NMCI offers new web based Maritime Training Project
Published on: Thursday, 06 December 2012
The Maritime Training Platform is a web-based platform in which CIT, through the National Maritime College Ireland (NMCI), has partnered to promote the results of five highly successful and completed EU funded maritime vocational education and training (MVET) projects. These projects directly address particular problems and deficiencies in maritime education and training in Ireland and Europe. The intention is now to include further products that are relevant to maritime training.
The platform is a result of CIT’s ambition, through the NMCI, set out in the IMPACT project (Integrated Maritime Promotion ACTion). The main aim of IMPACT is to gather the results of innovative ‘best practice’ projects in the field of maritime training, and encourage their use across Europe. These projects directly address current deficiencies and are developed according to international standards, based on the innovative use of ICT-based content and services.
The NMCI has been actively involved in a number of EU funded Leonardo Projects and some of these feature in the Maritime Training Platform. They help raise standards and provide institutions with tools to improve the quality of their educational programmes. Thus the employability of European seafarers and the future employability of those embarking on maritime training courses will be increased.
An issue facing the European shipping industry is fierce competition from the Far East, and a shortage of 27,000 seafaring officers is predicted by 2015. The project consortium believes that by raising standards in the field of European Maritime Training and Education, and providing institutions with tools to improve the quality of their education, the employability and mobility of European seafarers will be increased. NMCI continues to influence the growth of the industry through the Maritime Training Platform which now also supports the mobility of, and communication between, seafarers in a European context.
The Maritime Training Platform creates an opportunity for other ICT based novel projects to be assessed for inclusion in the platform. Maritime institutions, maritime training providers and other relevant organisations may submit their ICT based product for evaluation and consideration for inclusion on the platform. The Maritime Training Platform assesses and scores the submitted products using criteria based assessment. If the product scores well then the product will be promoted as a “good practice” product to its potential users.
For more information about the Maritime Training Platform and the IMPACT project, please visit: www.maritimetraining.pro.
For any further information, contact: Jane O’Keeffe, Senior Lecturer, National Maritime College Ireland by E: jane.okeeffe@nmci.ie
