Verticle integrated projects for Work-integrated learning

Aim and goal

The aim of the project is to develop a new research-integrated education model, which provides the conditions for strengthened research competence in both academia and industry. The goal is to attract more, better prepared, researchers, who more accurately reflect the Swedish population both in terms of gender and academic background, and who continue to work within the Swedish sustainability and green transition sector. The educational concepts Vertically Integrated Project (VIP) and Work-Integrated Learning (WIL) will form the basis of the model, which is called VIP4WIL.

Expected contributions and effects

The model, which is called VIP4WIL, is expected to provide increased opportunities for the exchange and growth of research competence within industry and academia. The project is expected to contribute to academic renewal and, by extension, to strengthen Sweden's competitiveness as a leading research and innovation nation, where the recruitment of excellent researchers to leading research environments will be crucial. The project will result in brief reports, a VIP4WIL handbook, scientific articles, and potential national and international policy implications.

Study plan and design

The VIP4WIL model includes four actors in collaboration: students, researchers, industry and institutional leaders. The model will be developed and tested over a three-year period where three research projects with industry collaboration will become pilots to include teams of students, researchers and external industry partners in research environments and research-integrated courses (a number of creditable optional courses and course modules with progression) to orient, train and practice research work. Five work packages are planned: Project design, Education and program architecture, Research environment, Collaboration and Dissemination.

Motivation for SDG:s no 4 and no 9:

The project will develop ways to ensure that research-integrated education is of high quality, inclusive, equal, and promote lifelong learning for all four project actors. It will develop collaboration structures for innovation, competence supply and sustainable industrial development.