Regner Sabillon
Author(s): Scott Douglas Jacobsen
Publication (Outlet/Website): The Voice Magazine (Unpublished)
Publication Date (yyyy/mm/dd): 2017/08/24
Scott Douglas Jacobsen: This is for the voice magazine. What is your name and position?
Regner Sabillon: Regner Sabillon. I am academic expert for the faculty of business and the school of computing information system.
Jacobsen: How did you find AU and why did you choose the position?
Sabillon: Well, that was long time ago, that was in 2005. I’ve been involved in IT and in Academia for the last 21 years and I wanted to start working Academia again here in Canada.
Jacobsen: What kind of research have you done in your professional life?
Sabillon: Well, like I said, I’ve been combining IT and also Academia work. In IT I’ve been implementing many IT projects from service delivery,and also trying to finish my PhD. I’m on the last stage, I just finished my final research which is related to cyber security awareness in audit. So hopefully, I should be able to get my PhD soon.
Jacobsen: In terms of your experience with AU students; what has it been and what do you think that AU brings uniquely to the table for them?
Sabillon: Well, we have a big commitment to help our AU students to make them successful in what they choose to do. We try to provide all the best knowledge that we can as academics and tutor. We want them to be successful in what they choose.
Jacobsen: And in terms of the faculty that you work for; what are some of the opportunities that students uniquely have with you?
Sabillon: Well for instance, with the school of computing information systems, they have the opportunity to learn new tools, learn new technologies that they can put in practice that knowledge in the workplace. For instance, learn new programming tools and learn from the technology side; collaboration tools.
Jacobsen: In terms of students thinking of graduate school, which is not all students, what can they do to prepare themselves more adequately in terms of applications, course selection, degree selection, and extracurriculars?
Sabillon: Well, we if the student hasn’t decided what they’re going to study, they always can get support from advisors. Even when we provide academic support to our students, sometimes they come to us and asks us questions like what do you think will be my next duration in this specific field or what should we be studying or what courses should I be taking next, etc. So, we’re always happy to help students in that area.
Jacobsen: What would be your one big tip for undergraduate students to have a better experience?
Sabillon: Well, as you know most AU students are working full-time and they combine that with taking AU courses. So, we have a mature audience even people that didn’t have the opportunity to finish their undergraduate degree many years ago, they want to get a degree so that they can get a better opportunity in the market. We always provide good feedback and advice to finish their degree whenever they have the time, to not wait that long.
Jacobsen: What do the success rates look like for students if success is defined as getting a job that they would like after graduation from the school of computing sciences?
Sabillon: Well for instance, most of our students in the IT field are already working in the field. So, once they get either a diploma or a graduate degree or a master degree, they will have the opportunity to get a better job or get a better position or apply for a better job certainly.
Jacobsen: To make this personal, I have worked in the learning analytics research group for about one year and we present once per week, we do some research on a consistent topic and each week we provide updates on the research of that topic. I found that experience highly informative and very crucial for my educational experience because I worked in psychology labs before but that was a different experience of research and presentation and critique from others than the learning analytics research group. Not only because it’s a different field but also because it’s a different group and it’s mixed much more between graduate students and undergraduate students. I find that mixing of cohorts by which I mean undergraduate and graduate students and professors very enlightening for someone such as myself who was an undergraduate in their last year.
What are some other smaller benefits that students might not be taking note of when they are actually engaging in research at an undergraduate level?
Sabillon: Well, from my experience I can say that some students do not take full advantage of what it’s offering right now. Sometimes they want to finish their course at their own pace but that shouldn’t be the case. They have the opportunity to involve academic tutors, so I encourage them to ask questions and to get some advice. Sometimes they even get better ideas on what they’re supposed to do in their fields in choosing the right path in a specific career.
Jacobsen: Based on the conversation we’ve had today; do you have any final feelings or thoughts in conclusion?
Sabillon: Well, like many people have said online education will be the next model of education. I see that most University that offer classroom training will go towards that direction to offer better opportunities for online learning.
Jacobsen: Thank you for your time.
License
In-Sight Publishing by Scott Douglas Jacobsen is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. Based on a work at www.in-sightpublishing.com.
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