The project will develop and pilot two new industrially owned and badged modules which will be incorporated into the core curriculum of our School’s engineering programmes (e.g the SABIC – Chemical Process Design module etc) These will be variants of our conventional existing modules, and will achieve essentially the same learning outcomes – but the industrial input and badging will add relevance, interest, topicality and provide opportunities to illustrate the application of theory in current industrial issues/problems drawn from the industrial partner. Each module will be jointly developed by an industrial and academic team, and led by nominated members of staff from both organizations. The academic lead would advise on issues such as assessment, appropriateness of challenge to level of study, requisite learning outcomes to be developed, and coordinate the practical aspects of delivery (timetabling etc). The lead academic would be teamed with an industrial module leader to jointly form the core module team. The industrial lead would focus on the curriculum content, drawing on practical examples and case studies derived from their organisation to illustrate and exemplify concepts.

This proposal aims to pilot a novel model of industrial involvement in the design and delivery of undergraduate engineering programmes, by allowing relevant (volunteering) engineering companies to take ownership of particular modules which directly relate to their organisation’s core business, within the curriculum, and badge them as company “owned” modules.

The key objectives are to:

 

*  Ensure the link between theory and practice is further reinforced across our programmes

 

*  Achieve explicit industry-led input into the design of the curriculum

 

*  improve student engagement

 

*  to provide a flexible model for the creation of industry owned modules in partnership with academics

The anticipated outcomes are:

 

*  improved motivation of students premised on the clear relevance of the taught curriculum

 

*  Improves retention, NSS and employment outcomes.

 

*  The development of a series of industry owned and badged modules

 

*  The dispersal of this approach across all of the School’s Science & Engineering undergraduate awards

 

*  The adoption of this type of model by the wider HEI sector

 

BENEFITS

 

The proposal should act as a pilot for this new approach to engaging industry/employers in the design and delivery of the curriculum. Although the pilot will be specific to particular modules and courses within our own university curriculum, the principles and approaches should be transferrable across the wider HE STEM sector. The pilot should provide further evidence to test the assertion that “experience motivates” expressed in the recent RAE report, and will also support our own institutions ambition to provide students with the best possible preparation for employment by enabling them to see their learning in context.

 

If you wish to know more about this project, please contact the Programme's Engineering team at HESTEM@raeng.org.uk with unique Project Reference Number: FP021 OCT2010.