Tag: Edinburgh Napier University

Nursing student’s play impresses judges

A gritty play written by a student and performed as a teaching aid has led to Edinburgh Napier being nominated twice in the prestigious Student Nursing Times Awards 2020.

Trisha Jeram has been shortlisted for ‘Most Inspirational Student Nurse of the Year’ for her work creating the play, ‘Cracks’.

The play tells the story of Bob and Debbie, whose lives gradually interweave to show stark differences in health outcomes due to unequal access to health and social care services.

Written and directed by Trisha (above), a third year Masters in Nursing student, Cracks stars a volunteer cast of amateur actors including nursing students, community actors and staff from the School of Health & Social Care.

Student nurse actor Siobhan Bourke said: “Trisha is a huge inspiration and an amazing person all round. If you bring your idea to the right people, in this case the lecturers at Edinburgh Napier University, it can reach its potential.”

Film studies students from Edinburgh Napier’s School of Arts & Creative Industries produced a film of Cracks, which is now part of an undergraduate nursing course on health and social care integration.

It is for this use of drama in nursing education that a team of School of Health & Social Care staff including Catherine Mahoney, Fiona Bastow, Bruce Harper-McDonald, and Richard Kyle were shortlisted in a second category – ‘Teaching Innovation of the Year’.

Using drama has helped students to understand the complexity and reality of health and social care integration.  On-going research led by the Cracks team is evaluating the impact that using drama has on students’ learning.

Speaking of the impact of drama in the classroom, student nurse actor Nicola Jamieson said: “Cracks has been really good at generating discussion. Interagency working and integration don’t sound like the most interesting topics but the film has given them a human face through Debbie and Bob.”

Cracks was performed live at the Summerhall in Edinburgh to a public audience in June 2019 using a novel combination of live action and recorded footage from the film.

Professor Alyson Tobin, Vice Principal of Learning and Teaching at Edinburgh Napier, said: “I’m absolutely delighted that Trisha and colleagues in the School of Health & Social Care have been shortlisted for these prestigious awards.

“It recognises the talent and creativity of our students and staff, and just shows what can happen when we work together to push boundaries to create innovative teaching and learning approaches.

“Trisha’s nomination will inspire others to pursue their own passions to support student learning.  I wish her and my colleagues in the School every success on awards night.”

Winners of the Student Nursing Times Awards will be announced at an awards ceremony at London’s Grosvenor House Hotel on Park Lane on Friday 24 April.

Edinburgh Napier expands Graduate Apprenticeship programme

Edinburgh Napier Univeristy has strengthened its Graduate Apprenticeship programme with the announcement of nearly 200 new opportunities for people to study for an honours degree while in employment.

The University currently has 273 Graduate Apprentices actively studying across three cohorts. The first cohort joined Edinburgh Napier in September 2017.

The current batch of Graduate Apprentices will soon be joined by a fourth cohort, with the University announcing it has 185 new positions across a range of subjects within its School of Computing, Business School and School of Engineering and the Built Environment.

The courses available are:

BA (Hons) Business Management, BEng (Hons) Civil Engineering, BSc (Hons) Construction & the Built Environment, BEng (Hons) Engineering: Design and Manufacture, BEng (Hons) Cybersecurity, BSc (Hons) Data Science, BSc (Hons) IT Management for Business and BSc (Hons) Software Development.

Each programme has been assigned 20 new places, other than the BSc (Hons) Construction & the Built Environment programme, which offers 45 places across four different learning pathways: Building Surveying, Quantity Surveying, Real Estate Surveying and Architectural Technology.

Sally Smith, Dean of Edinburgh Napier’s School of Computing, said: “We are delighted to have more Graduate Apprenticeship places for 2020. Our previous experience shows how effective they are for employers with a need for new skills and for individual apprentices.

“Our apprenticeships appeal to school and college leavers, Modern Apprentices and existing employees. With our apprentices putting their skills to use immediately, both they and their employers benefit from day one.”

Graduate Apprenticeships have been developed by Skills Development Scotland in partnership with industry and the further and higher education sectors.

Graduate Apprenticeships are a new way for individuals to get qualified up to Masters degree level while in paid employment. They are designed by employers and offered in key sectors that need highly skilled employees. Anyone over the age of 16 who lives in Scotland is eligible, and there are no course fees to pay for apprentices or employers.

Participants spend approximately 80 per cent of their time in work and 20 per cent in university, and can qualify for entry based on both academic and relevant work experience.  Employers can either hire new recruits or upskill existing staff.

The strong emphasis on work-based learning, especially in latter stages of the degree, enables flexible learning approaches to best meet the needs and challenges of the apprentices.

Jessica Auld, who is working at Aegon while attending university one day a week to study a Graduate Apprenticeship in BEng (Hons) Cyber Security, said: “Studying at university and learning on the job means that I’m constantly learning and developing my skill set and knowledge.

“It’s exciting to know that at the end of four years I’ll have an honours degree plus four years work experience. For me, the role has opened up so many different opportunities and most importantly; I have met some great people along the way – my team and the other apprentices have been such a great support network.”

The programmes delivered by Edinburgh Napier have already delivered demonstrable success both for the apprentices and their employers. Some apprentices have even been promoted within 18 months of starting their GA, demonstrating the strong link between academic progression and professional development.

Jennifer Knights from NHS Education for Scotland, who is currently a workplace mentor for one of the apprentices, said: “I have been very impressed with Edinburgh Napier University and their Graduate Apprenticeship offer.

“I think it’s fantastic and we need a lot more of it. I think the reputation is growing as other managers see the impact and can recognise that this is making people excited about work.”

Diane Greenlees, Skills Development Scotland Director of Critical Skills and Occupations, said: “More and more Scottish employers are turning to Graduate Apprenticeships to meet their critical skills needs.

“Graduate Apprenticeships are industry-led and delivered with universities in Scotland, ensuring businesses have access to high-level skills and providing both new and existing employees with the opportunities to get a job and get a degree.”

For more information on Graduate Apprenticeship opportunities available at Edinburgh Napier, please visit www.napier.ac.uk/apprenticeships or email ga@napier.ac.uk

Return of the all-Edinburgh gridiron derby

THE 2020 Capital curtain-raiser for the big Super Bowl match in the USA is once again an all-Edinburgh affair, with Edinburgh Napier Knights hosting cross-town rivals University of Edinburgh Predators.

With the teams playing in different divisions, the Knights had to turn to Glasgow University for opposition in the last two versions of the annual American football Varsity match.

However, Sunday (February 2) will once again see the two Edinburgh clubs compete for the MacKenzie’s Challenge trophy at Meggetland, just hours ahead of the big Kansas City Chiefs v San Francisco 49ers clash in Florida.

A full programme of family entertainment, including music, a DJ, the Knights’ youth team and the Edinburgh Napier Panthers cheer squad, will accompany the fixture, which habitually draws a big crowd to the Meggetland stadium.

Edinburgh Napier Knights head coach Pete Laird said: “The event has come a long way in the last nine years, and it’s great to have our traditional rivals, the University of Edinburgh Predators, back as our opponents this year.

“The Knights program is currently having a great run of success, with three division titles in the last four years, and we have been outperforming our bigger neighbours in recent seasons.

“But to give our opponents credit, they have been enjoying a good year back in the higher division. As with any derby match, the formbook goes out the window, and it will be a very closely fought game.”

Pete added: “Last year’s Varsity game was postponed due to the weather and had to be shifted away from its traditional home at Meggetland, so we’re very excited to be back under the lights for the game, which is a real spectacle, with all its noise, colour and general craziness.”

The gates will open at 1pm on Sunday ahead of a 3pm kick-off.  Tickets – £5 for adults, £3 for students and free admission for under 16s – are available at the gates or on campus in advance.

Match tickets also include entry to the post-game Super Bowl Party at the Canalside Bar, Meggetland, from 8pm.

Intern of the Year award for graduate Caroline

A recent Edinburgh Napier graduate has had her excellent internship work recognised with a leading student impact award.

Caroline Tocher – who first graduated in 2018 with a degree in International Festival and Event Management before graduating in October this year with a Masters in Business Management with Entrepreneurship – recently undertook an internship at Business Fives, a company which runs corporate sports events with a charitable impact. Continue reading Intern of the Year award for graduate Caroline

Preparing teachers for life in the classroom

John Swinney meets the first intake of students on ground-breaking STEM programme

DEPUTY First Minister John Swinney today heard an end-of-term report from students on a newly-launched teacher training programme. Continue reading Preparing teachers for life in the classroom

Surprise proposal for Napier couple

Mark returns to ‘The Egg’ at Craiglockhart to propose to Sarah

A couple who met at Edinburgh Napier whilst studying in 2008 have more reason than most to hold its Craiglockhart campus dearly in their hearts after returning to the University for a surprise proposal. Continue reading Surprise proposal for Napier couple

Students will broadcast election night news as it happens

Edinburgh Napier University students will work through the night to cover the unfolding story of the General Election on the radio airwaves and online.

A team of journalism, TV and photography students will capture the latest developments from counts across the UK. Continue reading Students will broadcast election night news as it happens

Celebrating the Queens of Space

Graduate’s documentary looks at the next generation of women in aerospace

A recent Edinburgh Napier TV graduate is boldly going where no previous TV graduate has gone before with his debut documentary film. 

Adam Smith – who graduated from Edinburgh Napier in July this year – has recently released ‘Space Queens’,his first feature documentary that takes an in depth look at the women behind Apollo 11’s mission to the moon. Continue reading Celebrating the Queens of Space