20 focus on M27 & southampton
New vice-chancellor looks to put Solent on the world map
Raising the profile of Southampton Solent University on the national and international stage and securing its reputation as a centre of excellence for teaching and learning, are just two of the key objectives for new vice-chancellor Professor Graham Baldwin
Baldwin joined the university in August, having spent the past 13 years at the University of Central Lancashire (UCLan), the past five as deputy vice-chancellor, and says he is “honoured“ to be inheriting such a “well-led and well-managed organisation“.
It was, he says, Solent’s ethos of driving access to university education that attracted him to take the role, explaining: “I have always worked with universities that encourage all those who can benefit to take up a place at university, no matter what their background. Solent has a significant track record in providing those opportunities and is a good fit with my skills and expertise and my own philosophy with regard to gaining a university education.
“Solent has made great progress in the past 10 years, in particular since becoming a university. It has some unique capabilities, such as its maritime expertise, while other areas including the creative industries and sport are flourishing.
“I am intrigued by its development potential and feel very fortunate and excited about the prospects ahead, not just for the university, but also for the city itself which is clearly on the up. There are some really exciting opportunities to work collectively and take Solent up to the next level.“
One of the opportunities he is especially keen to pursue is the chance to forge new international partnerships. Having been responsible for UCLan’s international strategy, he is already taking steps to promote Solent’s depth of expertise and abilities within overseas markets.
“Employers have told me repeatedly and experience has shown, that students who have an international understanding and particularly international experience, are considered to have better developed skills and abilities, ensuring they are more likely to stand out from the crowd and be offered a job,“ he continued.
“My goal is to set an internationalisation agenda which will attract more overseas students to Solent – giving local students an insight into different cultures and backgrounds – and also to encourage our students to go overseas to gain new experiences.“
In his former role Baldwin worked closely with partner institutions in Hong Kong, China and the Middle East and earlier this year was appointed guest professor at Hebei University in China.
www.businessmag.co.uk ’My goal is to set an
internationalisation agenda which will attract more overseas students to Solent – giving local students an insight into different cultures and backgrounds – and also to encourage our students to go overseas to gain new experiences’
Thanks to those international links he has already been approached by several institutions in both Hong Kong and China that are keen to build relationships with Solent and take advantage of its particular skills within the maritime and creative industries.
“The Far East still represents some of the best opportunities, both in terms of sending its students overseas and also because they are open to partnerships,“ he said. “I will be using my expertise and knowledge of the area to develop these and am already in discussions with some institutions, which is very exciting.“
On a day-to-day level, he is determined to spend as much time as possible with people, both within the university’s different faculties and the wider education and business communities, spreading the word about Solent’s capabilities.
THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE – SOLENT & SOUTH CENTRAL – SEPTEMBER 2014
[Baldwin] recognises Solent’s ’hugely successful’ track record in working with local commerce and industry and ... wants to build on that still further to ensure the university develops an even stronger reputation for achieving success as a business partner
“Engagement is a key word in our strategy going forward,“ he said. “My goal is to ensure we are recognised as a leading university provider, known for the quality of our academic learning and teaching, and the provision of skills for students to equip them for the real world and enable them to gain jobs in the future.“
He recognises Solent’s “hugely successful“ track record in working with local commerce and industry and says he wants to build on that still further to ensure the university develops an even stronger reputation for achieving success as a business partner.
Although a career educationalist, Baldwin has also spent time in the commercial sector, having been seconded to the nuclear industry, where he led on the development of workforce skills plans and a strategic action plan for ongoing interaction between education providers, universities and the nuclear industry.
It was at a time when the nuclear industry was beginning to undergo a renaissance and he says the experience gave him a real insight into what businesses need in terms of issues such as skills shortages, succession planning and commercial experience.
Since then, he has been working closely on employer engagement projects, looking at how universities can support the skills needs of businesses and will now be using that expertise across the Solent region to drive the university onwards and upwards.
Details
www.solent.ac.uk
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