Strategy for Goal 2: Developing into transition experts

STRATEGY FOR GOAL 2: We develop ourselves and others into transition experts We are serious about the transition. We take up the challenge to tackle climate issues in all their complexity. This is why we need smart, enterprising professionals: they work for us, we train them and we enjoy working with them. The urgency of a sustainability transition means that we are opting for innovation, in order to make the greatest possible contribution to the global, interdisciplinary challenges of the future with the best that we have. This is how we set the bar high. In order to realise transitions, multi-faceted professionalism is necessary. At Van Hall Larenstein University of Applied Sciences, we focus on four dimensions: substantive leadership (expertise), social awareness (collaboration), economic sense (profitability), and personal commitment (intrinsic motivation).

Over the next decade, the Van Hall Larenstein University of Applied Sciences aims to develop into a community of continuously evolving transition experts. So the strategy towards 2025 is to develop the four core skills: we continue to lead as content experts, socially conscious, personally engaged and economically sensible.

"The Student Training Academy originated from the Study Advance/Grant funds. The STA's courses and training allow students to shape their own personal development."

KIRA JONCKHEERE

Student STA SUPPORTER

These are our four goals toward 2025:

1. CONTENT We are realising a distinctive and enthu-

sing educational concept with a content-oriented transition expert profile.

Great ideas from the preliminary process: a. In the years 2022 and 2023, we will jointly develop an integral educational vision focusing on the realisation of the transitions as the core theme. In the years 2024 and 2025, we implement this vision for educational development and implementation throughout the organisation. This educational vision includes the following aspects: (1) Studyability (including flexibility, clarity, personalised learning, part-time) (2) Teachability (including limited number of tests, time for deepening) (3) New form of final papers (fewer thesis reports) with more direct relevance to the transitions. (4) The quality of our testing remains high, while the number of tests has been reduced. (5) A practical learning line transition expert (with real assignments from real clients) is a permanent element of every course from the initial propaedeutic year onwards. Each student graduates as a transition expert in a knowledge domain. The final terms and levels of this learning line are the subject of a University-wide discussion. b. We are exploring a broad propaedeutic year for a broader/integral landing, deepening follows subsequently. c. We strengthen the continuous learning lines VO/

MBO-HBO-University/business. We give priority to regional cooperation in project groups of secondary schools, higher vocational and higher professional schools within regional assignments.

d. We align studyability and teachability. e. We are committed to high student satisfaction.

All our programmes score above average in the

Study Selection Guide.

2. SOCIAL We develop our social skillsthrough

multidisciplinarity and inclusiveness, where we can see from multiple perspectives.

Great ideas from the preliminary process: a. Our students practice multiple roles each year: catalyst (entrepreneurial creation of new possibilities), activist (thorn in your side), leader (leading and coordinating), and reflective role (investigating and keeping an overview). b. We provide cross-curricular education through interdisciplinary projects in each grade. c. Our alumni provide guest lectures with stories of experience from their practice. d. We agree on numbers of internships with regular external partners. e. We offer our students expertise in the field of governance, entrepreneurship, digisation and (citizen) participation processes. f. We offer every student the opportunity to gain an international/intercultural experience. g. In order to increase social awareness, we organise open debates on the key themes at the intersections of our disciplines, in which lecturers and professors set an example of the complexity and professional attitude required. h. Employees exemplify the professional attitude that belongs to transition experts in the way they develop and conduct teaching and research. 3. ECONOMIC We develop the basic skills of

entrepreneurship in our students.

Great ideas from the preliminary process: a. All degree programmes include business components in their curriculum, using (the expertise within) the Centre for Entrepreneurship. b. Economic considerations are a permanent part of the integral assessment we make for projects.

4. PERSONAL We offer scope for personal development

along bespoke development paths.

Great ideas from the preliminary process: a. We are making education more flexible and giving our students more free space. b. We develop our students' self-directed learning to help shape their development. c. We focus the study career guidance more on everyone's talent development. d. We are setting up more part-time courses, both new and variations of existing full-time courses. e. We will develop a culture of ownership for our own development, both among students and staff. Personal responsibility is becoming the norm. f. We provide specialist help for students who cannot follow the regular programme due to personal circumstances. g. Our HR policy facilitates the development of transition experts for our own employees and teams. h. We are going to further professionalise our internationalisation (personnel and training policy).