When developing a new course of study there is always a great deal of soul-searching
about what should, or should not, be contained in the course. This is especially
so in an area of technology that is truly multi-disciplinary and developing
rapidly into new thematic areas such as Nanotechnology.
To inform the process, a document has now been produced by Kshitij Aditeya
Singh, Coordinator of the Nanotechnology Masters Directory and Recognition Scheme,
in conjunction with Steve Dunn from Cranfield that provides a snapshot as to
what various institutions across Europe have elected to teach at post-graduate
level under a large and exciting variety of Nanotechnology Masters qualifications.
The document has been published online this week via the NanoMasters website:
http://www.nano.org.uk/nanomasters/PDFs/M-LevelModulesAnalysis_May09.pdf
.
It shows that there are teaching programmes devoted to the pursuit of convergence
of physics, chemistry, material science at the nanoscale, courses that can develop
an entrepreneur and courses that are focused on using Nanotechnology for the
betterment of mankind through the development of medical or energy harvesting
devices. In essence this document contains the key information of the modules
which are seamlessly pieced together to generate a Nanotechnology Masters.
The study aims to provide educators preparing new educational programmes at
the masters level (M-level), those engaged in continual improvement of programmes
and professional bodies engaging in accreditation, with an overview of current
practices and methods collectively applied by higher education establishment.
The understanding of the knowledge dissemination practice was developed through
core knowledge being imparted, the learning outcome achieved and assessment
methods. The objective of the study was to identify, the core knowledge that
is being imparted to students within the current MSc courses.
The module content is drawn from knowledge of different disciplines; physics,
chemistry, biology, engineering, management, philosophy, and social studies.
This was achieved by segmenting the collection of modules and identifying discipline
orientation for the scientific and technical knowledge content. Information
was processed to relate the nature of the module in the program. The aim was
also to identify the preferred assessment method of learning outcomes and the
credits assigned to the modules.
Nanotechnology Masters Directory and Recognition Scheme
The Institute of Nanotechnology has developed the Nanotechnology Masters Directory
and Recognition Scheme in collaboration with a consortium of course-providing
academics and industry representatives. Many international institutions are
now also participating in the scheme. Nanotechnology Masters Courses each vary
in their emphasis and content, and the NanoMasters Course Website provides a
means for prospective students to search for details of NanoMasters Courses
of specific interest to them.
Aims of the recognition scheme are:
To encourage dialogue between academics and industry to ensure that courses
equip students with the skills and knowledge required to fulfill industry needs.
To provide an international forum for the sharing of knowledge and best practice
amongst course providers, and encouraging co-operation in terms of facilities,
lectures and modules, as appropriate.
To enable an online comparison of multi-disciplinary content of courses
To allow a prospective student to choose the correct course based on their skills
and future aspirations
To offer course providers the opportunity to reach out to talent internationally
To assist employers in understanding the acquired competences of course graduates,
in relation to their business needs, and provide feedback
Posted August 10th, 2009
