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Presented at AESOP Conference University of Liverpool 15-18th April, 2009

Urmila Jha-Thakur, Thomas Fischer, Ingrid Belcakova, Ralf Aschemann

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• Setting the Context (PENTA & Two EA-M )

• Rationale

• Methodology

• Templates: Recent Trend of UK EA Edu

• Questionnaire: Feedback from students

• Conclusions2

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Project Partners

•Department of Civic Design, University of Liverpool

• Spectra Centre- Centre of Excellence of the Faculty of Architecture at the Slovak University of Technology

• Austrian Institute for the Development of Environmental Assessment (An!dea)

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Promotion of European Education on Environmental Assessment for ThirdCountry Audience

http://www.penta-eu.net/index.php?page=pentaworksh

Bologna: Process of Standardisation and Internationalisation

• Erasmus Mundus Action 4 project (October 2005-September 2007)

• Environmental Assessment lecturer’s handbook

• SEA Textbook

• Range of Workshops

• International Conference in Dehradun (India)

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• EU being seen as a global leader in the field of EAM.

• Focus on practice in Europe and East Asia (Japan, South Korea, Malaysia China).

• Basis created by PENTA- materials produced will be used in this project.

• It will help in understanding and appreciating the regional specific. interest and educational requirements

• Emphasis on the notion of partnership.

• Making PG EAM curriculum cater to international requirements.

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• Educational materials appreciated however the extent to which they are in line with higher education EAM requirements and interests of the Indian sub-continent remains somewhat unclear.

• The importance of context was highlighted as the representatives of the Indian sub-continent showed their concerns about the relevance and transposition of European educational themes on their own professional work.

• The notion of ‘partnership’ was welcomed.

• There is a need for exploring the different approaches, strands and streams of European EAM education.

• Test the usefulness of the educational materials produced during PENTA

• Organise European Conference on European and East Asian EAM interests to enable European higher education institutions to better cater for East Asian (possibly other international) students.

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• First, this paper can be considered to be a follow-on from PENTA where 15 EA related Master courses were identified in the UK.

• By exploring the context of other countries where such courses maybe of high demand the process of internationalisation of EU courses is directed as a two-way process. Hence the shift of emphasis from promotion to mutual co-operation is highlighted.

• A better understanding of how EA & UK education is perceived by the international students will help in developing and delivering education best suited for these students and their respective countries.

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• UK is second only to the global leader US, in attracting international students (Lipsett, 2009)

• Overseas students add a healthy £6billion to the UK Economy

• The factors that have contributed in this excellent performance needs to be further explored especially for projects like PENTA and TwoEA-M which aim in promoting and enhancing EU education as a whole

• Although an overview is available on international students in the UK, not much research has been conducted for number and nature of international students within specific EA related master programs

Enhancing Attractiveness of Environmental Assessment Education in the UK:

Relevance to India and China

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Enhancing Attractiveness of Environmental Assessment Education in the UK: Relevance to India and China

• The international student scenario in the UK is particularly influenced by Chinese and Indian students;

• Out of a total of 1833 Erasmus Mundus Masters scholarships offered, Chinese students received 188 followed by 118 received by Indian students;

• These two countries also consist of the major emerging economies which are facing tricky environmental challenges in the face of rapid development.

• These two countries are proving to be the most popular recruiting grounds for UK universities.

• And yet they offering a contrast as far as contexts are concerned.

Literature Review

Developing Templates

(Internet Survey)

Questionnaires Generic Questionnaires Specific Questionnaires

Workshop Feedback

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Developing Templates Sl No. COUNTRY NAME

1 Name of University Full name

2 Weblink/source Internet site/handbook/ other source?

3 Degree Title MSc in Environmental studies etc?

4 Emphasis on EA EA taught as postgraduate curriculum or as a part within PG curriculum?

5 Faculty (Sc,SSc, Eco)/Department Science (Sc), Social Science (SSc), Economics (Eco), others...

6 Duration In months full time/part time

7 Fees (euros) Please maintain the home currency where applicable.

8 Delivery language English/French/combination/others...

9 Delivery method On-line or onsite?

10 Assessment method Assignments/continuos assessments/group work/

11 Focus (teaching/research) Taught programme or research led...

12 Geographical specialism International/European/Local ?

13 Entry requirements IELTS/TOEFEL/Qualifications/grades as in 2:1/others

14 Programme Structure Number of modules, core modules and optional modules, what these are...

15 Credit Structure Credit distribution in the programme.

16 Career opportunities’ Consultancy/ any particular sector/ not mentioned/ mentioned somewhere else?

17 Any other Remarks?

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Compared to 15 templates filled in during PENTA, we have 37 templates from 30 Universities

• Overlapping Programmes• UK dominating the EA education in EU with sheer degree numbers!

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• Flexible Requirements but exceptions are there. For example LSE and Royal Holloway, University of London

• Environmental Science, Biology, Civil and Structural Engineering, Built Environment, Agriculture Food and Rural development, Health

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Questionnaires

Only Generic Questionnaires submitted: 16 Chinese and 6 Indian received so far

• One year programme makes UK higher education attractive to both, Indian & Chinese students

• The flexibility between Arts/Science Choice allows for a career change which is not easy in their own respective countries

• The use of Internet is the most dominant search technique used by both Indian and Chinese Students in searching for relevant programmes.

• The next most popular source of information seems to be Education fares.

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Conclusions…

• Internet Survey is the most suitable method for conducting this survey.

• The UK dominates the EA & Management related Education in the UK.

• The one year structure is particularly attractive for Chinese and Indian students.

•The emphasis is on a multidisciplinary approach to EA education which is still not the case in India and China.

• The relevance of UK education in the Chinese and Indian job markets need to be further explored.

• UK education is no doubt attractive, but more data is needed to explore the effectiveness of EA education in the UK.

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Thank you

Questions and Suggestions?