System of AlterNating
EDucational NetWork.
UnIversity - EnterprIse Cooperation
in Hungary
Acronym : SANDWICH
1. Objective:
Establish the structure of long cycle alternating higher educational
forms in engineering leading to diploma or other state recognized certificate,
based on adaptation of international experiences (especially apprenticeship
- CNAM, France), and real demands of Hungarian enterprises.
Organize a center for dealing with university-enterprise links (training
needs, double tutoring, selection and evaluation of learners etc).
Curriculum development containing professional, management, communication
modules.
Begin the training of trainers, tutors and the first groups of learners.
2. Background:
The changing Hungarian economy has formulated new needs (more practice
oriented training, increase of the role of management, foreign languages
etc.) with respect to the higher education in engineering training. Alternating
education in the professional stage (last 2-3 years) is an important possibility
to meet these needs.
The demand of the organisation of alternating sandwich type (university
- enterprise) curricula at TU Budapest appeared in different ways * needs
of enterprises (e.g. a contract was signed with Dunaferr in September 1995),
* new methodological results in the international practice, where the learners
and enterprises are more motivated in the industrial period (apprenticeship).
(A protocol was signed about the adaptation of this methodology between
the Hungarian Ministry of Higher Education and the large, 200 years old
French continuing education organisation CNAM).
The organisation of the project began in March 1995. Four meetings
were held with specialists of CNAM-Ingénieurs 2000 (3 in Budapest,
1 in Paris). The directorship of TUB was informed about the plans, a 4
member committee was formed at TUB (May 95). The legal background was investigated
(vice-state secretary of labour, ministry of higher education). Preliminary
training needs analysis was carried out by the help of Hungarian Round
Table of Industrialists, and some enterprises.
Priorities (and support criteria, objectives, criteria etc.) for this
program area are divided 5 subgroups. We shortly list their links to the
project:
* the curricula will be formed on the demands of enterprises; the operational
structure guarantees the long term joint work; everybody having a basic
scientific education is welcome (retraining, adult education); the standards
will be raised especially by the new practice oriented methodology.
* TU Budapest and CNAM guarantee the high academic quality of formation,
the industrial partnership gives the needs of economy; the key players
of economy will take part in all educational process and financing; the
members of consortia are interested in its long term operation: the French
side is planning to include Budapest in its international center network,
the Hungarian members are unions of enterprises or concrete enterprises
with constant training needs; the students will spend half of educational
period in industry; the regional, EU links are obvious; TUB considers industrial
co-operation in a unity of research, technology-transfer, education, economic
diversification (it is demonstrated by the participants as well) and the
innovation process of small , medium sized enterprises (represented by
their chamber) has special emphasis.;.
- short term results: the first (at least 5) alternating courses will
begin in the application period), long term results: the industrial and
international co-operation, the structure (curriculum, entrance, tutoring,
evaluation of learners etc. systems) will be ready by the end of the application
period.
3. Description of the Project
3.1. Objective
The objective of the project is the investigation and realisation of
sandwich type (alternating) curricula in the Hungarian engineering education.
A special emphasis will be on the adaptation of a new educational form
(formation of engineers by apprenticeship) in Hungary, which has proved
its vitality in EU countries (especially. in France). The curriculum concerns
the second (professional part) of the classical technical education. The
learning process is partly at the university, and partly at the enterprises
under the joint direction of academic and industrial tutors. The learners
have a special apprentice status.
The outcomes of the project can be divided in 3 basic parts: * establishment
of the organisational structure of alternating education, * curriculum
development, * education.
Organisational structure. Establishment of the Center of Formation
by Apprenticeship(CFA Hungary 2000) hosted at the International Education
Center (IEC) of TUB consisting of the parts: Academic Department, Education-Economy
Foundation, International Office with the following basic tasks (they will
be carried out with the co-operation of CNAM-INGENIEURS 2000 and the other
members of consortium) in the implementation period:
1. Feasibility study containing 3 aspects -industrial(Training needs
analysis of enterprises), -institutional(ministries - legal status of apprentice,
diplomas, credits,...), -financial(possible short and long term financing).
2. Organisation of alternation. -training of participants (university,
enterprise), tutors, meetings, materials, -technical arrangements(lodgement,
communication, meetings, purchase of equipment).
3. Recruitment of learners. - information, advertising, - joint (university,
enterprise) entrance exams, documentations.
Curriculum development. The learners are supposed to have basic scientific
education (2-3 first years at TUB or equivalent). Both university (academic)
and enterprise (apprenticeship) periods (6-6 months/year) are parts of
formation, the apprentice's individual plans are worked out by the university
and enterprise tutors.
1. Academic period is divided in 3 parts - Professional engineering
module (approx. 60%). At this moment TU Budapest has 3 formulated needs
(in environment, steel structures, industrial informatics), anothers (at
least 2) will be opened based on training needs analysis. - Management
module (approx. 30%). In the implementation period it is planned common
for all curricula. - Foreign language communication (approx. 10%).
2. Apprenticeship. Practical work in the home enterprise. The students'
tutorial and home-works are closely related to their industrial assignment.
Distance learning educational elements (Obligatory in languages, optional
in other subjects. Use of multimedia materials.).
Both academic and apprenticeship periods are ended by an evaluation
of learners with participation of all members of the project.
Education. It is planned to open the education of 2-3 groups (approx.
20 person/group) of learners each year.
We underline that a strong co-operation will be in the whole educational
process between the university and enterprises.
Main Beneficiaries: * enterprises: they receive employees having more
contemporary general knowledge and practical skills fitting to their needs
at a relatively low cost, * learners: additionally to the modern high level
education, they have a guarantee to receive job by the end of education
period, * TUB and (later) other higher educational institutions: the improvement
of contacts with enterprises gives multiplying results in other fields
(curriculum , human resources, infrastructure development , technology
transfer) as well.
3.2. Justification - Market Research
The start of the project can be justified by different points of view:
- international experience: alternating (sandwich type) courses in engineering
exist all over the world, the new (apprenticeship) methodology has success
in some countries, - needs of Hungarian enterprises: the members of consortium
have expressed their devotion (including financial) to this education form,
other companies are interested as well. This education form can (in long
term) especially fit to demands of small and medium size enterprises. -
interest of learners: experience of TUB shows that students are interested
very much both in modules non-standard in Hungary (management, languages),
in more practice oriented education (e.g production-design).
The importance and need of introduction of sandwich type education
in Hungary is so obvious, that there was no necessity to deliver more general
market research than those described in 2. (Background).
3.3. Institutional Strategic Plan Correlation
The proposed alternating, more practice and needs oriented education
form completely fits to Institutional Strategic Plan (ISP -TUB). The following
citations from ISP-TUB prove this statement (among others): - In accordance
with its best traditions, the university continues to observe the principle
of the unity of theory and practice, the high level theoretical background
and the practical training based on industrial connections are of the same
importance. As a strategic goal, the university wants to continuously develop
the content and structure of training in harmony with scientific advance
and social needs, and to improve the multi-level and multilingual training.
- ... expansion of education profile by launching new "marketable"
majors, thus intellectual resources of our University will be more economically
utilized. - ...introduction of the elements of project based engineering
education; preparation of students for team-workduring solution of complex
tasks. A methodological and technological development of education (distance
learning and multimedia method) should be applied.
3.4 The Institutional Strategic Plan
ISP-TUB is appended to the relevant Section IV Appendix. Here please
find some additional information about TUB. TU Budapest is the second biggest
university in Hungary. Number of students is 11000, number of full and
part time teaching personal - 1300, number of other personal is 2300 approximately.
The university has 7 faculties covering basic fields of engineering and
natural, economic sciences. These are faculties of architecture, civil,
chemical, electrical, mechanical, transport, natural and social science.
TUB has wide international relations, regular participants of EU programs
and good relations to the basic actors of the Hungarian industry, economy.
The International Education Center of TUB has long and great experience
in managing new educational forms (English, French, German University Filial,
an International Secondary School etc.)
3.5 Local credit rating arrangements
TUB introduced a credit system for its Hungarian undergraduate courses
in 1992, for foreign courses in 1995. This system is compatible to ECTS.
Thus the results of academic education period of Sandwich can be awarded
by credit points, and there is no visible restriction to join this part
of education process to CATS. Concerning the apprenticeship period its
credit accumulation can be solved based on the principles of future Hungarian
CATS for continuing and distance education. The proposed training form
presents in some sense a synthesis of initial and continuing education.
Its credit system can offer an example for other combined curricula.
3.6. Activities
It has to be underlined that the basic activity is the creation of
the framework of alternating education (necessary institutions, human resources,
Know How) at TU Budapest. The EU partners presents the international experience,
Hungarian partners will represent the local specialities in the consortium.
Curriculum developments and the beginning of education are considered in
this project as the first realisations of the general system. In this sense
the companies, organisations involved in this activities represent a much
wider community than the consortium members.
The activity package contains three main parts (with the following
basic actions):
(*) introductory phase(setting up structures; general training needs,
information, equipment; legal part investigation, certificate, status of
apprentice), (*) normal functioning of training( special training needs,
information, equipments; recruiting procedure; alternating education; evaluations
etc.) (*) extension
Remark. The project supposes the beginning of training in September
1996. So the activities *,*,* will overlap each other. It is possible,
because some steps have already been passed for the first modules (eg.
identification of needs, the students can receive normal university diploma).
The whole normal procedure will be introduced in 1997. To avoid repetitions
some activities are listed together (but with indication to group .*,*,*
, if it is necessary).
(*) introductory phase. 1-2. STRUCTURES. (3 months 01-03/96, TUB, CNAM
with participation some members of consortium in 2-3.). Consequently, we
build the three structures of CFA Hungary 2000 in a first step: 1)An Academic
Department : with a staff of about six to ten people (TUB employees) for
a start, it is set by the coordinator (teachers in charge of main modules
/technical and management areas/ and administrative staff). Their assignments
are the organisation of the training, students recruitment; teaching organisation
for the academic session; follow up of apprentices for the industrial session;
evaluation and degree delivery.
2)An Education-Economy Foundation. This institution is an original
and essential part of this new engineer school. It is the proper link between
academic institutions and industry. Its activity will be co-ordinated with
other similar organisations of TUB (eg. technology transfer). The assignments
of this foundation are the following (non exhaustive list): * to approach
firms to develop apprentice recruitment, * to obtain funds for running
costs, * to evaluate the apprenticeship inside the host firm, * to assume
the juridic and administrative problems about apprenticeship (Contacts
with official institutions, ministries), * to look after the practical
placement and the integration of the future engineer.
3) International office. It is organized around a cell of French National
Conservatory of Arts and Trades (CNAM). This cell aims at initiating and
orientating higher education professional training (apprenticeship or continuing
form). It brings the guarantee for the quality of the formation and also
of the partner enterprise. This cell has CNAM personal with representatives
of INGENIEUR 2000. The International office is formed of the CNAM cell
and also the members of the consortium. This office helps the academic
department and the foundation; it works with foreign plants and International
Chamber of Commerce and Industry settled in Hungary.
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