Study at your own pace: EIT student Julianne Poninghouse.
Businesses here are about to get an injection of expertise, thanks to a new major in the Bachelor of Business Studies degree offered at EIT Tairāwhiti.
Until now the only business studies degree major was in accounting, but there was strong demand for a more management-focused qualification, says EIT Head of School for Business Rebekah Dinwoodie.
“Our local advisory committee say they find it hard to hire people with those higher management qualifications and they have to recruit from outside Gisborne. Their feeling is that if students complete the degree here they will be more likely to take a role here.”
This means that from 2017 local people can acquire knowledge to help the region’s businesses thrive without leaving the region.
If students don’t want to commit to a degree programme initially, they can start their learning journey with a newly-launched New Zealand Diploma in Business through EIT, then cross-credit the papers and go straight into the second year of the new three-year degree programme, says Rebekah.
“We have an innovative new approach to learning in 2017 which is backed up by strong research. Courses are shorter but more intense, so students only concentrate on two courses at a time rather than four. Research shows students are more engaged if they concentrate on a small number of things at once.”
“This would fit in well with seasonal work. Students could come straight from school or change career or be seeking a return to work after having a family.
People come from a range of backgrounds and ages.”
All qualifications are quality controlled by NZQA so they are consistent with similar programmes throughout the country. As class sizes are small at Tairāwhiti, students have better access to lecturers, which means better in-class discussions and better results for both students and local businesses.
As part of the degree programme, students undertake an industry-based learning project which helps them build networks and find employment through EIT’s close connections to local businesses and the wider community, Rebekah says.
“It also gives businesses access to EIT expertise and provides a good opportunity to complete projects that may have been in a bottom drawer for years. When people are more qualified, they bring efficiencies with them. They have learned about modern theories, techniques and software that can help the way a business functions”.