According to John D ’ Arcy , National Director of The Open University in Northern Ireland , “ The Open University is pushing the boundaries of technology to give STEM students the most immersive and engaging experience possible , from the comfort of their own home .
“ People often wonder how someone can study a STEM subject via an institution like The Open University , where most students will never actually attend the physical institution .
“ Previously , students relied on packages filled with scientific equipment to be posted out and studying videos of laboratory activity . Now , through the OU ’ s OpenSTEM Lab , students can both engage in laboratory activity virtually , and in real time , through remote technology .
“ This pioneering concept is now giving STEM students the most realistic university experience possible through distance learning .
“ This approach provides the flexibility to enable organisations to upskill and reskill their employees without losing staff from the workplace .”
Academic Excellence
John explained that making academic learning relevant to the workplace was a key priority of the OU .
“ Right across the broad range of STEM subject areas , we are keen to make learning as relevant to the workplace as possible .
“ Not just in terms of the academic learning , but also broader skills and capabilities that help our students perform in their job and to enhance their employability .
“ OU students develop teamwork , time management , written and oral communication skills . In fact , no student can possibly complete OU study without demonstrating these skills .
“ We were delighted that according to the Global University Employability Ranking 2016 , the OU was rated by employers to be in the top 15 institutions for graduate employability in the UK , ahead of many Russell Group universities .”
Often when people think about The Open University , its role as a teaching university comes to mind . However , the OU also has a strong research base which feeds directly into its course production .
Explaining this further , John said : “ In the recent Research Excellence Framework , 72 per cent of OU research was rated worldleading or internationally excellent and we were rated in the top third of UK universities .
“ We have specific expertise in areas such as
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The Open University is pushing the boundaries of technology to give STEM students the most immersive and engaging experience possible , from the comfort of their own home . John D ’ Arcy
cyber security and space science . In fact , almost every European Space Agency mission in recent years has included at least one piece of equipment created by researchers at The Open University .
“ These scientists , at the cutting edge of space exploration , directly write and teach on our courses , inspiring our students to follow exceptionally rewarding and pioneering careers in STEM industries .
Improving productivity through workbased training
According to the UK Commission for Employment and Skills ( UKCES ) survey in 2015 , Northern Ireland has the lowest levels of workbased training within the UK .
John believes that it is no coincidence that we also demonstrate the lowest levels of productivity as well , 19 per cent below the UK average . “ Investing in the skills of the workforce is a key element of improving productivity . It increases technical knowledge , as well as creativity and leadership .
“ It is critical to innovation and employee engagement . By having a highly motivated workforce which is more skilled to compete in the global economy , employers will see an improvement in their bottom line .”
Within a SMEdominated economy , one of the major barriers for employers to encourage staff to engage in training is the substantial time away from the job that it can often lead to .
The flexibility of The Open University ’ s online model reduces this substantially .
“ Flexibility is core to Open University study ”, explained John . ‘ Students can study whenever and wherever suits them best .
“ We have invested significantly to ensure that our learning materials are compatible on all digital platforms .
“ For many students , mobile devices are the preferred learning tool .
“ This is an attractive proposition for employers . They gain the benefits of a more highly skilled workforce , who are able to apply newfound knowledge immediately into their roles , but minimise the disruption to daytoday business .”
Partnering with the OU
John emphasised that the OU ’ s ethos with regards to employer engagement is very much that of a partnership . “ We take time to work with our partners to determine exactly how we can best support their training needs .
“ This could be from our huge range of undergraduate and postgraduate modules or it could be a course designed for the unique needs of the organisation .
“ We also have hundreds of free courses on our OpenLearn platform that we can package to enhance employers ’ CPD offering .
“ We seek to present a holistic offering to our partners . Employers can advertise employment opportunities to OU students for free and can benefit from student talent by offering work placements .
“ We also have a huge academic expertise that can be tapped into for knowledge exchange partnerships .”
The Open University , through its Belfast office , is clearly open for business and supporting employers in STEM industries is high on its agenda .
John concluded : “ The Open University is proud to be funded by the Department for the Economy as a local university . We benefit from being able to bring our global insight to a local level in Northern Ireland .
“ We flex to be directly responsive to the needs of local citizens and industry , as well as the high level objectives of the Executive .
“ The Northern Ireland Skills Barometer highlights deficits in higher level skills right across the STEM subject areas .
“ The Open University will continue to work with employers to ensure that Northern Ireland has a sufficiently skilled and innovative workforce , boosting innovation , productivity and economic growth .”
MOREINFORMATION
If you want to find out more about The Open University please call the OU Belfast Office on 028 9032 3722 or visit www . open . ac . uk / northern-ireland
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