Andrew Watson
Australia

"I am now demonstrating to my superiors that I can apply my new knowledge and skills by providing further information about the wastewater plant and process on aerobic granular sludge."

While working as a Senior Treatment Plant Operator, Andrew Watson participated in the online course Aerobic Granular Sludge (AGS) Technology for Wastewater Treatment. Read about his experience.

What was your motivation for enrolling in this course/program?
The water and wastewater industry will continue to evolve with new processes. I see the role of a water and wastewater operator involving more instrumentation maintenance and the ability to interpret process faults and find solutions to correct them. The operator is employed to monitor processes and should have the ability to provide evidence in the form of meaningful data to help engineers optimise plant operation.

I am employed by the South Burnett Regional Council as the Senior Treatment Plant Operator. I operate and maintain the Kingaroy wastewater treatment plant which includes a recycled water plant, biosolids operation and I monitor the wastewater irrigation farm. This short course on AGS technology has improved my understanding of the processes and has provided me further skills to undertake my role into the future.

How did/will this course impact your career or life?
The online learning experience allowed me to manage my time between work, family and study. I found the course was well paced and provided a comfortable amount of technical knowledge. There was plenty of time for interaction with other like-minded students from all over the world. The revision and assessments were challenging but provide a great way to revise and be assessed. I am now demonstrating to my superiors that I can apply my new knowledge and skills by providing further information about the wastewater plant and process on aerobic granular sludge (AGS).

How was your experience of learning online?
The course instructors were very knowledgeable, the lessons and examples provided were very beneficial. The team provided feedback to questions on the course that could be viewed by all the students to learn and benefit from the question-and-answer sessions.

What advice would you give someone who is thinking of taking a similar course?
What you put into a short course determines what you take away as new skills or advancements in your future career.