Internationalising Higher Education

Dundee College will present a composite poster of five different case studies. The first case study will discuss a project funded by the British Council's Skills for Employability programme. The aim of the project is for Dundee College, Scotland and the National Hotel and Tourism Training Institute (NHTTI), Dhaka, Bangladesh to enable national educational and training systems to respond to global labour market demands and learner needs, by addressing the skills agenda of the hospitality industry. The project is currently in its second year and is focusing on familiarisation visits, sharing best practice, extending skills and experience for faculty and staff members, the joint development of training materials for a Cultural Care unit, and opportunities for students to experience work-based learning in a different social and cultural context. The second case study will discuss a project funded by the UK-India Education and Research Initiative (UKIERI) involving 'JUTE': Joint Upskilling and Training for Employment. The partners for this project are South Dehli Ploytechnic for Women, India and Dundee College. The aim of the project is to revive and renew the historic links between Dundee and India in a creative manner, and to prepare young women for employment within SMEs or as entrepreneurs in self-employment in an international market. Currently in its first year, the project involves a design competition for students, exchange visits for prize winners, familiarisation visits, and knowledge and best practice sharing. The third case study will discuss a partnership between Sir C V Raman Industrial Training Institute, Dehli and Dundee College funded by the Prime Minister's Initiative for International Education (PMI2). The aim of the partnership is to assist with the professional upskilling of automotive staff in the institute in Dehli, to share knowledge, employability skills and curricular programmes through masterclasses and exchange visits. The partnership is in its first year, and is currently focusing on the sharing of teaching methodologies and delivery, masterclasses and e-learning for modern apprenticeships. This poster will discuss the partnership, the challenges it is currently facing, as well as current and future rewards. The fourth case study will discuss a project funded by the British Council's Skills for Employability programme. The aim of the project is to design and implement industry-led curriculum and embed shared best practice. The primary product is a Design and Make project. A Portapack solar power unit will be designed and built in both the Nepalese colleges (School of Engineering and Technology in Kathmandu, Nepal, Polytechnic Institute in Chitwan, Nowakot and Trade School in Nkot, Nepal) and Dundee College, Scotland. This will involve a sharing of research, skills and experience across the partnership, in order to produce a fit-for-purpose innovative and cost-effective unit for Nepali villages. The final case study will discuss a project funded by the UK-India Education and Research Initiative (UKIERI). The aim of the project is to develop skilled Indian technicians through a joint development and delivery programme between Dayananda Sagar College of Engineering and Dundee College, with support from Shell staff based in Bangalore. The skills that will be developed through this training programme include experimental skills, such as synthesis, chemical plant operations, analytical skills and process control, as well as employability skills, including team working, basic statistics, data handling and computer skills. The key outcome will be the design of a programme to train technicians and operators for the petrochemical or other industrial RD centres (e.g. Shell Technology Centre in Bangalore). The project is in its first year, and is currently focusing on developing academic partners with industry, the design of blended learning material, the production of job ready graduates and the introduction of health and safety modules in academic programmes.