During a recent visit to Korea, ASTM International president James Thomas addressed a class of over 550 freshman engineering students regarding the relevance and impact of standards to their professional development and in their personal lives.
On Wednesday, 10 May, James Thomas delivered a one-hour lecture to students enrolled in Dr. Chang Wook Kang's "Visions in Engineering" class at Hanyang University's Ansan Campus.
The lecture, titled, "Developing ASTM Standards and Your Future" highlighted the critical relevance of standards to the students' professional futures, while at the same time calling attention to the presence of standards in daily aspects of their lives. While an overview of ASTM International and its procedures were included, emphasis was placed on how standards enhance the quality of life, the reliability of products and materials, and the ways in which standards facilitate national, regional, and international trade.
Also emphasized was the ubiquity of ASTM standards, not only in scientific and engineering practice, but also in the conduct of business. Mr. Thomas encouraged students to become more informed and aware of voluntary consensus standards and the resource they represent for young professionals.
Asked to provide personal observations on how to advance in an increasingly globalizing world, Mr. Thomas advised the students to build their presentation skills, build their language skills and become a "life-term" learner.
As the nation of Korea focuses its efforts on standards in education, the ASTM President was invited by Dr. Kang to be one in a series of speakers to address his class. Other speakers have included government ministers, corporate CEOs, university deans, and research directors. From Hanyang University, Mr. Thomas went on to deliver the keynote speech at the next day's 2006 Global Standards Management Conference in Seoul.
All university students are invited to participate in ASTM International's no-cost student membership, available at the ASTM Campus website, www.astm.org/studentmember.