Finalist

Engaged University of the Year Award

MTU Extended Campus

Finalist of the Engaged University of the Year Award

Munster Technological University (MTU) - Ireland (Republic)

"Working together to make a difference "


Engage on social media

@extendedcampus
(MTU Extended Campus Twitter account )
https://www.linkedin.com/in/mtu-extended-campus
(MTU Extended Campus LinkedIn account)
@MTU_ie
(MTU University Twitter Account )
@myMTU https://www.facebook.com/myMTU
(MTU University Facebook account )
@MTU_ie https://www.instagram.com/MTU_ie/
(MTU University Instagram account)
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/MunsterTechnologicalUniversity
(MTU University YouTube account )

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Summary

Our university is one without walls or barriers; in MTU we are the university, not just IN the region but OF the region. We work together with industry partners and community groups to make a difference, for our students, partner organisations and society as a whole. Our campus extends into the community and workplace and equally, they extend (and add great value) into the university.

Often in universities engagement happens in isolated entities, in academic departments, research centres, CPD units, through Alumni, and the arts. Uniquely, we at MTU commit to an integrated and ‘joined-up’ approach, drawing these diverse strands together. Our first Strategic Plan, launched in October 2022, states that ‘MTU will continue to be the most industry, enterprise, arts, culture, and community engaged University in the region…providing clear enterprise engagement pathways’.

This is supported through our MTU Extended Campus model in several ways:

*A clear interface for external organisations to interact with MTU staff, students and researchers

*A professional ‘case management’ approach to interactions

*Collated and shared examples of good practice in engagement to ‘light the way’

*Data-driven decision making and evidence of impact through our Customer Relationship Management system (CRM),

*Building individual transactions into long-term mutually beneficial relationships

*Supporting a diverse range of learners in accessing and progressing in higher education – for example through validation

*Exploring enterprise future skills needs and developing customised courses to meet those needs – through ‘Learning Clinics’ for example

*Working with development agencies to attract new employers to the region

Key People


Professor Maggie Cusack
President
Munster Technological University



Mr Michael Loftus
Vice President for External Affairs
Munster Technological University



Mr Tim Horgan
Head of Faculty of Engineering & Science
Munster Technological University



Mr Gerard O Donovan
Head of Faculty of Business & Humanities
Munster Technological University



Professor Irene Sheridan
Founder and Head of MTU Extended Campus
MTU Extended Campus,  Munster Technological University



Ms Deirdre Goggin
Recognition of Prior Learning and Work Integrated Learning
MTU Extended Campus,  Munster Technological University



Mr Seán Donovan
Industry Engagement Facilitator
MTU Extended Campus,  Munster Technological University



Ms Elizabeth O Meara
Industry Engagement Facilitator
MTU Extended Campus,  Munster Technological University



Ms Elaine Boland
Springboard and Flexible Learning Coordinator
MTU Extended Campus,  Munster Technological University



Ms Carol Butler
Extended Campus Administrator
MTU Extended Campus,  Munster Technological University



Dr Phil O Leary
Recognition of Prior Learning Mentor
MTU Extended Campus,  Munster Technological University



Ms Jackie White
Extended Campus Administrative Assistant
MTU Extended Campus,  Munster Technological University



Ms Laura O Donovan
Researcher
MTU Extended Campus,  Munster Technological University



Mr Tobi Makanjuola
Digital Marketing Intern to Extended Campus
MTU Extended Campus,  Munster Technological University


Acknowledgements

Fulfilling our mission and continuing ‘to be the most industry, enterprise, arts, culture, and community engaged University in the region…providing clear enterprise engagement pathways’ is dependent on the effort and commitment of everyone. This includes the staff and students of the university who have been instrumental in engaging internally and collaborating externally. The contribution of our enterprise partners in identifying, exploring, and co-creating opportunities for individuals within the workplace and community has been significant. Our participation in research and development through national and Erasmus + funded initiatives has enhanced our scholarship and approach to engaging within our region, acting local while thinking globally.

Images

Munster Technological University

Engagement with International partners

How we engage in MTU

International Women's day

Engagement with local schools

MTU Partnership development

Collaboration with industry on programme development

Award for engagement in validation, work integrated and lifelong learning

Partnership Development in collaboration with the MTU Careers Office

Engagement in the community

MTU Partnership development

IMPACT STORY

Impacting lifes

MTU, as an engaged university, works to develop flexible learning pathways ensuring that existing knowledge and skills are recognised and the workplace is valued as a centre for learning. An example of this is our relationship with the Atlantic Flight Training Academy (AFTA).

“AFTA is proud to partner with MTU for what can only be described as a Global Gold standard degree that will cater for and enhance the industry pilot entry standard.”

Pilot training requires significant theoretical, practical and experiential knowledge – as well as being a costly pursuit. As noted by a programme participant ‘career progression, especially into management roles, often depends on having a university degree’. Working with AFTA, MTU developed a customised course for airline pilots that built on their existing knowledge, skill and competence, acquired in the achievement of their pilots’ license and industry related training. Using validation processes and work-integrated learning, a flexible pathway to an honours degree in International Business with Aviation Studies was developed. Since 2018, 375 pilots have availed of the pathway, equating to 45,000 ETCS credits achieved through validation. The impact on their personal and professional development is evident in their comments:

‘higher education presented new and rewarding challenges, especially with regards to critical thinking and ... has allowed me to engage with and learn from industry stakeholders’

‘This program [was]... the perfect fit as it offered recognition for my prior learning, thus significantly reducing the amount of time I would need to dedicate towards gaining a degree. “

LEARNINGS

Lessons learned

Over the past decade, we have developed a classification system from an analysis of existing activity and new leads - this allows us to record, report on, and work to enhance our engagement activities. We have linked with international good practice from the beginning – ensuring that we could benchmark our activities and keep a broader perspective.

Some key learnings are;

*One of the early ‘wins’ is to uncover existing collaboration and combine them into broader relationships rather than discrete transactions.

*Be consistent and persistent, it is about listening – to your colleagues and the external partners.

*Universities divide into academic departments and units; these divisions don’t always make sense externally.

*Know what your university has to offer; informed by capacity and capabilities, strategy, etc.

*Strong, clear internal connections ensure you are not raising expectations you cannot meet.

*Interactions that we have with large profit-making corporations, small enterprises and local charities and community groups differ in scale but not so much in essence, this surprised us.

*‘Easier’ interactions such as student work placement or projects, when carefully curated, act as starting points for deeper partnerships.

*The most impactful messaging comes from your partners and not your university – successful case studies from partner organisations have a greater impact on potential partners.

*Be patient and value each contact. Translating leads or opportunities into meaningful interactions takes time – it can take from days to years for a conversation over a coffee to lead to a relationship.

FUTURE PLANS

What's coming?

It is not often that a whole new type of University emerges, and in Ireland the development of Technological Universities represents the dawn of a new era. With their particular emphasis on regional development and impact, engagement must be at the centre of these universities. Our university, formed through the merger of two Institutes of Technology, is two years old, so we are working to align our engagement strategy and practice with the new University Strategy.

The future offers the opportunity to grow and develop the integrated approach across the various sites and to understand and make a difference across a broader and more varied region.

It is often easy to measure the dollar value of technology transfer arrangements for example, but more difficult to explain the impact of improved access to upskilling for maintaining employability in a challenging work environment or within a community with a high unemployment rate. It is straightforward to quantify and count collaborative research publications but more difficult to demonstrate the impact of access to cultural events on the community. While we have focused on the development of our customer relationship management system and the development of case management, in the future we are planning to develop and disseminate new ways to measure impact and better evidence what can be achieved through partnership.

In this way we will ensure that MTU continues to make a difference within our community and that we can lead the way in evidencing the impact for society as a whole.

KEY STATISTICS

2247

Number of learners who availed of state sponsored upskilling since 2020

1300

Number of organisations we engage with public, private and not for profit

200+

Number of new interactions annually

95%

of MTU students secure a graded placement position as part of their studies

€8.98 million

Funding for upskilling from government initiatives since 2020

2500

Number of Individual contacts we connect with

6551

Number of successful validation applications since 2010

40+

Number of in-company learning clinics to support upskilling and reskilling

Triple E Awards

The Triple E Awards are a global recognition of efforts toward the quest for entrepreneurship and engagement in higher education. It is the first award to focus specifically on different dimensions of the universities' third mission. Implemented regionally, the Triple E Awards aim to foster change in universities and to emphasize their role in their communities and ecosystems.

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