It has been increasingly argued that networking is involved in the process of an individual’s career management and it can be seen as the core of career management activities in the contemporary workplace. This poster aims to explain that networking skills can be learned and should be used flexibly as appropriate networking strategies for career management. The poster discusses the process of networking through two different strategies that have been identified by separate theories and explains how further research could benefit an effective career education system in the future.
Speakers: Peter Yang, PhD Student, Wu Feng Institute of Technology, Taiwan and Jennifer M Kidd, Reader, Department of Organisational Psychology, Birkbeck, University of London.
This poster summarises the results of an assessment tool used to help determine if four- to five-week programs contribute meaningfully to the development of a skilled future workforce. The tool asked students to consider the degree of change in various aspects of their international knowledge, skills, and attitudes as a result of their experience. It also asked students to assess their experience in a host of other categories. Preliminary findings indicate that students do indeed perceive that short-term study abroad programs impact their future employability. This poster will discuss those findings.
Speaker: Marie Gleason, Program Coordinator, University of Delaware Center for International Studies.
This poster presentation will focus on the view that members of a skilled workforce, able to operate in the global knowledge economy, should have both international and intercultural competence. At the University of Hertfordshire a decision was taken to internationalise the curriculum in order to produce graduates who have both international and intercultural competence. Through a development programme, academic staff are being encouraged to modify both curriculum content and pedagogical practice. The aim is to broaden curriculum content by leading students to look outside traditional Eurocentric and ‘Western’ frameworks, and by including teaching and learning materials from non-traditional and non-Western sources. Curriculum is therefore changing via ‘add-on’ and ‘infusion’ approaches and a ‘transformation approach’ is a future goal. Teaching room practices are being proposed with a view to shifting students’ attitudes towards ‘the other’.
Speaker: Paul Roberts, Principal Lecturer, University of Hertfordshire.
This poster will discuss how the Universiti Malaysia Pahang is working to develop female technopreneurs, a term which refers to entrepreneurs in technology-based industries. They have used personality profiling analysis, conducted amongst female engineering undergraduates involving six key dimensions, to decipher the potential for technopreneurship amongst female engineering undergraduates. The analysis showed that female engineering undergraduates possess strong entrepreneurial personality and have great potential to become technopreneurs. Researchers have designed a course on technopreneurship for engineering undergraduates and a module for the delivery of the course, including the Ministry of Higher Education Soft Skills Module launched in 2006 and other modules and short courses to nurture technopreneurship skills.
Speaker: Airin Abdul Ghani, Lecturer, Universiti Malaysia Pahang, Malaysia.
This poster presentation will outline the new Edinburgh University School of Education Short Course for policy makers and those leading education at a national, regional or school level.
At this time of profound change driven by huge advances and rapid developments in information and communication technologies it is essential that education systems worldwide adapt to ensure that our societies and the coming generation fully benefit from these developments.
The course has been specifically written to support education leaders in this vital task and covers the key issues in the management of these educational changes under the headings of: Structures of Education, Managing Change, Understanding ICT in Education, New paradigms of Learning and Education for a Knowledge Economy.
Speaker:Richard Pietrasik, Director, Now's the Time, UK..
This poster presentation will focus on the role of www.internationalstaff.org as a pioneering new website to support new international staff taking up posts in UK higher education, offering wide support to staff and their families to improve the overall experience of relocating to the UK and working in a UK higher education institution. A comprehensive survey of international staff at Leeds, a literature review and interviews with international staff and significant others at Leeds, other universities, British Council, FCO, and UKCISA highlighted the range of Project Officer, University of Leedssupport needed by international academic staff whatever their particular roles in Higher Education Institutions. Key areas include a network of contacts within the university, meeting people outside the workplace and establishing a social life. The website was launched in Leeds in October 2007 as a result of the project, offering support in both a professional and personal content. It includes a comprehensive database, covering all aspects of learning and teaching in the UK, and detailed information on personal issues such as finding accommodation and local school services. The site design enables Higher Education Institutions to add their own content, and so will create a repository of national and institution-specific information.
Speaker: Heather Timm, Project Officer, University of Leeds.
This poster will summarise the role of the innovative curriculum design and delivery model the Global Studio, which as a cross-institutional research informed teaching and learning project runs between international universities and industry partners based in the UK, USA, the Netherlands and Korea. The aim of the Global Studio is to meet current and future industry needs by equipping design students with the necessary skills for working in globally networked organisations, especially intercultural communication and collaboration. Through the Global Studio design students develop skills to allow them to work effectively in a distributed product development process. The majority have found it to be an interesting and motivating experience, and felt that it had improved their skills in virtual-teamwork and designer-client communication. Through Web 2.0, Wiki pages and other ICT technologies such as conferencing, video conferencing and e-mail, the Global Studio enables students to engage with students from their own and participating universities, thus contributing to the development of student learning communities within and across universities.
Speaker: Dr Erik Bohemia, Reader, Northumbria University.
This poster presentation will discuss the benefits of incorporating entrepreneurship skills in engineering courses involving Technical English or Technical Communication. Engineering students are typically taught how to describe technical parts or components and how to explain processes or procedures, but not key entrepreneurial elements such as how to demonstrate at an exhibition or exposition or how to present a product using marketing strategies. Language instructors should provide these additional skills in order to prepare graduates for the skills required in today’s globalised world.
Speaker: Wan Jumani Fauzi, Course Coordinator, Universiti Malaysia Pahang, Malaysia.
This poster presentation will focus on the importance of soft skills such as English language and communication in enhancing Malaysian undergraduates' employability. Increasing unemployment amongst graduates is a major concern for Malaysian higher education gatekeepers and stakeholders, so the Ministry of Higher Education (MoHE) has set up a national task force committee to tackle the issue. One of their findings was that while a few public universities were offering courses to enhance undergraduates’ intrapersonal and interpersonal skills, others were left behind. The committee recommended to MoHE that all Malaysian public universities incorporate soft skills elements into their curriculum. In 2006 a directive and soft skills module was announced for Malaysian universities. Prior to this, researchers at Universiti Malaysia Pahang had already embarked on a study on soft skills awareness and understanding among students. Results showed that soft skills were well received by students and that employers were impressed with the new skills in post-mock job interviews. This poster will discuss how University Malaysia Pahang is now able to produce graduates who meet the demands of the workforce.
Speaker: Zarina Mohd Ali, Lecturer, Universiti Malaysia Pahang, Malaysia.
This poster presentation will focus on the efforts of the newly established International Master’s Programme in Business and Technology at Tampere University of Technology to enhance the employability of international graduates in Finland. International business programmes often find it challenging to get their international graduates employed in Finland because it is the shared assumption that for management jobs one must speak fluent Finnish. The programme encourages students to utilise their cultural background to their advantage and gain valuable experience through a student-run consulting company. The company, TSBT Consulting Ltd, allows international students to acquire business cases where they can use their cultural background, language skills and engineering bachelor degree as their primary assets while learning various management-related skills. Most of the cases relate to reverse marketing as Finnish companies representing different industries are frequently interested in finding new suppliers, for example China and India. The programme allows students to utilise their assets not only during their study but also when seeking employment with Finnish companies.
Speaker: Sanna Nokelainen, International Coordinator, Tampere School of Business and Technology.
This poster presentation will focus on the experience of British-educated Chinese students and their career prospects upon returning to China. After returning from UK education, much like returning from the Prince’s ball, do they go back to their pre-UK life, or can the returnees’ experiences enhance their employability and spirit of entrepreneurship, as their new talents bring about subtle changes in management and leadership, selecting the best of East and West? Expatriates are currently filling many gaps in the Chinese economy but it is hoped that returnees will gradually take over leadership. With support from the Prime Minister’s Initiative (PMI2) strategic alliance and partnership projects, a study will be undertaken between 2008 and 2009 on entrepreneurship and employability, with funding from the British Council. The Leeds Business School and the College of Business at Zhejiang University of Technology will examine the skills and training needs of the burgeoning Chinese economy in Zhejiang and explore opportunities for collaboration between Leeds and its twin city Hangzhou in such sectors as digital industries, advanced manufacturing, public services, transportation and the financial sector, through documentary analysis and semi-structured interviews. The study will also include an analysis of the career experiences of Chinese students on the collaborative Masters in International Trade and Finance Programme, which has been running in both Leeds and Hangzhou for a number of years.
Speaker: Crystal Ling Zhang, Lecturer, Leeds Business School.
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