The International Facility Management Association’s World Workplace 2008 Conference & Expo, held October 15-17 in Dallas will bring facility professionals together with students looking to break into the industry to focus on the future of the built environment. Students from facility management programs around the world will present their own original projects and research during the IFMA Foundation’s second annual ePoster competition. The foundation will also present more than $90,000 in scholarships to 28 students whose efforts are already making an impact on the profession.
The World Workplace ePoster competition provides an international stage for students in IFMA Foundation Recognized Degree Program schools and other institutions offering FM related educational programs to present original work in the field of facility management.
An ePoster presentation is a visual summary of a recent research or work project, consisting of a PowerPoint or other electronic display combined with an interactive two minute question and answer period. Student ePoster submittals will be displayed October 16 on the expo floor, with the winning ePosters being selected by an international panel of judges.
Students representing institutions such as Brigham Young University, the University of Teesside in the U.K., and the University of Applied Sciences in Kufstein, Austria, will travel to World Workplace to present their projects. The winning ePoster author(s) will receive a $1,500 expense allowance toward attending the 2009 European Facility Management Conference in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Last year’s winners included students from BYU, the University of Pennsylvania, and the University of Applied Sciences in Berlin, Germany.
Because supporting deserving students helps to ensure the quality of the built environment in a changing world, the IFMA Foundation will also present a record dollar amount in scholarships at this year’s conference. The foundation will be giving out nearly $20,000 more in scholarships than it did last year and more than twice what it gave out in 2005.
Fifty-four graduate and undergraduate students representing 22 schools applied for the scholarships, which are awarded based on merit to students pursuing degrees in facility management or a related field. Scholarships provided by the IFMA Foundation start at $1,500 and include an allocation for the recipient to attend World Workplace.
“I heard about the scholarship through a peer at Cornell studying the same program as me, facilities planning and management — and I ended up winning,” said Anne Marie Oswald, who won the Barbara Pryor Scholarship at last year’s conference and is applying for a scholarship again this year. “The trip to World Workplace 2007 was an amazing experience for me. It would be great to win the scholarship again and reunite with my peers who are heading to Dallas.”
IFMA’s World Workplace Conference & Expo is an annual three day educational and networking event focused on the future of the built environment. Building on the professional development opportunities available through the association year round, the World Workplace experience includes a conference focused entirely on education and an exposition incorporating product demonstration and instruction.
