Could Your Business Make the Most of Masters? Guest blog by Wendy Rudland, University of Aberdeen

Could your business make the most of masters? Guest blog by Wendy Rudland, University of Aberdeen

Businesses of all sizes, from all sectors, can utilise the talented and enthusiasm of taught postgraduate students studying on a wide range of programmes at the University of Aberdeen. We are particularly keen to engage with SME organisations and new business start-ups. 

Through the Making the Most of Masters (MMM) initiative Taught Postgraduate students can undertake their 12 week dissertation in collaboration with industry, working on a project to address a key business need for your organisation. Our academic staff will work with you to develop your ideas into a Masters dissertation project or to discuss potential areas of work if you would like to be involved but don’t yet have a specific project. With students undertaking these projects as an integral part of their degree studies they do not require a salary payment. What we do ask in return is that you provide appropriate guidance and any required data to enable the student to complete the project.

Projects typically require the student to undertake critical analysis, review products or processes, aid in research and development or develop technical solutions.

As students are not required to be based within their collaborating organisation there are no limitations on where you are based. Additionally, Businesses based within the HIE area can access additional funding to enable a student to visit the organisation for two weeks.

With little or no direct financial cost to the business a taught postgraduate student undertaking a work-based project can be an ideal way to address a problem or research an area which is pertinent to the needs of your organisation. We invite you to propose the project areas too, so you can focus on an area from which you will benefit most. Additionally, our students are keen to work with organisations, sharing their new academic knowledge, bringing fresh ideas and new approaches. 

We are currently seeking projects for summer 2016, which should be submitted by 31^st March.

If you would like to know more about work-based projects through MMM, including details of the programmes taking part and previous project titles please visit www.abdn.ac.uk/mmm or contact Wendy Rudland, Work-based Project Coordinator, w.rudland@abdn.ac.uk.

If you have a project which you would like to propose you can complete the online form at www.abdn.ac.uk/proposeaproject.