Delegates at IEEC2018 had a great opportunity to hear policy in practice throughout the three days. By bringing together diverse international keynotes, delegates were able to reflect upon their own journey thorough the experience of others. In particular:

• Professional Horii from Japan showed how international the drive for enterprise education is, showcasing his i.school which works with government officials as well as industry.
• Jing Zhang from China shared how, unlike many countries, the Chinese Government can influence and direct their educational institutions by bringing in policy within a matter of hours. Whilst this demands an immediate response, educational change can be at a slower pace, causing tensions for Chinese enterprise educators.
• Dr Martin Lackeus explored a high-tension approach to the entrepreneurial university and showed how his team/colleagues continue to reflect on policy to develop their workable definition of entrepreneurship. (Twitter link)
• Dr Todd Davey spoke about business starts, innovations and the future of universities, sharing details of a downloadable “Thought Book”
• Dr Margherita Bacigalupo shared the origins of the European Competence Framework “Entrecomp” and its new companion guide “Entrecomp into Action”. By highlighting many of the UK examples (Create at UHI, University of Huddersfield and Swansea University School of Management) as well as those across Europe, delegates could see how EntreComp can underpin their work with staff and students.

 

With the EEUK Board adopting the QAA (2018) guidance as its core documentation, this now embeds Entrecomp as part of the UK approach. However, our top tip for using this new document is not to print it off!  Rather use it as a reference (or inspiration) guide by using parts A and B to navigate the examples you want. Bantani Education, as part of the authoring team, have provided a searchable version of the cases if you find that easier to access the range of practice examples.

Our new EEUK briefing document explains the relationship between these new policy documents, provides example updates on those using the framework (those working with Entrecomp at the moment) and indicates where you can access the new visuals for your own use.  This will allow you to adapt the new images for your own approach and embed Entrecomp into your work. Take a look at the briefing document to see how you can get involved in the latest work on Entrecomp. Margherita also announced that the self-assessment tool for learners was in development, so we will update you as we hear more about the trial and testing phase.

EEUK were also delighted to announce the latest response to the EEUK Membership, following IEEC2017 delegates requests to create a policy page to help cut the UK documentation.  The “quick help” section on the new policy page should help you navigate the documentation and direct you to key sections when you need some help.

But the biggest news for the sector was the announcement that EEUK, having received feedback from its membership, has addressed the need for professional recognition by creating a new professional award, the EEUK Fellowship.  Grounded in the IOEE National Occupational Standards and using the ETCToolkit, the new Fellowship provides three different pathways for individuals to demonstrate their competence in order to become a Fellow of EEUK.  EEUK Board launched this new award at IEEC and then welcomed its first members into the Fellowship at the Gala Dinner, and you can find them here.

Discussions regarding the year ahead explored the potential of KEF (Knowledge Exchange Framework) for those working in England.  The decision to create a new metric, working with TEF and REF, has been cautiously welcomed by EEUK. Last week (10/09/2018) saw the release of the draft principles and EEUK welcomes the inclusion of staff recognition and student involvement in KE activities, whilst awaiting the detail of the metrics.

So, while the sector awaits the final announcement this Autumn, our new Chair Jon Powell has a clear vision for how universities can respond to KEF positively by embracing this new metric to truly embed KEF/enterprise into the institutional practice.  It is hoped that KEF could be the driver that many have been looking for to help address the “boom and bust” cycle that sees our agenda falling in and out of favour with senior managers.

This autumn will also see the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Entrepreneurship release their report on Enterprise Education.  EEUK provided a response to this consultation and shared over 40-member documents/evidence so we look forward to the key findings as a boost to our work in institutions.

We will keep you up to date through these policy blogs and with our new policy web pages, but with the new term coming up fast, EEUK is keen to hear your challenges, concerns and ambitions for the new year, so take 5 mins to do our quick survey and get in touch with me if you need any support!

Alison Price

Head of Policy, EEUK