International PartnershipStudent Newsletter Welcome to a new academic year 2015-16 and the Autumn 2015 editionof your UCLan partnership student newsletter!

As always, our aim is to keep you up-to-date with all the latest news from the University, and inthis edition you can read about the biggest Welcome Week in our history as new students arrivedon campus to commence their student life; success stories of both students and staff at home and overseas; watch an interview with one international student as he tells us what made himchoose UCLan; as well as news, events and developments at some of our overseas partner institutions over the past few months. We hope you enjoy reading your newsletter, and if youwant us to feature your stories, successes, events or pictures in our next edition, please send your contributions to us at InternationalResources@uclan.ac.uk

Autumn 2015

What’s been happening at UCLan over the past few months

Warm welcome to Preston for new studentsNew students arriving at UCLan in September were given a friendly welcome to life in Preston during an action-packedWelcome Week, which included entertainment from Titan the Robot, a one-man band, inflatable games, musiciansand stilt-walkers, a paint party, an outdoorcinema, a huge tea party, and the annualFreshers’ Fair and Sports and Societies’ Fairs.

UCLan Students’ Union President, Josie Linsel, commented: “This year’s WelcomeWeek is by far the best welcome new students have ever had to UCLan. We’ve put on a wide variety of activities to suit allinterests and encourage new students to getto know the University, the Students’ Union,the city of Preston and each other to ensurethat their time studying at UCLan is the bestit can be.”

A warm welcome was also extended to over 600 international students from around 120 countries, with a host of activities designed to introduce them toBritish culture, including walking and cyclingtours around the city, ten-pin bowling, and a traditional afternoon tea.

Pauline Kirijanovaite from Lithuania said: “So far I have loved everything about UCLanand Preston. I want to make the most of mytime here, both in regard to my studies andthrough meeting new people and travellingto new places.”

Sheryas Dhavileswanapu from Dubai commented: “I’ve been to the UK before but never to the north of England so it’ssomething completely new and exciting. I’m really looking forward to getting started.”

Students more satisfied than ever with education at UCLanResults of the latest National Student Survey (NSS) released in August show that students at UCLan are the most satisfied they have ever beenwith their educational experience, with an overall satisfaction rating of 85.2%, exceeding the 85% benchmark.

UCLan has also seen three subject areas ranked in the top 10 for overall satisfaction, with management studies coming first in the country out of 85.

European Day of LanguagesAt the end of September, more than 200 Years 10 and 11schoolchildren and sixth-form college students from Lancashireand Greater Manchester came together for UCLan’s annual European Day of Languages event, which encourages youngpeople to take taster lessons in a variety of foreign languagesand sample dishes from around the globe cooked by UCLan’s international students, and has continued to grow in popularity.

Local schoolteacher, Sandra Waterhouse, said: “This is the firstyear we’ve attended UCLan’s European Day of Languages celebration and everyone has really enjoyed it. Events such asthis really make the students realise what benefits learning a foreign language can bring and how much it can broaden their horizons.”

In September UCLan welcomed an internationalaward-winning Chinese martial arts troupe toPreston to mark the seventh anniversary of itsConfucius Institute.

The troupe, led by 2008 Beijing Olympic Wushu gold medallist, ZhaoQingjian, entertained a crowd at UCLan with their performance ofThe Beauty of Wushu and Dance, which included nine set pieces andan audience participation kung fu set.

Director of UCLan’s Confucius Institute, Feixia Yu, remarked: “It was a magnificent performance and a great way to mark our seventh anniversary. Someone told me that we have brought a piece of realChina to Preston, which is a great accolade.”

The UCLan Confucius Institute was established in 2008 and exists topromote Chinese language and culture in the local community.

Confucius Institute 7th anniversary

Second marketingaward for LancashireScience FestivalIn October, UCLan wasawarded the prize for Best Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Campaign at the Northern MarketingAwards for the marketing,promotion and social impact of the annual Lancashire Science Festival, which drew in a record-breaking11,000 visitors to more than 150 unusual, explosive and jaw-dropping activities and shows at UCLan’s main campusover three days in June.

It is the second award the University has won for the festival,after winning Best Community or Business Engagement Campaign prize at the Heist Awards for Education Marketing in July.

Director of Marketing at UCLan, Joel Arber, commented:“The Lancashire Science Festival is a shining example of theUniversity’s commitment to widening participation, unlockingpotential and inspiring the next generation. One of the reasons the event works so well is that is appeals to a verywide audience and successfully engages with the entireUCLan community with genuine buy-in and passion from staff and students.”

Visitors to this year’s event were treated to show-stoppers including life-like animatronic dinosaurs, giant explosions, a mind-controlled scalextric, insight into the science of Star Wars, and a robotic Iron Man costume.

From dinosaurs to drones: Korean ambassadors experience life at UCLanIt’s not every day that an ambassadorial delegation experiences a close shave with adinosaur, but that’s exactly what happenedwhen Ambassador Sung-Nam Lim, theSouth Korean Ambassador to the UK, andBritish Ambassador Charles Hay, the UKAmbassador to South Korea, paid a visit to UCLan in June.

The dignitaries and their team were invitedto UCLan as part of a sustained strategicinitiative by the University to put itself at theforefront of partnerships with Korea – linking UCLan, Preston and the region withKorean universities, businesses and society.

The ambassadors’ fact-finding mission included a visit to the UCLan-organisedLancashire Science Festival, where they experienced the technology inside thegreen room as they were pictured in a 65 million year-old forest being stalked by a dinosaur, and also discovered howUCLan’s Civic Drone Centre is working withorganisations to help them use remotelyoperated vehicles across a wide range ofhumanitarian scenarios.

Ambassador Hay said: “This was my first visit to UCLan and I was delighted to see the University’s enthusiasm for developing the academic, business and cultural links with South Korea.”

UCLan has rapidly become one of Europe’s leading higher education institutes for Korean studies. Over the last two years it has also seen a surge in interest from students wanting to study theKorean language or an aspect related to it,with nearly 120 students currently enrolledon Korean or Korean-related programmes,while September saw the start of the firstMaster’s course - outside South Korea -dedicated to the study of North Korea. TheMA North Korean Studies programme willteach students about all aspects of NorthKorean society, including its politics, history,international relations and language, andwill be run in the University’s InternationalInstitute of Korean Studies (IKSU).

The multidisciplinaryhub was opened last year with substantial investment fromUCLan as part of the University’s strategic commitment tobuilding a nationaland international centre of excellence in research, teaching and public policy on the two Koreas.

Honour for UCLansign language anddeaf studies expert

In June, Professor Ulrike Zeshan, Director of theInternational Institute for Sign Languages and Deaf Studies (iSLandDS) at UCLan, was awarded an Honorary OBE (Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire) in the Queen’s Birthday HonoursList in recognition of her services to higher education and the international deafcommunity.

Isabel Donnelly, College Director – Business Development (International andPartnerships), said: “This is a huge success for Ulrike and rightly deservedgiven her relentless pursuit of the development of peer education in lessdeveloped countries around the world. There are many people’s lives thathave been changed for the better for her work overseas and an HonoraryOBE is a fitting recognition for not only how she has remained true to herbeliefs of the power of education, but also the exceptional quality of herresearch and her talents as a linguist.”

UCLan has welcomed its first cohort of international students, from 29 different countries, onto its new, self-funded, five-year medical programme.

Aimed specifically at international students, and predominantly at those who lack opportunities in theirown country, the new Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelorof Surgery (MBBS) degree will teach medical sciencesalong with clinical and communication skills out ofUCLan’s multi-million pound facilities in Preston and Burnley. Undergraduates will also undertake clinical placements as part of their course, thanks to opportunities provided by some of the busiest hospitals in the North of England.

New medical degreefor UCLan

Earlier this year, students from UCLan joined local fire fighters on an annual charity trip to Zimbabwe to help train fire services and provide vital equipment.

The eight Fire Engineering and Fire and Leadership students spent 20 days in Zimbabwe withnine UK fire and rescue services, training six local fire services on key areas including major incident management, advanced community safety, ambulance training, advanced investigations and technical safety. This year, the main focus of their training was on breathingapparatus and road traffic collision, and the students aided the UK fire officers in deliveringcommunity fire safety campaigns, visiting local schools and colleges and taking part in mockfire drills.

UCLan Senior Lecturer in Fire Safety Engineering, Shephard Ndlovu, who has co-ordinated the University’s involvement in the project, run by fire service humanitarian charity OperationFlorian, for the last five years, said: “This partnership is a continuing venture for the charity and has proved to be very successful for all parties. Our students benefit from working on the job with experienced UK fire officers on something that has a direct impact on the work of the Zimbabwean fire services.”

UCLan continues Zimbabwean fire charity work

Students from UCLan visited Zambia earlier in the year tosupport the delivery of key health messages to young people about the dangers of drug abuse and HIV throughthe power of sport.

More than 40 students from a range of sports, media, law,physiotherapy and health courses spent a total of eightweeks across three cohort visits in the African country aspart of the UCLan Sport for Development Project trip whichis now in its eighth year. The project involves UCLan students working with peer leader volunteers from Sport inAction, a Zambian based Sport for Development NGO, todeliver key health messages and life skills through sport and physical activity.

Through their participation, the students are given a uniqueopportunity to develop leadership, management and problem-solving skills, reinforcing UCLan’s commitment toproviding real life experiences for its students.

Sport for Developmentin Zambia

The Centre for World University Rankings 2015 (CWUR) has unveiled itslatest international figures and ranked UCLan in the top 3.8 per cent of all worldwide universities for the first time in its history.

UCLan was highly rated in the Quality of Faculty category, which measures the number of academics who have won major internationalawards, prizes and medals; and the Quality of Education section, whichis measured by the number of a university’s alumni who have won majorinternational awards, prizes and medals relative to the university’s size.

The University also scored highly for its alumni employment and waspraised for the number of highly cited research papers.

Professor Gai Murphy, UCLan Pro Vice-Chancellor (Student Experience),said: “It’s great news for the University that we’ve broken into this list forthe first time. It’s a fantastic achievement to be among the world’s tophigher education institutions and one we’re very proud of.”

Quality standards confirmedThe UK’s Quality Assurance Agency(QAA) for higher education has confirmed the quality and standards of provision at UCLan following its review in March 2015.

The review identified a number of examples of good practice, includingthe availability of international study opportunities for all students; andthe approach taken by the University to encourage applicants from awide range of backgrounds and the methods used to enhance studentemployability.

The review also highlighted the ways the University supports its partnerorganisations in the UK and overseas, which include regular meetingsbetween senior staff, the sharing of best practice, and the opportunitiesand support available to staff at partner organisations to continue theirprofessional development.

A successful QAA review means that the University can display the QAA Quality Mark, indicating to UK and international students that theUniversity meets national requirements for standards and quality.

UCLan breaks into top 4 percent of worldwide universities

UCLan graduate headhunted by Apple

Hong Kong calling forinternational hospitalitygraduate

Specialist educational prize for UCLangraduateUCLan graduate, Sara Al-Bulushi, has made history by becoming both the first person fromoutside the United States of America and thefirst undergraduate to win the Machinery Failure Prevention Technology (MFPT) 2015 Best Student Paper award.

The Omani student was chosen for her work on developing a system which would help enhance health, environment and safety conditions in the oil and gas sector.

Sara, who presented her research paper at theMFPT 2015 and the International Society of Automation’s 61st International InstrumentationSymposium held in the US, said: “It was a complete shock to be named as the winner butI’m absolutely thrilled and delighted that my research has been recognised at this level. To be the first non-American and the first undergraduate is simply amazing.”

Sara studied Well Engineering at UCLan’s partner institution in Muscat, the InternationalCollege of Engineering and Management, before proceeding to UCLan to complete herstudies. Her research has also attracted the attention of university academics and potentialemployers. Her graduation project, entitled Development of an Advanced Gas EmissionsMonitoring System for Oil and Gas ProductionSites was awarded a first-class grade and she received her School’s Outstanding Achievementaward. Sara has also received three job offerson the back of her international acclaim.

Student news and successes

UCLan Software Engineering student,Felix Krause, has been snapped up byglobal technology giant, Apple, after hisfinal year project caught the eye of company bosses.

The 21-year-old Austrian created a programme called Fastlane for his finalyear project. It speeds up the submissionprocedure that developers need to gothrough to submit an app to the AppStore by combining them together in an automated process. The tool’s popularity was spotted by Apple, whoemailed Felix to say it was interested inhis work and invited him to take up athree-month internship at its headquarters in Silicon Valley near SanFrancisco.

Felix, who graduated in summer with a first class degree, said: “It was a massive surprise to find that Apple hadcontacted me directly to say the company is interested in exploring mywork further. I have always wanted towork for Apple but never thought Iwould be good enough, so for its developers to approach me is amazing.”

If the UCLan course you are studyingleads to the final year in the UK, youmay wish to click on the following video link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x14l43kfm6o

Chaitanya Madhav is currently in Year 2of the BSc Hons Software Engineeringprogramme at UCLan’s main campus inPreston. When he first arrived in Prestonlast year, Chaitanya was so homesick forhis home and family that he wanted toreturn to India the first week he washere. As a result of the tremendous support he received from the University,

he decided to stay and is now a very successful second year student.

Click on the link above to hear what made Chaitanya choose to study at UCLan, his first impressionsof Preston and how he has madefriends, the support he received from the University before coming to the UK, opportunities for part-time work, and what advice he would give toprospective students who are considering coming to UCLan.

Interview with UCLanstudent Chaitanya

UCLan International Hospitality Management graduate, Paulina Lukaszewska, is swapping Preston forHong Kong after landing a highly sought-after job withinternational hotel chain, Swire Hotels.

Paulina started her 18-month International Operations Management Training Schemeat the beginning of September. The 23-year-old, who originates from Poland but haslived in Preston for the past seven years, said: “I’m so excited, I’m really looking forward to it and cannot wait to get started. I’m hoping the job will help me becomea department manager and then I can see where I want to go from there.”

UCLan is proud to announce that its long-term partnership with the International College of Engineering andManagement (ICEM) is set to continue for a further year, with negotiations set tobe concluded shortly regarding a new landmark 10-year agreement.

UCLan and ICEM have been partners inOman for over ten years delivering uniqueBachelor degree courses in Fire Safety Engineering; Well Engineering; FacilitiesManagement; and Health, Safety and Environmental Management; and haveseen almost 2,000 students graduate withdiplomas and degrees.

Commenting on the new agreement, Dr Martin Brown, Dean at ICEM, said: “We are delighted to announce the confirmation of our partnership with

UCLan, enabling us to continue the delivery of some of the University’s mostprestigious courses here in Oman.

“There is no doubt that the quality andunique nature of the courses on offer from ICEM and UCLan have producedgraduates who are in demand. Throughour long-term commitment to work together, ICEM and UCLan can offer the guarantee of an unrivalled educational experience. New students will mix with a truly international cohort,their education will be practical but research informed, and they will emerge as successful graduates equipped with the knowledge and skills attractive to arange of potential employers. What’s more,they’ll enjoy the educational journey weprovide, complete with memories that willlast a lifetime.”

International Day is a dynamic, interactive annualhighlight of the BA Hons International Business Communication programmedelivered at our partner, Shanghai University of International Business andCommunication (SUIBE), inShanghai. Forming an integral and assessed part ofthe programme, the projectprovides students with the opportunity to research andshowcase the business culture of a particular country.

This year, a group of enthusiastic Year 1 students - Sun Jiayi (Sylvia), Pan Qi(Rachel) and Sui Yangze (Charlie) (pictured right with their Marketing tutor, Joe Davies) - interviewed staff and students during theevent for our International Partnership Student Newsletter. Here are a few key soundbites from their interviews overleaf:

Overseas news and information

Pictured (left to right): Mr Affan K Al Akhzam,Chief Executive Officer at ICEM; and UCLanDeputy Vice-Chancellor (International) ProfessorRobin Pollard

UCLan extends collaboration in Oman

UCLan International Day at SUIBE

Students Zhang Yaoyao, Lu Qian, Li Jieyin, Xu Tangqin, Yu Qijun andChen Xinyue chose

Franceas their focus, visiting theFrench Consulate in Shanghaiand a local French restaurantto experience French cuisine,and had this to say about theirfindings:

France has a remarkable culture and formality is particularly important when theFrench interact with others. For one thing,they should shake hands and kiss the cheeksof their friends when greeting. Note that shaking hands with others should be quick with a little power and ladies generally do not take the initiative to men. Furthermore, here the cheek-kissing in France is more of a brushing of cheeks with kissy noises rather than a real kiss. For another, although theyobey the laws, they love freedom and do not want to be constrained. They are liberaland generally lack discipline, therefore an appointment should be made before any social activity and late arrival could be a normal phenomenon.

Yuan Tong (Margaret) led agroup who studied and presented

Indiaand Indian culture, even goingto the lengths of wearing Indian dress and performing traditional Indian dance. Here’s what the group learnedfrom their research:

Indian religion plays an essential role in thecountry’s culture. It is characterised by a variety of religious beliefs and practices. As is known to us all, India is the birthplace ofthe world’s major religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism.However, now India is crowded primarilywith a Hindu and Muslim population. The country is famous for its religious diversity and tolerance in terms of laws

and customs.

Japanwas the focus of Wang Yi’s team,who visited the Japanese Con-sulate and Japanese electronics giant TDK for their research and made the following observations about the country’s culture:

I think it is the professional rigour which is internalised by Japanese businessmen and businesswomen. During business negotiations, they pay more attention to etiquette all the time. Moreover, theywill ensure that they are appropriatelydressed and take care of their personal appearance. For example, people cannot attend a conference with a beard, whichwas added by the Consul General.

Chilewas the country of choice ofYang Chengwei, Zhou Lin,Shou Luyan and Shen Yue, who interviewed the Consul General of the Chilean Consulatein Shanghai for their research.Here are their key findings about the country’s culture:

I think it is the professional attitude towork, which can be discussed from threeaspects. Firstly, Chilean businessmen, or businesswomen, are always well prepared since they have elaborated a plan before they start to work.

Secondly, they are much more rigorous in the quality of products. Lastly, they refuse gifts in a

business situation. Even if partners insist on giving a gift, only meaningfuland memorable gifts will make them feel pleasant rather than extravagant presents. In addition, during dinner they never talk about work because it is thetime spent on relaxing and getting along with family which is quite exclusive.

Teachers Laura Davies and Leah Smith were also interviewed by our three roving reporters and commented:“This assessment is a wonderful opportunity for students to showcase their research through an interactive andexciting platform. Every group has done a brilliant job today, demonstrating lots of great research into their chosen country and students have tried their best to interact with visitors.”

Scholarship

to UCLan

Sylvia, Rachel and Charlie (the interviewers) were awarded a highlycompetitive scholarship for their academic endeavours during the firstyear of their UCLan programme,which allowed them to come toUCLan’s main campus in Preston, UK, over the summer and enjoy a free two-week Summer School. Here they are pictured right with tutor Joe Davies. CongratulationsSylvia, Rachel and Charlie, and keep up the good work!

Cyprus’ first judge joins UCLan CyprusLaw SchoolCyprus’ first judge in the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg,Mr George Arestis, has joined the Law School of UCLan Cyprus as a Teaching Fellow.

He will be contributing to the teaching of European Union Law onboth the Law School’s LLB and LLM, and will also be further building the Law School’s current expertise in the field of EuropeanUnion Law.

Mr Arestis is joining an already strong team which includes formerSupreme Court President, Demetrios Hadjihambis. A former judgeof the Supreme Court of Cyprus, Mr Arestis also served on the European Court of Justice from 2004 until 2014.

UCLan Cyprus hosts 9th national session of European Youth ParliamentThe 9th National Session of European Youth Parliament (EYP) tookplace at UCLan Cyprus in August, with 200 participants from morethan 16 schools in Cyprus, as well as international delegations fromvarious European countries.

The National Session is the largest event organised annually by EYP Cyprus and provides an opportunity for students to have in-depth discussions on the session’s main theme, “Generation Digital, Uploading Europe”.

UCLan Cyprus thank EYP Cyprus for making the “Discussing Europe” event a remarkable success for all.

The double advantageUCLan Cyprus has been successfully registered as one of the eight universities of the Republic of Cyprus and is the only university in Cyprus to offer degrees accredited in both the UK and Cyprus, giving local and international students access to the highest qualityBritish undergraduate and postgraduate education.

All of our programmes of study are evaluated and recognised by the Ministry of Educationand Culture in Cyprus through the Evaluation Committee of Private Universities (ECPU). In addition, they meet the high quality standards required by the UK Quality AssuranceAgency (QAA).

UCLan Cyprus12 - 14 University AvenuePyla, 7080 Larnaka, Cyprus

+357 24 69 40 00+357 24 81 21 20 http://www.uclancyprus.ac.cy/en/

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UCLan in Mauritius welcomes President and British High CommissionerThe President of Mauritius, Dr AmeenahGurib-Fakim, visited UCLan in Mauritiuson 26 October when UCLan hosted theWomen and Science event, organised byWomen in Network (WIN).

The question and answer event attracted120 delegates, who listened to Her Excellency (pictured right answeringquestions from the audience) discuss herexperiences as a science academic andan entrepreneur within the science field. The event gave participants the opportunity to share their experienceswith regard to gender inequality, and the President seized this opportunity to express her interest in promotingwomen in science within Mauritius and the African continent.

Earlier in October, the British High Commissioner, Jonathan Drew, visited

the campus to deliver a lecture to Lawstudents on the relationship betweenlaw and diplomacy, citing examples fromhis personal experience.

Students then had the chance to interactwith him during a question and answersession and discussions regarding currentdiplomatic topics in Mauritius.

UCLan inMauritius

UCLan in collaborationwith UOM Enterprise Ltd

A warm welcome for2015-16 freshersThe new academic year began on 28 September for studentsof the UCLan-UOM Enterprise collaboration, with a week offun-filled team-building activities which included a treasurehunt and musical chairs, as well as a series of workshops ontopics ranging from gender equality to survival skills.

Returning students were invited to the activities to integratewith the new starters.

The aim of the induction was not only to enable students toget to know each other, but also to create a mind-shift fromschool life to university life. It also helped international studentsfrom countries such as Nigeria, Uganda and Kenya to bondwith local students.

Students particularly enjoyed the guest speakers invited fromtheir specific field. Pictured above is Mr Anil Rana (centre),Chartered Building/Quantity Surveyor and Project Manager,following his motivational talk to the BSc Hons Quantity Surveying, MSc Project Management and MSc ConstructionProject Management students.

UCLan in Mauritius1st Floor, Blue Tower, Rue de l’InstitutEbene, Mauritius

Tel: (230) 467 7375/8925/8926Fax: (230) 403 7610Email: contactus@uomtrust.ac.muVisit: www.uomtrust.ac.mu/enterprise

Till next time…We hope you’ve found this Autumn 2015 edition of the International Partnership StudentNewsletter of interest. The next edition will be Spring 2016, and we want to include more from you so if you have anything you want to tell us about, or if there’s anything inparticular you want to know about UCLan, get in touch with us at: InternationalResources@uclan.ac.uk

Meanwhile, we wish you all a very successful academic year 2015-16. Bye for now!

UCLan International blog

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