Nuclear engineering faculty members from the Universidade Federal do Rio de Janiero (UFRJ) in Brazil visited the Texas A&M Engineering Experiment Station’s (TEES) Nuclear Security Science and Policy Institute (NSSPI) to learn about the nuclear security courses being taught at both the undergraduate and graduate levels in the Department of Nuclear Engineering at Texas A&M University. The visit was sponsored by the U.S. Department of State’s Partnership for Nuclear Security.
The faculty members, Professors Su Jian, Paulo Frutuoso and Fernando Carvalho, all have interest in incorporating nuclear security education into the traditional nuclear engineering curriculum at UFRJ. NSSPI staff and faculty shared information on the courses currently being taught in the area of nuclear security at Texas A&M, as well as other NSSPI activities contributing to the practical education of students in nuclear security and research projects produced by graduate students in areas relevant to nuclear security. These were conveyed through presentations, discussions, and tours of Texas A&M and TEES facilities. The faculty members from UFRJ are looking to incorporate nuclear security topics discussed in this visit into their curriculum in the near future as well as implementing a new nuclear security research area at their university.
Based on the interactions between NSSPI and UFRJ during this visit, the two institutions plan to work together to hold a Nuclear Security Week event at UFRJ in the fall of 2015. This event will consist of a one-week, 10-hour-long course for graduate students and faculty members on nuclear security concepts, two undergraduate lectures in nuclear security-safety integration, and a 20-hour workshop for Brazilian participants from across the country in nuclear security principles and culture.