1. Two Case Studies AGCAS Biennial 2011, Nottingham Kirstie Coolin
ESCAPES: Improving the Student Work Placement Experience
Two Case Studies
AGCAS Biennial 2011, Nottingham
Kirstie Coolin
Centre for International ePortfolio Development University of Nottingham

2. Sailing the stormy seas of...
University Drivers
Sailing the stormy seas of...
hergé
Employability
Efficiency
Student Experience
Business Engagement

3. 3 JISC-funded Projects
SAMSON Workforce development and lifelong learning Data sharing and communication between student, employee, academic and business
2. ESCAPES Relationship Management ‘blueprinting the Placement Experience’ - Improving processes for better student experience
3. SHED Learning and Teaching Innovation ‘student/employer matching’ - Unlocking institutional data for knowledge exchange

4. Nottingham Postgraduate Placements Placement Discovery and Management
Case Study 1
Nottingham Postgraduate Placements
notts-pg-placements.co.uk
Placement Discovery and Management
Shared Service between the University of Nottingham and Nottingham Trent University ERDF funded project run by the University of Nottingham’s Graduate School.
Aim: to place 397 Nottingham Postgraduates into Nottingham SMEs ( )

6. Developed ‘on top of’ the OPUS Open Source Placements system Developed with the key users Introduced efficiency and streamlined approach to the placements processes Better visibility of placement opportunities Improvements now being made reflecting student feedback

7. 2-3 month Industrial Placements Introduced the Mahara ePortfolio
Case Study 2
Biosciences MScs in Food Production Management and Applied Biomolecular Technology
2-3 month Industrial Placements
Introduced the Mahara ePortfolio

8. An Example – A Placement Pilot 2 month industrial placements for MSc students at the School of Biosciences
180 MSc Placement students…
10 Academic staff…
15 Employers…
1 Placement Manager…
1 Mahara ePortfolio…

9. 3-way communication
Student, Academic and Employer

10. Judith

11. What was the purpose of the Mahara ePortfolio?
An online space to store and present work
Create and present weekly reports on project progress
Record and track professional and academic skills gained whilst on the placement
Multi-way communication between Student, Academic Supervisor, Placement Manager and Employer Supervisor
A central place for the Placements Manager to coordinate, track, monitor and identify early any issues
Announcements, share relevant news items
Judith

12. What did the students, staff and employers say?

16. Judith

17. Outcomes Better feedback management
Closer links between the University and Employer
Better project planning and dissertation support
Professionalism as a learning outcome
Peer interaction with current and former students
Easily reviewed placement record
Improved relationships with their mentors
Received guidance and steer on work-based projects from their employer
Significant efficiency improvements in placement administration

18. Thank you for listening
Kirstie Coolin
Centre for International ePortfolio Development
University of Nottingham
The Centre for International ePortfolio Development (CIePD) are an autonomous Centre within the University of Nottingham’s Information Services. Our aims are to deliver projects that maximise the efficiency of information flow in order to support educational stakeholders access seamless ICT services and quality information.