Bangkok--30 Sep--PC & Associates Consulting Faculty of Information Technology, King Mongkut's Institute of Technology Ladkrabang Holds Thailand’s First Cisco Certified Network Professional (CCNP) Course.Upgrading Networking Learning And Personnel Development Standard King Mongkut's Institute of Technology Ladkrabang (KMITL) will be the first in Thailand to deliver Cisco Certified Network Professional (CCNP) curriculum through Faculty of Information Technology. The new curriculum will raise the bar on educational processes, and help provide networking professionals to local and global markets. Dr. Tatchapol Poshyanonda, managing director, Cisco Systems (Thailand) Ltd., said Cisco has delivered Networking Academy Program in Thailand for ten years, with 60 participating academic institutes. Over 20,000 students have enrolled into this program. However, according to IDC, the shortage of skilled workers in networking will rise to 6,600 persons in 2009, up 15 % from 5,300 in 2007. Cisco has a clear vision on supporting life-long learning and it believes that education provides access to better career opportunities. Human resources development efforts will help produce leaders in education, business and public sectors, who will ultimately contribute to the country’s development. Cisco also believes that educational challenges directly affect the future of business, as business sustainability depends on innovations and employees’ expertise. Therefore, Cisco is strongly committed to Networking Academy Program. The company has urged academic institutes to improve their curriculum in order to catch up with new technologies and respond to industry requirements. With improved curriculum, students will get prepared to enter the workforce. Today, marking another successful step for Networking Academy Program, KMITL gets ready both in terms of teaching staff and networking resources to officially deliver Cisco Certified Network Professional (CCNP) courses to students and public. KMITL is the first university in Thailand to incorporate CCNP into its curriculum. Asst. Prof. Dr. Chanboon Sathitwiriyawong, Dean, Faculty of Information Technology, KMITL, said the Faculty of Information Technology aims to be the nation’s leader in IT education and research. Having realized the importance of IT workforces, especially in networking area, the Faculty has continuously improved its curriculum by joining Networking Academy Program since 2001. The Faculty has applied “Cisco Certfified Network Associate” (CCNA) to its undergraduate and graduate curriculum as well as training programs. Moving forward, the Faculty has prepared teaching staff and networking equipment for launching the first “Cisco Certified Network Professional” or CCNP curriculum in Thailand. This will raise the bar on networking skills enhancement, and will eventually contribute to the development of Thailand’s economy. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Chotipat Pornavalai, Lecturer’s Faculty of Information Technology, KMITL, , added that since we have participated, the Networking Academy Program has allowed students to get in-depth knowledge on networking both in theory and in practice. Students get trained with lab practices for open-source Linux networking, along with commercial networking devices. This enables students to better understand theories and obtain useful skills for real-life applications. They also have an opportunity to apply their knowledge by joining the National Networking Skills Competitions hosted annually For more information, please contact: News Release issue by: Suchitra Kovitwanichkanont. Lalida Rattanasrithai Cisco Systems (Thailand) Ltd. PC & Associates Consulting Co., Ltd. Tel: 0 2263 7055 (Direct) Tel: 0 2971 3711 Fax: 0 2253 8440 Fax: 0-2521 9030 Email: [email protected] Email: [email protected]