There is a huge lack of knowledge about DB2 in Brazil, but major corporations, such as
IBM and HSBC Global Technology Center, and many medium and small Brazilian companies need these skills
in their workforce. Professor Patricia de Andrade is helping to solve this problem. She left the
corporate world in 2000 to join academia and share her knowledge with the young people of Brazil.
Prof. Andrade has a strong commitment to teaching with open source technologies and has been using
IBM DB2 in her curricula. From her corporate experience, she understood the advantage of hands-on experience
with this relational database product. She enlisted the help of Andrea Rodacki from IBM Global Services to
organize a DB2 Students Users Group that is part of DB2 Students Ambassadors Program. In this program, the
students have an opportunity to learn more about DB2 and give presentations and demonstrations to others.
At the end of the program, students receive a letter of recommendation with details of all the activities they performed.
In addition to the ambassador program, Prof. Andrade is also helping her students achieve DB2 professional
certification by teaching the first post-graduation preparatory course for DB2 certification in Brazil.
Results:
Prof. Andrade has helped many students learn about a widely-used software product and has
encouraged them to help themselves, to go beyond the classroom setting to expand their knowledge and share it
with other students and faculty in a professional manner.
Benefits:
Students are graduating from UniFAE Centro Universitário Franciscano with skills that can help them succeed in the marketplace.
They have technical knowledge, public speaking and marketing skills, plus experience using an industrial strength database
product. Many also have strong letters of recommendation and IBM Professional Certification on DB2.
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