‘’One – man – band’’
Lorraine Harper, University of Westminster
 
Context / Situation / Challenge
It was my first appointment as a Course Director in Higher Education, having taught on a part-time basis in HE for the previous 4 years, as my previous long
career had been in the commercial fashion business arena.
 
This new course was closely linked to the industry that I had worked in and was written as a mandatory four- year sandwich course with both a year in
industry followed by an international mandatory semester in the USA.
 
Neither of these components had been finalised when I started running the course.
 
I started at the University just 2 weeks before 35 students who had already been recruited.
 
No other tutors had been recruited to teach other modules and I was faced with teaching as many modules as I could and recruiting other tutors with an
expertise in subjects I was unable to teach.
  
Characteristics of the situation that engaged me in an immersive way
·This was a new job in a new university and a new course that I wanted to get off the ground and make a success. My self-esteem and credibility both in the
  academic arena and the industry depended on it.
·Why? This course had been instigated by Marks & Spencer who had demonstrated great confidence in the success of it by investing £20,000 into the
  University, appointed a senior buyer on a secondment to write the course with the support of the academic staff and persuaded other large UK retailers to
  invest both money and time into the creation of the course. These retailers had identified that there was a huge gap in the market for graduates from such a
  discipline and for these reasons it was vitally important that the course became successful and supplied the industry with the graduates they expected.  
·I was given no support and for the first year was virtually a ‘one man band’. Running the course, creating teaching materials, teaching, appointing Visiting
 Lecturers, Interviewing potential new students.
 
·The two biggest challenges were:

 1] The mandatory Placement Programme; My first priority within the first month, having looked at the validated course structure, was to write and get validated a new

  module Career Planning and Development, since I could see that without guidance the students would not be prepared sufficiently with CV’s, Letters of application, etc

  etc to put themselves before a potential employer at the end of their first year. The programme had to be designed, structured etc and most importantly I was going to

  have to sell the advantages of participating in the programme to potential employers encouraging them to participate. To put into context the fashion industry were

  not offering merchandising placements and certainly not paid or for one whole year! I very quickly realised that students would not be able to secure these vital

  mandatory placements without my intervention and therefore it would require a huge marketing exercise on my behalf to make this mandatory programme work.

 

· 2] The second challenge was the mandatory International Exchange to the USA; A little work had been done with one University but no contracts had been
   drawn up, no curriculum had been considered. This meant that within the first two months, I had to visit the potential University in New York and endeavour
   to get the contact pulled together. This took an extraordinary amount of time, patience and tenacity when trying to get two very different registrar
   departments to agree.
 
·The situation required a complete immersive experience that left no room for any other activities. Some students had entered the course not fully
 understanding the course subject area, Merchandising was and still is a fashion business function that is very mis- understood and students were confused. I
 became mentor; nurturer and confidante to the students helping them see the potential of the career in front of them. The prestige of the course was at
 
The forms of learning / personal development / change that emerged from the situation
  • I was very motivated to make this new course successful in 3 aspects 1] for the students – there were great potential employment opportunities both for placement and on graduation. 2] For the University, School who had the courage to start the course. 3] For potential employers particularly those that had the foresight to invest in the University to get the course started.
  • I did not want to leave anything to chance – I had to learn a lot very quickly on things I had no prior experience on. I soon realised too that my previous business management experience was helping me organise the course but at the same time the slowness and lack of resources in academia forced me to look at different ways of getting things done.
  • On reflection after that first year, the second and third year, made me realise that I saw no barriers as other academics seem to see sometimes. If I wanted to do something I did it following my gut feelings, even common sense, which I have now come to realise are not how some other academics approach things.
  • I had the advantage of understanding in depth and detail industry expectations of students and from any tutor teaching on the course. We had to project a professional attitude and experience to that industry and that was my motivating goal
  • This has lead me onto helping other academics behave and understand the benefits of engaging with potential employers and preparing students professionally for work.
 
 
 
Words / concepts / feelings describing the immersive experience   
Empowering                                                                  Worrying
Developmental                                                              Satisfying
Emotional                                                                     Humbling
Enjoyable                                                                     Focusing
Frustrating                                                                    Self – affirming
Confident                                                                      Unsettling
Nurturing                                                                       Respectful       
Guiding                                                                         Goal – driven                           
Unnerving                                                                     Releasing
Energetic                                                                      Exhausted
Tireless                                                                         Hectic                                                                          
 
 
Principles and lessons to be drawn from the story
  • The feeling of taking something that was just a written document and making it come alive giving it a clear identity, being the best it can be in way that benefits all parties as a sustainable entity.
  • Listening to all parties’ students, potential employers, responding to their needs wholeheartedly, respectfully and quickly.
  • Having an attitude that nothing is too much trouble and that having an impact on the future lives of the students is both a good motivator and a satisfying state of mind
  • The worst times were having no- one at the university to share the frustrating as well as good times until staff came on board at later date.
  • Finally not being afraid to follow your gut feelings, making sure you have an all consuming goal in place that pulls and pulls you up and up and up!!!!!



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