Western Sydney is a growing area for the State of NSW. The newly identified Western Parkland City, an area comprising eight local government areas and the soon-to-be-completed Western Sydney International Airport, is being called the economic powerhouse of Greater Sydney.
Recognising the importance of this area, an area that generates more than $56B per year GDP, the NSW Government has developed a New Education and Training Model (NETM) to help industry and people develop the skills they need for the jobs that are needed both now and, in the future.
UTS has partnered with NETM to deliver small-scale packages of learning in the form of microcredentials to help people build the skills needed and that are aligned to the needs of employers in the area.
These microcredentials, predominantly delivered online, have been co-designed with industry partners, ensuring the learning is relevant and skill-specific to the jobs needed.
To date, UTS has developed two microcredentials currently being delivered to learners in NSW. Our Basic Programming and Use of Collaborative Robots (COBOTS) microcredential has been a jointly development by UTS's Faculty of Engineering and IT with industry partner OMRON, Australia's leading name in robotics.
More microcredentials, including our Practical Foundations in Biology, Microbiology, Organic Chemistry and Inorganic Chemistry have been co-designed by UTS's Graduate School of Health with industry partner, Vitex Pharmaceuticals Australia's leading contract manufacturer of vitamins, minerals and nutritional supplements.
The practical skills that industry needs
The focus of these microcredentials to ensure that learners are given the skills they need for working in organisations within Western Parkland City. Each learner is assessed for the specific skills and knowledge that would apply in industry, making the courses practical and real-world.
Another key element of these microcredentials is that they expose learners to how the skills and concepts taught throughout are applied in industry.
Using interactive learning design, in the Basic Programming and Use of Collaborative Robots microcredential, learners need to interpret ‘cobot’ (collaborative robot) specifications to select cobots for integration into industry workflows.
To get learners ready for this, they are introduced a particular type of cobot operating in a real-world context. They then need to create a ‘robot work cell’ floor plan for placing a cobot using a simple drag-and-drop interface.
A video showing a cobot in action alongside an interactive activity to design a ’robot work cell floor plan.
Working together to solve skill shortages
UTS is proud to be working with industries to solve their skill challenges now and with an eye on the future. We can help up-skill learners in innovative and specialised areas by designing unique and interactive bite-sized learning pieces.
UTS is working with NETM on further projects to address other skill needs in Western Parkland City, including developing a microcredential - ‘Introduction to Modern Industrial Automation – Managers’ - which will be developed in collaboration with Seimens. It's estimated that five cohorts will start this course in the second half of 2023.
If your organisation needs to develop new skills in your workforce, talk to us at PLUS UTS to find out how we can help.
