The third in our blog series is by Stuart McDowell, Head of Innovation and STEM, City of Glasgow College.  Over the next six months, Colleges Scotland is marking the diversity and variety of the work that Scotland's 24 colleges do with our new blog series, 24 in 2024.

Surviving and Thriving in Challenging Times: A Year like no other for Scotland’s Colleges

With 15 years at the College and responsibility for implementation of the College’s innovation strategy, I have seen my fair share of change in the sector. 

Few would deny that the past few years have been challenging for the college sector. We’ve battled headwinds of funding challenges, political turmoil, industrial action, and rapid technological change. This year, in particular, has been filled with competing demands for our time and energy. The challenges came thick and fast, and at times over the past year it felt like the sector was merely in survival mode. Yet, thanks to the collective effort of our teaching and support teams, not only did we survive, but we thrived, achieving remarkable feats rarely seen in the college sector.

Innovative Research

Earlier this year, City of Glasgow College was honoured at Buckingham Palace with the Queen’s Anniversary Award for our life-saving research into oxygen depletion in confined spaces. This prestigious award is the highest honour in the tertiary education sector, recognising excellence, innovation, and impact in colleges and universities.

Our research project addresses a critical and often overlooked aspect of safety: the quality of air in confined environments. As we focus on creating sustainable and secure working conditions, City of Glasgow College has taken a pioneering step in ensuring the safety of seafarers. This project has been scaled globally, benefiting our partners in the maritime industry.

Seafarers operate in unique environments with specific safety challenges. Our online course, recognised by the Merchant Navy Training Board, is a crucial part of our broader initiative. It equips seafarers with the skills and knowledge to identify, assess, and mitigate risks associated with oxygen depletion on vessels. The innovative and lifesaving nature of this research, honoured by the Queen’s Anniversary Award, places us alongside esteemed institutions such as Glasgow, Strathclyde, and Oxford Universities.

Supporting the Scottish Space Sector

In April, we were invited to brief the Scottish Affairs Committee on our work in Scotland’s emerging space sector. Alongside Fife College, we outlined our innovative efforts to embrace opportunities and support the industry’s growth.

It was inspiring to see the Government's commitment to understanding this sector and its potential to drive significant contributions to the Scottish economy. This year, we introduced courses in Space Science & Sector, Sustainable Satellite Manufacturing, and Electronics & Eco-Design. These programs aim to equip individuals, regardless of their prior experience, with the knowledge and skills needed for roles in the space industry, from engineering and design to data analysis and other functional roles.

Launch of Innovation Hubs across Glasgow City Region

This year, it was also positive to see more than £1.2 million being invested to create six new innovation hubs at colleges across Glasgow and the west of Scotland to help encourage innovation in local businesses. The 12-month College Local Innovation Centres pilot project, funded by the Innovate UK Further Education Innovation Fund, will help businesses across the Glasgow City Region gain access to comprehensive support and guidance on embedding and embracing innovation within their organisations. The hubs will support businesses in several sectors including health, sustainability, and digital.

Six colleges across the Glasgow City Region will host the innovation hubs, including Centre for Innovation Leadership – City of Glasgow College, Centre for Digitally Enabled Health – New College Lanarkshire, North Lanarkshire; Centre for Sustainable Development – South Lanarkshire College, South Lanarkshire; Centre for Industrial Automation – West College Scotland, West Dunbartonshire; Centre for Digital Enablement – Glasgow Kelvin College; and Centre for Digital Creativity – Glasgow Clyde College.

Embedding innovation

In times of challenge and change, innovation is not a luxury but a necessity. Our students are excited by the opportunities presented by technological advancements and need to be prepared to embrace opportunities when they enter the workplace. Many are motivated to pursue careers and even start businesses in growth industries. It is crucial for colleges to continue to be seen as innovative places of learning, which is why innovation remains a key value at City of Glasgow College.

Despite the well-documented challenges facing the sector, colleges remain the destination of choice for many students and we’ve witnessed first-choice applications increasing by 8%, year on year. It is essential we continue to build the innovation capabilities of colleges to ensure they remain key enablers of upskilling and reskilling in times of change.

Given colleges are a source of diverse talent (22% of our students are from areas of multiple deprivation - Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation, SIMD10) this is an approach that will help ensure we continue to deliver opportunities for the many, not just the few.