Three members of the Administrative Council of the AEN Aspropyrgou, Filippos Agaliotis (treasurer), Mariana Liosi (secretary) and Manolis Koutantes (member of the Board of Directors of AEN, graduate of engineering) speak to Newsbomb about the significant problems they face in their studies, which jeopardize the work they are to produce as soon as they receive their degree and are integrated into the ships of the largest fleet worldwide, the Greek one…
Academic recognition: A degree without rights
The first thing the students describe is that although the AENs have admission through Panhellenic exams, their degrees are not considered of university level. This, as they explain, deprives them of fundamental rights, both academically and professionally, since the degree does not allow them to practice the profession on land, even if it concerns the same technical subjects.
“Our degree is not equivalent in the national framework, which means it does not give us rights on land,” states a student. “To be recognized, we must reach the rank of First Engineer or First Captain and have sea service, just so we can fix bicycle brakes on land. That is, an engineer on a ship who can repair a boiler, cannot repair the same boiler on land. He does not have a license to practice his profession,” he notes.
“On the ship, we find work. Afterwards, however, if someone does not want to travel for their entire life, it is difficult to find work on land,” he adds.
At the same time, the students point out that they do not have access to postgraduate or doctoral programs. “Our school is not considered a university. We cannot do a master’s or a doctorate, because they require a university degree. We can only do so privately, but even those are not recognized,” he notes.
Food and Housing
At the same time, the lack of food and housing infrastructure is a chronic problem in the AENs, as the members of the association emphasize.
“The AEN Aspropyrgou does not provide housing; it is a school for external attendance,” they say characteristically.
Many students are forced to move near the school. The secretary of the association states: “I am from Patra and I rented a place near the school to be on time, but this means I become isolated. If you want to go somewhere closer to Athens, it is difficult.”
Some AENs have dormitories, such as those in Crete, Chios, Hydra, Kefalonia, Preveza, and Syros, but even these have insufficient infrastructure. “At the school in Meganisi, where there is a dormitory building, due to the earthquake in 2010, it has been deemed unsuitable. And since then, no other dormitories have opened,” she notes.
The housing allowance is also considered insufficient: “An allowance of 1,500 euros per year is given. It covers at most three months’ rent, and it is given only to students coming from the provinces to Athens.” And a nationwide food allowance is also given, approximately the same amount, which again is not for everyone; there are criteria. Also, the school provides a canteen for the students which is private: Its prices are commercial prices,” they describe.
Absences and strict regulations
The strictness of the absence system causes intense dissatisfaction. “If someone breaks their leg, they fail the semester,” states a student. “There was a kid who had a car accident and was forced to take a break. We have 90 absences per semester. If you exceed them, you fail.”
The justification given to them is that “everyone must monitor their own absences.
Even in cases of serious illness, “they will tell you it is your own problem.” The strictness is based on the international STCW convention which regulates the standards of seafarer training worldwide. As they note, “the convention imposes a specific limit on absences and mandatory attendance.”
Furthermore, there are no infrastructures for distance learning or for people with mobility problems. “Neither online lessons, nor ramps. If you have a broken leg, you cannot go up a floor,” they say characteristically.
The disciplinary framework and the appearance of the students is also an area where there is excessive strictness, at least according to the students themselves.
“It depends on the professor. Some will tell you: why are you wearing an earring; why did you come like that? Someone can get an absence for that.”
There is an article in the internal regulations regarding appearance, as they say, which however is “anachronistic.”
“They rely on a very general article. Whether someone wears an earring or comes in a bermuda shorts does not affect the educational process. The internal regulation maintains decrees and articles that existed since the Junta. The schools are schools, one does not study to join a security force,” they tell us.
Semester delays and hourly-paid professors
The students describe to Newsbomb chronic delays in the start of semesters due to contracts for hourly-paid professors being signed late.
“An issue we have been facing for years is the delay of semesters, because the contracts are not signed and the majority of professors are hourly-paid. This results in some courses not taking place,” they state.
The delays also affect the exam period.
“Last year the winter semester was extended. The exam period was extended by a few days. If there are no professors to start the lessons on October 1st and you have to start on October 15th, obviously the exam period will also be extended.” What are they asking for? “For permanent professors to be hired. For this situation with the hourly-paid staff to stop.”
The training voyages
The structure of studies provides for two training voyages. The minimum required time on the ship to continue is three months and fifteen days.
“And if a semester is delayed, you are also delayed with the voyage. The minimum time is three months and fifteen days. If the semester is delayed, plus the delay in finding the company for the voyage, these three months and fifteen days may not be completed for a portion of the students.”
To help the students, there is a liaison office that informs and assists, but its role is mainly advisory.
“Normally we have the liaison office, but there too there will be some delay due to workload. It has an advisory character. It cannot force a ship to enlist a student. It simply tells us the company: ‘this one exists, go talk to them yourself’,” they note, emphasizing that for several years even this help was not available to students. “It started operating the previous semester after we pushed for it”…
The students are asking for their placement in the training voyages to be guaranteed.
“It is the Ministry’s responsibility to provide a ship, given that the training voyage is for six months and is a mandatory part of our studies.”
However, since last year, on the initiative of the Administrative Board of the AEN in collaboration with the Panhellenic Union of Merchant Marine Engineers (P.E.M.E.N.), supplementary lessons for engineers began in order to cover some basic gaps. The students were able to find people to help with the lessons in Chemistry, Physics, and Mathematics.
“Of course, this doesn’t solve anything. What solves the existing issues is the collective action of the students to demand modern studies, permanent teaching staff, and an upgrade of our degree,” they conclude.
SOURCE: newsbomb.gr
