WRIPA & SEPnet workshop 2019
Physics-Industry Collaboration: Aligning Student Skills with Local Economic Needs
Thursday 25 July 2019, Institute of Physics, London N1 9BU
Chaired by Professor Sir William Wakeham
Context
The Office for Students (OfS) focuses on higher education participation, experience, outcomes and value of money. At the same time, the UK Industrial Strategy identifies ‘Places’ as a key “foundation of productivity” to address poor productivity performance, pronounced regional differences in economic performance and regional disparities in R&D funding.
To address the twin challenges of graduate outcomes and regional economic prosperity, university physics departments need to consider the extent of ‘place-based’ decision making in student graduate career choices and how to engage with regional employers. This workshop will engage with those who have embedded work-based learning into curriculum design, formed partnerships with regional employers and embedded entrepreneurialism into student skill training. It will provide the opportunity to build a wider network of employability focused academic and professional staff and will include
presentations and case studies from the Office for Students, Institute of Physics and physics departments.

Presentations
Keynote: Supply and demand for higher level skills: challenges and opportunities
Dr Brooke Storer-Church, Skills and Industrial Strategy Manager, Office for Students
Aligning professional skills of graduates across STEM disciplines to meet regional employer needs
Innovative collaborations with local industry – case studies
Professor Manus Hayne, Department of Physics, Lancaster University
Dr Alastair Buckley, Senior Lecturer, University of Sheffield
Amy Hearst, Production Engineer, vivaMOS Ltd
Enterprise for Scientists – innovative approaches to embedding business and entrepreneurial skills in the science curriculum
Trevor Farren, Business Development Manager, Faculty of Science, University of Nottingham