Farming Monthly National November 2016 | Page 30

| Education Access to HE Course expands at NSC A new cohort of Access to HE students is embarking on an intensive year course in preparation for Higher Education at North Shropshire College (NSC). n addition to the ever popular Health route for those wanting to enter Nursing, Midwifery and Paramedicine, students are also aiming to progress to a wide variety of degrees through our new Science and Humanities Diplomas. Humanities students are applying for Primary Teaching, English, Creative Writing and Media whilst Science students are heading for courses as diverse as Physiotherapy, Biomedical Sciences, Astrophysics, Zoology and Environmental Sciences. A new Access to HE qualification is now available at NSC’s Walford Campus, the LandBased Studies Access to HE Diploma is ideal for anyone wanting to do study Countryside Management, Land Management, Agriculture and Environmental I studies. Jill Cawthray Access Coordinator commented ‘the Access to HE course is a fantastic bridge to University for those who may not have got the necessary qualifications previously. The best part of my job is seeing the confidence and skills of our students grow with the support of their tutors and peers. We wish them a very successful year. If you want to apply to Access please see our college web-site for more details.’ There is an open evening at Oswestry Campus on Wednesday 19th October, 5pm until 8pm, open to all prospective students wishing to join in September 2017. For more information about Access to HE qualifications please call Jill Cawthray on 01691 688051 or email [email protected], you can also go to www.nsc.ac.uk. 30 | Farming Monthly | November 2016 New postgraduate course to deliver high An innovative new postgraduate degree course is being launched tackle an emerging shortage of higher level skills facing the food he University of Lincoln’s new MSc in Agri-Food Technology, launching in September 2017, will educate a new generation of farmers, innovators, technicians, and business leaders by combining the management, science and technology associated with the modern food supply chain “from farm to fork”. The new programme will be dedicated to educating the future workforce of the UK’s successful and growing agri-food sector. Through its Lincoln Institute for Agri-food Technology (LIAT), the University of Lincoln is working to tackle strategic challenges facing UK agriculture and food manufacturing, developing new practices and technologies that can improve efficiency, sustainability, and reduce waste throughout the value chain. Students on the MSc in Agrifood Technology will benefit from LIAT’s existing expertise in agriculture, based at the University’s Riseholme Campus. The course will also incorporate teaching in food manufacturing, life sciences and agri-robotics, and close working relationships with industry partners. The programme is specifically designed to educate students and help them succeed in a wide range of roles within the agri-food sector, from production T management positions to research and development posts. Professor Simon Pearson, Director of LIAT, said: “Increasingly farming and the food industries are becoming highly technical and automated sectors and the University of Lincoln is responding to the emerging skills gap to develop the highly skilled workforce that is needed. This has become even more urgent to enable the UK to lead the world in agri-food and agri-tech post-Brexit. “The University has designed this new Master’s course in response to demands from the industry and in partnership with farmers and food manufacturing leaders. It will enable us to develop a new generation of highly skilled individuals through expert teaching and hands-on experience right here in Lincolnshire at the very heart of the UK’s agri-food sector. “Students will be in a unique position to take advantage of our exceptional facilities, including our farmland and research field station at Riseholme, our food manufacturing centre at Holbeach and our world class science laboratories in Lincoln.” At the main Brayford Pool Campus, the students will work with scientists, programmers and engineers from across the University to examine the science behind new agri-food developments. Just north of www.farmingmonthly.co.uk