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Events come in all shapes and sizes - from small private functions to large-scale festivals, trade exhibitions and conferences, from pop concerts to sports tournaments and from local street carnivals to international events such as the Olympic Games.
They all have one thing in common - a need to be managed. Outlined below are ways in which Birmingham's National Exhibtion Centre (NEC) and UCE Birmingham Institute of Art & Design have come with an interesting solution.
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A postgraduate-level course launched in 2006 by the Birmingham-based University of Central England, in conjunction with the NEC (National Exhibition Centre), aims to provide the professional skills needed if putting together and organising concerts, exhibitions, conferences and other events appeals to you.
Learning the skills
The MA in Event and Exhibition Management is the first course of its kind in the country, offering a professional diploma and Master's degree in exhibition management. The course has been designed to cover the key professional management and general skills you need to successfully create and organise exhibitions, conferences and other events. There is an emphasis on aspects such as improving creativity and understanding the potential of technology, which means that the qualification is very much geared to developing careers within the events industry.
Industry involvement
This is why the NEC is keen to be very much involved with developing, shaping and contributing to the course content and structure. Andrew Morris, Chief Executive of the NEC, said: "The exhibition industry has been a sleeping giant with a £9 billion impact on the economy, yet there has been no formal qualification or real training. If we are not careful, the industry will fail in its bid to grow and develop if it doesn't attract and train the right calibre of staff. We are taking the initiative by launching a new and quite unique course that will be the first professional diploma and Master's degree in the field of managing exhibitions and events, with UCE Birmingham. We aim to lead the way and improve standards across the industry, and I believe this mould-breaking initiative is destined to make Birmingham the hotbed of new talent in our industry - the 'Harvard of the events world'."
Part of the NEC's commitment to the course is a practical five-week work placement at the NEC itself, and the organisation is also committing £3,000 in bursaries in the first year. Additionally, The NEC Group will contribute its expertise in shaping course content and providing speakers. All of which means students will be learning real knowledge and skills required by the industry from the industry's top professionals themselves.
Course content
The course is available in two different programmes - full-time over one year or part-time over two years - and will be presented in three phases, covering a postgraduate certificate, postgraduate diploma and Master's qualification.
Covering the key skills required for exhibition and event management, the course will provide you with insights into professional practice in events and exhibition management - logistical, organisational and marketing skills - all of which will enable you to operate at managerial level, and technical knowledge and creative skills to be able to solve complex problems. The course has been created for people who work in related event management areas such as technicians, catering managers and marketing and PR assistants, as well as graduates from sectors such as media, tourism, business and marketing.
By the end of the course you will have a good understanding of the financial structure of the industry and possible future developments, essential safety regulations and current and emerging trends. You'll be able to deal with complex logistical issues and be able to plan events and exhibitions from an original concept through to practical operations management.
For more information contact:
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