The famous one is the degree in aircraft maintenance engineering also at
The famous one is the degree in aircraft maintenance engineering, also at Kingston. Another successful degree in hospitality management has been established by Thames Valley University in concert with Radisson Edwardian, the hotel group. “Our chairman, Jasminder Singh, is very committed to people development,” explains Kevin Ennis, its people development director. “Many who come to work here have not gone to university or have dropped out. They struggle with practical applications of what they learn. Then they reach a level were they are ready to move into supervisory posts and need some additional education and training to improve their performance.”Of the 30 Radisson who have gone through the degree, six have graduated and four have moved on to honours degrees Like Jason Bale, they are all sponsored by their employer. “There is still a lot of ignorance,” says Richard Brown, of the Council for Industry and Higher Education.
“But we support it because there is a big skills gap in the workface at NVQ level three and four (A-level and just above) There is a market need. Big public sector employers like the NHS and the Ministry of Defence have embraced it with open arms. There is a wide range of new two-year degrees in health-related subjects, and the police and armed forces have also jumped on the bandwagon But private sector involvement is weak. While expressing some satisfaction at the figures, its members worried about how to reach the vast mass of private sector employers who have little interest in the new qualification.
Will ministers be able to reach their target of 50,000 students by 2005?Last week there was a meeting of the task group set up to advise the Government on foundation degrees. The University of Teesside says it has successful part-time foundation degrees tied in with local chemical companies and the National Health Service. Full time degrees have not taken off.The UCAS figures cover only full-time courses. According to the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) a total of 24,400 students – both full and part-time – are registered on foundation degrees this year compared to the 12,400 last year That shows a doubling of take-up in the space of a year. “The nature of the economy locally is much more important than government missives or funding regimes,” he says. “Anyway I don’t think there is a market for foundation degrees so long as there are honours places available.”The experience of new universities bears some of this out. This suggests it will be very difficult to achieve the growth in higher education sought by the government through an increase in sub-degree students.”Roger Brown, director of Southampton Institute, agrees.
