On Monday, 24 February the launch of the PGDip in TVET programme was held in the Auditorium on Groenkloof Campus. Representatives and important guests from the Department of Higher Education, Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), the Technical University of Munich, School of Education, UP management, colleagues and the course participants attended the beautiful event. The art students from Ms Delene Human in the Humanities Education department exhibited some of their beautiful artworks. Charles Jordan from the music department provided the background music for the event and a special word of thanks to the Dean, who made a huge contribution to the evening.

The Postgraduate Diploma in TVET was designed by colleagues from different departments in the Faculty of Education. Prof Human-Vogel guided the project and worked with the Technical University of Munich (TUM), benchmarking the programme in order to support leaders in the Technical and Vocational Education and Training sector. The emphasis is placed on the development of strategic leadership skills while advancing professional competencies during the management of Key Performance Areas, which include human resources, finances and infrastructure, curriculum and learning together with quality assurance and innovation.

The fixed curriculum programme is innovative, forward-looking and specific to the Technical Vocational Education and Teaching context, consisting of eight modules, including a year module. An inquiry-based educational approach is used. The course is a one-year diploma, organised into the following three components: Contact sessions, online hybrid learning and a study visit to Germany. In Munich during June and July, the course participants will network with the TUM School of Education and selected industries to explore the Dual Vocational Education and Training system. These three components are integrated by means of a three-pillar mentoring approach which incorporates individual professional mentoring, peer-group mentoring in communities of practice and Key Performance Area specialist mentoring.