Employability Update
“Employability = Qualifications + Work Experience + Strategies x Contacts”
Dr Paul Redmond @ NUS Zone Conference
Start-Up Lab Launch
This week saw the launch of our new and exciting space called ‘StartupLab’ in the Coslett Building in Cambridge, this space is for students with a business idea that need support, a network and a creative space to develop the idea into a business.
“I have been involved in the development of this space at a strategic and operational level to ensure that as many students as possible can benefit from this initiative. I am currently in the finals of a national bid competition to secure £15,000 from NUS to further develop the usage for this space.
I am working with national and internal enterprise agencies, partners and societies to develop a strategy that will enhance what we have available to our students and get Anglia Ruskin on the map as an Entrepreneurial University.”
Gerald Carew
President Anglia Ruskin Students’ Union
"We're delighted to be opening this facility on the Cambridge campus and are extremely thankful for the strong support we've received from Anglia Students Union and President Gerald Carew. If we are to achieve our aim of making Anglia Ruskin one of the UK's leading universities for student start ups then it's absolutely vital that enterprise initiatives of this kind have the buy-in and support of the Students Union. Now that the StartupLab has been launched, we look forward to continuing our close working relationship with the SU with the development of a new student enterprise and employability portal."
Ben Mumby-Croft, Senior lecturer in Enterprise Development
Centre for Enterprise Development and Research (CEDAR)
"Cambridge is a bright spot for entrepreneurs, but if you look at what makes up the entrepreneurial mix, it's mainly science related. The Cambridge cluster, or Phenomenon, is about 1,200 companies and 14,000 people, which are mainly companies out of the scientific arena. Very few businesses have exploited what I call incremental innovation, taking existing technologies, or even in the creative industries, but not everyone can be a rocket scientist. We have to be holistic and support every opportunity. The StartupLab, in which the Anglia Student Union has played an important role, is important for Cambridge and for UK plc. We have to make the best of what we've got and it's a real contribution to the area."
Walter Herriot OBE
Founder of St Johns Innovation Centre
"The Startup Lab will make a stunning contribution to promoting student enterprise at Anglia Ruskin University. It will be a source of advice and infrastructure, but for me, it's that advice that's key. This is a country of small businesses and I do not think the majority are technology companies and I think we can materially make a contribution to our own patch."
Prof Mike Thorne
Vice Chancellor
What To Expect Next..
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I am currently putting together an employability catalogue that will be information ‘lite’ and will advertise all opportunities that are available to students within the University and Union in one place. Opportunities will include everything from Volunteering, StartupLab, Student Ambassador, Student Rep, Club / Society Committee member etc.
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I am working with Student Services to ask our Reps how the employability strategy has been going so far on courses that are piloting the new idea.
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In collaboration with Alain from Enternships (Recently recommended to all Unions by NUS) and our University I am exploring the possibility of creating our own webpage so that both student to student and external to student opportunities can be advertised easily and categorised to make it more accessible for you!
Gerald Carew
Students’ Union President 2011/12