from City, University of London. An interactive, cinematic course taster experience to allow students to gain insights into what it's like to study Engineering and technology.

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In this Subject Spotlight, highly decorated and experienced Professor Abdulnaser Sayma explores the skills that are vital throughout all disciplines of engineering at every level, with a very progressive and contemporary outlook. He also discusses the social responsibility of engineers in an ever-changing world that seeks to combat climate change, pollution and social injustice to create a fairer and greener planet. Abdulnaser then delves deeper into the field of Energy and Sustainability Engineering, teaching you some fundamentals about thermodynamics and fluid mechanics, and their applications. This fascinating and topical Subject Spotlight concludes with an activity that will test your new knowledge to think critically about where to install a new wind farm, with some crucial supporting information.

About City St George’s, University of London

Established by royal charter in 1836, City St George’s, University of London is the third-oldest university in England. It has around 48,000 distance learning and campus-based students, making it the largest university by number of students in the UK. City St George’s, University of London is a federation of 17 independent member institutions of outstanding global reputation, ranging from larger universities such as UCL or King’s College London to smaller specialised institutions such as the Royal Academy of Music or the Courtauld Institute of Art. Charles Dickens even termed it the 'People's University'!

Meet the academics

Professor Abdulnaser Sayma

Abdulnaser Sayma is a Professor of Energy Engineering at City, University of London, and the Director of the Energy, Sustainability and Net-Zero Research Centre. He is a Fellow of the IMechE and RAeS, and a member of the Energy Institute. Professor Sayma obtained his first degree in Mechanical Engineering from Birzeit University in Palestine, an MSc in Energy Technology For Developing Countries from Salford University and a PhD from the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology in 1994. His early career included roles as a research assistant at the Department of Aeronautics and the Rolls-Royce Vibrations University Technology Centre - both at Imperial College London. He progressed to Senior Lecturer in Computational Mechanics at Brunel University, before becoming a Professor of Computational Fluid Dynamics at the University of Sussex. He joined City, University of London in 2013 as a Professor of Energy Engineering. At City, Abdulnaser held the positions of Associate Dean for Postgraduate Taught Programmes (2014-2019) and the interim Dean in 2019 in the School of Mathematics, Computer Science and Engineering. He is the founder and leader of the Turbomachinery and Energy System Research group, that focuses on thermal energy, power generation from renewable resources, and waste heat recovery and thermal energy storage. He has been the director of the ThermoFluid Research Centre since 2019, which has expanded in 2023 and become the Energy, Sustainability and Net-Zero Research Centre. His research team attracts substantial research funding from the European Commission, EPSRC, InnovateUK, and industry. He is also the founder and chairman of the European Micro Gas Turbine Forum (EMGTF) and has been a member of the Technology Board for the European Turbine Network (ETN) (2014-2020), as well as being an active member of the Association of Decentralised Energy since 2019.

In every Subject Spotlight you'll find

On-demand interactive video content

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Remarkable & relatable academics

Learn from some of the UK's finest and most decorated academics as they give you a genuine, insightful, and engaging experience of studying their courses at their universities.

Interactive quizzes and activities

Have a go at fascinating interactive quizzes and activities, then get meaningful and intuitive feedback from the academics to see how you've done.

Content to enhance students university applications

Hear direct from the academics what's expected of you in your university application, and the things you can do to improve your chances of getting on the course you most desire!

Certificate of completion

You'll receive a certificate of completion to evidence your learning - why not add this to your CV and university applications to show your dedication to your future pathway!

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a Subject Spotlight?

Subject Spotlights fuse education and entertainment to bring you the new way of researching your university options.

Entirely free and available on-demand, you can choose to engage with the content in the way that best suits you - whether that's in bite-sized chunks or in binge-sessions!

Why should I check out Subject Spotlights?

Get a real, representative impression of what pursuing a subject at university is actually like, so that you can make the right decision for you.

Stand out from the competition by completing a Subject Spotlight to gain the most relevant references and evidence for your personal statement.

Who is this Spotlight for?

This subject spotlight is made for students aged 16 and above, that are considering applying to University, particularly to study the subject in the title, or similar areas.

How should I talk about completing a Subject Spotlight on my UCAS application?

Completing a Subject Spotlight shows the university you're applying to that you've taken time outside of school to engage with relevant content.

The easiest way to include it would be to briefly mention one or two things you learned from it and how/why those learnings have furthered your desire to study the subject. We don't want to prescribe an answer because it's your personal statement but this is a good starting point!