University’s Maritime Science Programmes Receive External Validation
The University of Gibraltar’s new maritime science programmes are on course for welcoming students in September after being validated last week. As is the case with all University of Gibraltar’s academic programmes, the maritime degrees have been reviewed and validated by an external panel of senior academics against rigorous UK quality standards.
The University’s undergraduate programmes will prepare students for a maritime career at sea or shore faster than other study routes by combining a practical cadetship with academic qualifications and placements at sea.
Speaking during the validation process, the University’s Academic Quality and Standards Committee Member Professor Jon Scott said, “The overall structure of the programmes is very well thought-through and the relevance to professional development is clearly laid out and underpins the overall frameworks. As such, the extensive focus on practical experience will significantly improve the students’ professional development and employment prospects.”
Dr Jim Keane, Senior Lecturer in Economics, University of Gloucestershire Business School also voiced praise for the programmes saying, “The two courses are well designed and innovative with an impressive work-based element.”
Interest in the programmes is growing with many enquiries coming from students in Pakistan and Portugal following the University’s presence at in-country educational fairs recently. In developing the programmes, care was taken to ensure it was not only aligned to the UK quality standards but also aligned to the Maritime industry standards. Having now achieved validation against the UK academic standards, the next stage for the University is to secure recognition by the UK’s Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) for its Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping (STCW) courses, which will be delivered by the Gibraltar Maritime Academy as part of the degrees. Aaron Lopez, Programme Coordinator for the University’s Maritime programmes said, “MCA approval is in progress, indeed we were recently visited by the MCA’s Chief Examiner, so discussions are progressing well.”
