Education with pizazz
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Universidad Europea: striving for success WRIT TEN BY
CATHERINE S TURM AN PRODUCED BY
LE WIS VAUGHAN
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Universidad Europea has seen its degree programmes enhanced by new digital tools...
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ffering a dynamic education with the spirit of constant improvement, Universidad Europea is committed
to providing an innovative educational model, and is focused on adding value to society. Actively contributing to its progress through education that is designed to help students become professionals and leaders, the organisation is prepared to respond to the needs of a global environment. At Universidad Europea, its exceptional facilities and educational programmes continue to deliver high employment outcomes, where its courses seek to turn its students into ethical leaders, inspiring entrepreneurship, teamwork and creativity. Viewing educational technology as
a global enabler for teaching and learning,
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“ Our business is education, so we try to facilitate the needs from academia, from the people who are teaching the classes to our students. This is our priority” Daniel Milner Resel, Chief Technology Officer 07 Pedro Morcillo, Chief Information
tages that digitisation can bring to
Officer and Daniel Milner Resel Chief
Universidad Europea in Spain and
Technology Officer are passionate
Portugal, Morcillo and Milner Resel have
about how digitisation has revolution-
looked to fully reshape the student
ised the way students engage with its
experience. With universities in Madrid,
services. No longer content with
Valencia and the Canary Islands, as
traditional ways of working, students
well as offices in Lisbon and Porto, they
are demanding tools that not only
have sought to close the gap between
provide greater flexibility, but encour-
technology and academia.
age continuous improvement, both
“Our business is education, from the
personally and professionally. It has
people who are teaching the classes to
even been predicted that the e-learn-
our students. This is our priority. There
ing market worldwide will surpass
are presently three major projects
US$243bn by 2022, something which
at Universidad Europea in relation to
Universidad Europea is keen to tap into.
providing a better service. Firstly, there
Responsible for unlocking advan-
is a new design and host for our main w w w.uni ve rsi da de uro p ea . es
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“ We have a simulated hospital. It is a ‘top of the class’ installation, unique in Spain in both technology and dimensions” Daniel Milner Resel, Chief Technology Officer
webpage, which is now hosted on Google Cloud. Secondly, we have a medical images service, which is based on the integration of information services and the different devices which take medical images in our eight university clinics. Lastly, we have a simulated hospital. It is a ‘best in class’ installation, unique in Spain in both technology and dimensions,” explains Milner Resel. The possibilities Universidad Europea have uncovered through investing in technology are endless. Across its framework, its services have been fully disrupted, providing a number of advantages. “We have services licensed by our corporation and where they are also E X E C U T I V E P R OF IL E
Daniel Milner Resel Chief Technical Officer in Spain & Portugal, Daniel Milner Resel is redefining the utilisation of all IT services at Universidad Europea. Establishing a new regional framework as part of the unification of Spain and Portugal’s digital capabilities, he has a deep understanding the technological needs of the organisation, solving the gap between business and IT.
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the admin. We also have services licensed by the corporation at a regional level but we are the admins at a local level. Additionally, we have services where both things are at a local level – for example, SIS, Salesforce, Bullet, 8x8 Call Centre, DNS’s, file servers, printers, WIFI, labs, audiovisuals and more.” By utilising tools provided by Microsoft, Cisco, Tenable and BitSight for its security services, as well as investing in its two data centres, Universidad Europea has also adopted Blackboard Learn software, a virtual Learning Management System (LMS) to provide further 10
student support.
CLICK TO WATCH : ‘LEARNING COMMUNICATION WORKING AS A PROFESSIONAL’
Most recently however, Universidad Europea has witnessed how the implementation of big data has created significant opportunities. The launch of its Business Intelligence (BI) Competency Centre, alongside IBM Cognos and Informatica ETL has seen the business gain a greater understanding of the large volumes of data under its portfolio. The use of automation is now another tool the team is keen to explore, where adopting technology based on Salesforce and 8x8 Call Center has enabled the organisation to look at further ways of transforming the student lifecycle. “With big data, it's a full transformation. Before undertaking this project, there was one key question that was put on the table – ‘how many people nowadays are enrolled at our university? Marketing has one answer, sales has another and IT another, all of which are not the same. Big data has been a revolutionary approach, successfully led by the IT department,” notes Milner Resel. However, limited resources within the education sector remain a global issue. To bolster its resiliency and drive quality results, the organisation has utilised audio-visual technologies to promote collaboration. Implementing Lifesize to encourage the sharing of ideas, it is now Universidad Europea’s main tool for videoconferencing, w w w.uni ve rsi da de uro p ea . es
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as well as Skype for Business and Zoom. Its project with Smart–boards in the classroom is also expected to revolutionise student learning, where the implementation of Clevertouch 86 will work to deliver an immersive student experience within a digital classroom environment. Not only that, to further promote accessibility, Universidad Europea’s partnership with Chilean contractor Moofwd has led the development of a mobile app, powered by cloud technology. 12
Educational services will continue to evolve, in which Milner Resel coins this ‘the third revolution.’ Students will gain knowledge and expertise through various platforms, where Universidad Europea will soon be taking this to the next stage and look at the long-term benefits of remote working across the organisation. “We have a lot of initiatives, where in the near future a great percentage of our work force is going to be working from home. It gives families flexibility, lowers utility bills at establishments and more. Here in Spain and Portugal, we are trying to get a more ambitious approach to this kind of work,” he says.
‘ Students are demanding tools that not only provide greater flexibility, but ones that encourage continuous improvement, both personally and professionally’
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“ We have a lot of initiatives, where in the near future a great percentage of our work force is going to be working from home� Daniel Milner Resel, Chief Technology Officer
Universidad Europea delivers edu– cation that is high quality, accessible and affordable, supporting students in all walks of life. Technology will become a key driver to unlock change, supporting the development of connections across its infrastructure to make a significant impact upon the lives of its students. Universidad Europea is committed to undertaking an ongoing digital journey, which will be key to its enduring success.
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Campus Villaviciosa de Odรณn Calle Tajo s/n, 28670 Villaviciosa de Odรณn Madrid T +34 9 1414 6611 www.universidadeuropea.es