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Employability in Geology at Leicester: embedding interaction with industry throughout the degree course. Dave Holwell Careers tutor, Department of Geology, University of Leicester, UK. dah29@le.ac.uk. Stand alone vs embedded. Stand alone activities Careers Day Careers-orientated talks
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Employability in Geology at Leicester: embedding interaction with industry throughout the degree course Dave Holwell Careers tutor, Department of Geology, University of Leicester, UK. dah29@le.ac.uk
Stand alone vs embedded • Stand alone activities • Careers Day • Careers-orientated talks • Industry talks (often through student societies) • Work placements... • Embedded • Industry input to courses • Bursary schemes • ‘Feeder’ placements
Industry input into courses “You guys just aren’t producing graduates with the right set of skills or technical knowledge” • Need to involve industry in our teaching • Not necessarily to teach industry skills – not our job • To expose students to how their subject is applied in the real world – i.e. when they graduate • How? • Guest lectures in courses • Practicals designed as real life exercises (as would be done as graduate geologists) • Soil logging to British and European standards in Engineering Geology module
Example: exploration geology Module: Exploration and Site Investigation Methods • Micromine involved in designing a coursework project • Leicester first university in Europe to do so with Micromine • Project involves the interpretation of geochemical data to identify an ore deposit • Essentially a scientific data analysis and interpretation exercise, but packaged up as a real life situation • Students use Micromine software (widely used in industry)
Example: exploration geology Output: • Student produces a report in a professional style as would be the norm in industry • Provides the student with experience of presenting work professionally and take the work to interviews • Micromine involved in feedback to students and fund prizes
Bursary schemes Provide to the student: • Financial assistance towards studies • Work experience • Masters projects Benefits to the industrial partner: • An extended interview • A relationship with graduates BEFORE they graduate • A stream of graduates familiar with the industry EXAMPLE: AI • 10 x £300 to first years • 6 x £500 to second years • 3 x £1000 to third years, plus a 4th year Masters project
Feeder placements Provide to the student: • Work experience for one or two consecutive summers • Option of Masters projects Benefits to the industrial partner: • A relationship with graduates BEFORE they graduate • Development of a ‘feeder’ university for graduate places • Reduces risk in hiring unknown graduates EXAMPLE: First Quantum Minerals • Student work experience at end of 2nd year • Student work placement at end of 3rd year • Masters project in 4th year • Graduate job on completion of degree
Get industry involved with mutually beneficial initiativesDURING the degrees,not just when they graduate