Nottingham Express Transit have announced an ongoing partnership with Nottingham Trent University (NTU) which will provide support for students at the university in their future careers. Over the last academic year NET have worked with three university departments to set a series of live briefs.
The partnership has been with the Product Design, Media Production and Civil Engineering departments and has seen students set various tasks to see what they came up with.
The Product Design students were asked to design and pitch their suggestions for improving the existing NET app to a board of senior leaders in an industry day. Meanwhile, BA Media Production students were tasked with creating a series of short social media reels which would promote the tram network to future students and those completing a Masters in Civil Engineering were set a project to research and propose a new track extension to complement the existing network.
Over the next academic year, NET will build on the success of the partnership by launching a cross faculty project. This will see students from the Civil Engineering, Product Design and Property Management departments gain invaluable insight and knowledge as they work closely with NET to take on a series of workstreams, coming together eventually to finalise with pitch proposals.
Chief Operating Officer of NET, Andrew Conroy, commented: “We’re always passionate about doing our bit to celebrate and nurture up and coming talent, and we really value the students here in Nottingham. We’ve seen first-hand how beneficial our long-standing relationship with the Civil Engineering department has been and have always been impressed with the quality of the work that its students have presented to us over the years.
“This was echoed in our more recent Product Design and Media Production projects too, and we were blown away by how the groups responded to our industry briefs this year. Over the coming academic year, we’re really looking forward to working with the course leaders and students at NTU on a much deeper level, and getting the chance to support even more young people.
“Our upcoming cross-faculty project will touch upon the skills being taught across multiple different departments – mimicking what it’s really like in the world of work – and gives students the chance to genuinely make a difference to the future of Nottingham’s tram network.
“Whether they work in engineering, design or marketing, these students genuinely could be the next NET stars of tomorrow – and if not, they will have gained fantastic experience that they can share with their employer whatever they choose to go into next.”
NET are also going to be welcoming their first intern who will be joining the team from NTU’s Civil Engineering course for a two month placement before they start their Master’s in September.
Karen Winfield, Senior Lecturer and Placement Coordinator for the NTU Product Design department, said: “Live projects give opportunities for our younger designers to meet senior people in an industry that they may be less familiar with, while broadening their breadth and depth of knowledge within a sector that they might not have considered before. This experience is invaluable for the development of their understanding of the areas covered in the course, while showcasing opportunities available to them when they graduate.
“It was great to be able to introduce the NET team to the students right from the beginning of the project too, as it really helped develop those relationships. And, when it came to the pitch, the students excelled in professionally delivering to the audience and responded well to the questions posed.”
David Russhard, Principal Lecturer for NTU Civil Engineering department, added: “For our students here in Nottingham, having the chance to work on projects for a company whose infrastructure is so substantial to the city is such a great opportunity. Solving real-life problems encourages our students to apply their knowledge in practical ways which gives them a great introduction to the world of work. After successfully partnering together with NET for many years, we’re looking forward to taking this further with this new collaborative approach, and seeing how we can take these learnings even further.”