{"id":9983,"date":"2025-07-15T13:47:27","date_gmt":"2025-07-15T12:47:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.gpsj.co.uk\/?p=9983"},"modified":"2025-07-15T13:53:36","modified_gmt":"2025-07-15T12:53:36","slug":"delivering-a-distinctive-employer-led-student-experience-at-greater-manchester-institute-of-technology","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.gpsj.co.uk\/?p=9983","title":{"rendered":"Delivering a Distinctive, Employer-Led Student Experience at Greater Manchester Institute of Technology"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Claire Foreman, Director, Greater Manchester Institute of Technology<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

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Claire Foreman<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

When the Greater Manchester Institute of Technology (GMIoT) prepared to welcome its first cohort of students in September 2023, one critical question framed our thinking: what is truly distinctive about being an Institute of Technology (IoT) student?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Across the UK, Institutes of Technology have emerged as a new and necessary solution to address skills shortages in high-demand technical sectors. Some are housed in landmark buildings, purpose-built and equipped with the latest engineering or digital technologies. These spaces play a significant role in showcasing regional investment in technical education. But at GMIoT, our approach has taken a different path, less focused on physical infrastructure, more invested in systemic, collaborative delivery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Distributed but Unified Model<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

GMIoT was created through a partnership of FE colleges, the University of Salford, and strategic employers. We operate on a hub-and-spoke model, with each partner institution upgrading and re-equipping their own STEM teaching environments to meet the needs of IoT students.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The University of Salford, our lead partner, is building a new facility that will serve its own IoT students and also host regional events. Meanwhile, Ada, the National College for Digital Skills, had no Manchester base before IoT funding enabled it to convert a disused Department for Education site in Ancoats into a thriving digital learning hub.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This distributed model is more than a logistical choice; it reflects our commitment to embedding high-quality technical education within existing institutional ecosystems while linking them through a common framework of excellence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Beyond the Building: Defining the Student Experience<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Having high-tech kit is a starting point, not the endpoint. What distinguishes an IoT student experience is not simply where learners study, but how they learn, and how closely that learning is aligned to real industry needs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many colleges today aspire to employer-led curricula, live briefs, and enrichment through visits or guest speakers. Yet in practice, these elements can be inconsistent, present in some courses, some years, for some students. Too often, especially at higher education (HE) levels within colleges, these features are deprioritised due to limited scale, staffing pressures, or siloed quality assurance systems.<\/p>\n\n\n

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IoTs like GMIoT were established to break this cycle. We were designed to embed employer engagement, technical rigour, and practical experience into the core of every programme, not as an add-on or aspiration, but as standard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Building a Talent Pipeline That Works<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the heart of GMIoT\u2019s mission is the commitment to developing a robust talent pipeline for Greater Manchester\u2019s priority sectors. That means students benefit from:<\/p>\n\n\n\n