Birmingham City University was fortunate enough to be awarded a National Teaching Fellowship Scheme (NTFS) project in 2007 - ‘Creating Future Proof Graduates: Transformative Learning Through Critical Incidents'. The aim of the project is to create resources which will help students identify and prepare for critical incidents which, according to employers, epitomise the major problems that newly qualified graduates encounter when they start work in the ‘real world'.

The project, which began in July 2007 has been funded for two and a half years by Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) via the National Teaching Fellowship Scheme (NTFS). The central aim of the project is to create resources for use in HE across a wide range of disciplines. There will be 8 resources when the project completes in December 2009 relating to the following skill / scenario areas:

  •  Cultural awareness; Providing relevant answers; Professional Ethics; Networking and social confidence; Unexpected and extreme emotions and reactions; Social responsibility; Research skills; Bullying and the misuse of power
Further information about the rationale for the research can be found by selecting the Project button.

The resources are based on research with employers and students, and we have engaged in a continuous process of evaluation and reflection throughout the project. Findings from all of this research can be found through the Evidence button.

To see who has been involved in this project, from the immediate project team, to employers, colleagues across our own institution and the wider HE sector and more, select the Partners button.

And finally, the Dissemination button takes you to details of conferences, publications and project dissemination events including the major exhibition we held in Birmingham in December 2009 and the 'last chance' event on 25th May 2010. BOOK NOW.

Mary Carswell, Pro Vice Chancellor (Learning & Teaching) at Birmingham City University said:

'this has been an excellent project which is already starting to make a real difference to our ability to help our students develop those skills and attributes which are often overlooked but are absolutely essential in employment. The availability of these resources to the wider higher education community means that their impact will be far reaching.'

Image by wordle.net