6 November: Two undergraduate modules, Design Project and Marketing Management have been recognised by the Ministry of Education as the first batch of National Level First Class Undergraduate Modules.
Following the Finance, Accounting and Management BSc (Hons) awarded National Level First Class Courses last year, the University of Nottingham Ningbo China (UNNC) becomes the first and only Sino-foreign University to have both the national first-level course and modules.
Design Project is a compulsory module for Chemical Engineering and Environmental Engineering students. The curriculum was designed and developed jointly by UNNC, the University of Nottingham UK and the Malaysia campus, following the University’s Quality Manual and the regulations of the UK’s Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education.
The module practices student autonomy, innovation, and teamwork, and enhances student awareness of safety and environmental sustainability. Moreover, for students to have a better understanding of the industry, the module often invites industry experts to lectures to address the latest developments.
This course is taught by experts with diverse specialities, including Professor Tao Wu, Dean of the Faculty of Science and Engineering, and Dr Philip Hall, Head of the department who has about 25 years’ industrial experience, as well as professional experts like Linda Lin and Jane Briggs, both holding senior positions in multi-national companies and having abundant practical experience here in China and abroad.
“This keeps students up to date with information about the process technology development and safety practice currently taking place in the industry,” said Dr Hall.
Xinyun Wu, a UNNC graduate, said: “It’s a challenging module and requires us to complete an entire set of engineering design procedure to achieve certain economic, environmental and productivity goals. With thorough and in-time instructions from teaching staff, we can improve our designs step by step.”
The other module, Marketing Management, is a key module and has been offered to UNNC students and exchange students from U21 universities for 13 years. It helps students to apply theories to real business situations and to solve practical interdisciplinary problems.
By introducing interactive teaching methods in class and cooperating with the government and leading enterprises such as L'Oréal, Sofitel Hotel, Bank of China, the module enhances students’ understanding through case analysis and improves student employability. Every year, more than 100 UNNC students participate in major business competitions such as the L'Oréal Brandstorm.
The members of the teaching team are experienced scholars from different countries and regions. Professor Martin Lockett, Dean of the Nottingham University Business School China, has taught at Cambridge and Oxford University. Professor Martin J. Liu has published many articles in world-leading journals in the field of marketing and innovation and is also the Executive Dean of Zhejiang Provincial Branding Academy. Dr Balaji Makam, the Head of Department for Marketing and Management Systems, advocates "Internet+ Education” and brings the latest technologies into class.
"Professor Liu often integrates his work experience into up-to-date case analysis and often makes the class filled with laughter”, said Xinyi Ji, a student of International Business Management.