MAKING AN INFORMED CHOICE
IN a highly competitive employment market and a rapidly changing world, there are several key aspects a prospective student should consider before deciding where to study.
Dr Felicity Coughlan, Director of The Independent Institute of Education (IIE) says the curricula of most comparable qualifications are, to a large extent, standard. “The real differences come in the way that learning is achieved and what skills other than content knowledge are developed.”
“Things that will make a difference after graduation include the nature of assessments. As is the extent to which real-world knowledge gathering, analysis, synthesis and presentation skills are honed.”
Given the demands of the modern working world students must be able to use information technology to work with knowledge, as opposed to simply gathering and re-presenting it.
“Thus the extent to which an institution uses technology to drive learning is an important consideration. Learning management systems are virtually ubiquitous. A cursory glance reveals that most are simply making old style learning artifacts, such as documents, available in electronic format.
“This does not develop student competency. Nor does it leverage all the possibilities of technology to improve the way students learn by aligning the methods used with the preferred learning styles of a digitally competent student profile.”
Coughlan says any higher education institution worth its salt, whether public or private, should be using technology to substantially drive activity-based, real worldbased learning. This includes problem resolution and collaboration at the core of the learning design.
“It helps students to learn faster and better. They are also able to master the skills needed in the rapidly changing world of work,” she adds.
Another measure of institutional maturity is how it uses technology to solve problems such as authentication of student records or for communication.
“For instance, The IIE was first to introduce an electronic verification system on all graduate certificates, which allows employers to instantly verify a candidate’s academic credentials. With our focus on graduate employability, The IIE Marque has made our qualification even more sought-after among recruiters and employers.”
Through Varsity College, Rosebank College, Vega and the DSSA (Design School Southern Africa) the IIE offers a range of degrees as well as other qualifications which can be used as pathways to degrees.
Coughlan says, “Ours is the largest and most accredited private higher education institution in South Africa and the emphasis is on career focused qualifications offered in a student centred environment.”
On offer are more than 80 contemporary degree choices, many of them still open for registration. They include the BCom in Digital Marketing at Vega and Rosebank College. On Vega campuses there are several other degrees which tackle branding from the creative, management or building points of view, including BA, BBA and other BCom degrees.
An Honours Degree in Graphic Design enables graduates to round off their undergraduate training. At DSSA students in the fields of fashion and interior design benefit from a learning environment focused on design fields and their business implementation.
Says Coughlan, “The awards and accolades received by our lecturers and students are testament to the success of the model.”
At Rosebank College students can undertake a general BBA to tackle the business world, or they can focus on public administration or information technology. These are all supported by strong vocationally-focused diplomas and higher certificates in the key business and information technology fields.
On Varsity College campuses an array of career focused degrees and higher certificates include BCom and BA degrees that address areas as diverse as financial management, economics, law, corporate communication and psychology.