I am delighted to start a visiting faculty position at Beijing Foreign Studies University (BFSU) next semester. In my first semester I will be teaching Entrepreneurship and Innovation. I will be teaching within the International Business School and am very excited to be starting this role. The school has a very strong reputation and I am looking forward to teaching some fantastic students and collaborating with their great faculty.
The wait is finally over to hear the outcome of an Erasmus+ bid submitted to the EU in April, and I was delighted to find out that the bid was successful. I worked on, and submitted the bid as the lead researcher from the University of Worcester, alongside 8 other education providers, spread across 7 EU countries. The bid received €328,690 funding to develop the European Business Baccalaureate Diploma (EBBD), which is a qualification designed to develop European business skills and competencies for students seeking University admission.
My role in the project is centered on reviewing and evaluating the EBBD and the accreditation process of schools offering the award. The funding will allow myself to visit and work closely with partner institutions and use my pedagogic knowledge to support the development of the EBBD, which I am looking forward to.
Today I travelled to meet one of our external examiners at Teesside University, to discuss our MBA and MSc dissertation and research processes and procedures. This meant an early start this morning, as I had to fly from Bristol to Newcastle and then catch a train from Newcastle to Middleborough. However, I managed to achieve two firsts for myself. These were firstly, visiting two new cities (Newcastle and Middleborough) and secondly, travelling to an airport via bicycle.
This meant an even earlier morning, and unfortunately, Bristol Airport is at the top of a hill, which didn’t particularly make for a nice early morning sunrise ride. However, there was definitely a certain novelty about cycling to the airport and leaving the bike and heading through customs with very little except some papers and my laptop.
Once arriving in Newcastle, unfortunately the weather was very different, and was not suitable for enjoying the scenery. However, the main purpose of the visit when very well and discussions with the external examiner were very productive and he was supportive of the proposed changes. Plus, we were able to discuss online learning developments and blended learning opportunities. This provided me an opportunity to run through, and gain some feedback on some of the teaching innovations I am planning for next academic year, from one of our external examiners.
In June the Chartered Management Institute (CMI), Association of Business Schools (ABS) and Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education (QAA) published the 21st Century Leaders Report, which explored how business schools, professional bodies and employers can work together to develop leaders fit for the 21st century. Within, the report the Our Place Your Place (OSYP) initiative was included as a short case study of innovative practice in the SMEs and Entrepreneurship section. It was great to see the OSYP project disseminated through the report.
Robin Bell 