Originally from Uzbekistan, EIT business lecturer Djavlonbek Kadirov has three more reasons for savouring life in Hawke’s Bay.

After gaining an undergraduate degree in his homeland, Djavlon completed a Master’s degree at Salford University in England and then followed his academic supervisor to New Zealand to pursue doctorate studies. Six years ago, having completed his PhD, he was appointed a senior lecturer at EIT’s School of Business.

Serendipity has shaped his career path. Before moving to New Zealand, Djavlon knew almost nothing about this country or about Hawke’s Bay.  He wasn’t up with the rules when he watched rugby on English television.  He hadn’t heard about the All Blacks.  And he imagined English was a second language in New Zealand.

But there are no regrets for Djavlon or for his wife Nilufar, who are enjoying living in Taradale with the couple’s four children.

He loves being close to the sea, hiking in Hawke’s Bay, New Zealanders’ open and accepting nature, Maori culture and our family-friendly way of life.

And, from an academic perspective, he is excited about his role in the launch and delivery of a trio of high-level management programmes – all firsts for EIT and the East Coast.

EIT will be offering a Master of Applied Management, Postgraduate Diploma in Applied Management and a Postgraduate Certificate in Applied Management on the Hawke’s Bay campus from February next year. The Auckland campus launch will follow in August and then Tairawhiti (EIT’s campus in Gisborne) in February 2016.

Programme coordinator for all three, Djavlon says the qualifications have been developed in just two years to meet community demand.

“Hawke’s Bay business leaders have seen the need for these postgraduate programmes to be made available for study within this region. The school has also been fielding inquiries from would-be students for some four or five years now, including those from alumni who have anticipated this development.”

While the programmes will benefit the region, they are also expected to attract international attention, in line with growing interest from potential students keen to acquire postgraduate-level qualifications from respected educators overseas.

Head of School, Dr Frina Albertyn recently returned from a three-week promotional trip to India, and China, South America, Russia, Nepal, the Philippines and Sri Lanka have also been identified as key markets for the programmes.

“I’m very pleased with the strong academic team built around these new offerings,” Frina says. “Six of the nine teaching the programmes have PhDs.”

For Djavlon and his colleagues, the opportunity to teach high-level programmes is motivating. They also anticipate opportunities for dovetailing course work with research projects, which EIT encourages its academic staff to undertake.

In accrediting the programmes, NZQA noted that they provided flexibility that would benefit domestic students.   All three can be studied full or part-time and for students wanting to continue in full-time jobs, there will be online support available in preparing for weekend workshops.

Students will also have flexibility in choosing their specialisations. The master’s programme, for example, can encompass a work experience or a research project developed around a specific topic.

Developed around a Friday/Saturday workshop format, all three programmes will include projects, with distinct courses covering specific areas of expertise.

“The focus,” says Djavlon, “will be on sustainability and small to medium-size enterprises.”

The Master of Applied Management is to be offered as an 18-month full-time programme or it can be completed part-time over six years. The Postgraduate Diploma in Applied Management is a one-year full-time programme and the Postgraduate Certificate in Applied Management is offered as a six-month full-time programme – although they too can be studied part-time.

“These are exciting developments for EIT and for me,” Djavlon says, “and we are all very much looking forward now to working with our students.”