The ASET Conference
The UK's annual Placement and Employability Professionals’ Conference runs during the first week of September. Delegates from all over the UK and Europe gather to hear keynote speakers and to present and attend workshops on the current issues in the sector of work-based and placement learning and employability.
We encourage individuals and organisations to come and tell delegates about new innovations and good practice systems they have developed and are using that might benefit others. It is also the perfect forum for receiving feedback on such projects from a broad range of practitioners.
With well over 100 delegates in attendance it is a great opportunity to network with other practitioners doing similar work at a whole range of different institutions and disciplines.
Employers and selected students also attend.
This is the most important annual event for all academic and administrative placement staff in the UK, and so we recommended that each placement providing HE and FE institution send at least one delegate each year to input and feed back on developments and practice nationally and internationally.
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Date and Location
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The 2008 Conference will be held at Robbins Conference Centre, Plymouth between 2-4 September.
Plymouth is the vibrant maritime city of the South West. An extra-ordinary
blend of lively modern city and historic seafaring port, Plymouth is a city full of character and atmosphere with a range of first-class facilities for shopping, sightseeing and nightlife.
It is easily accessible from all parts of the UK by road or rail. It also has its own airport with low cost domestic and international flights and connections. |
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Robbins Conference Centre has well appointed, quality furnished, conference rooms, with full hospitality services and audio-visual provision. Accommodation is onsite and all bedrooms are ensuite.
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Programme
A full Conference Brochure can be read and downloaded here
Day 1 - Tuesday 2 September – Working Internationally
7:30-9:00 Breakfast (Monday night delegates only)
10:00 Registration with fair and networking
11:00 ASET welcome and housekeeping
11:15-11:45 Plenary - Professor Wendy Purcell, Vice-Chancellor of University of Plymouth
11:45 Plenary – Understanding Student Visas
CANUKE Agreement (Tony Waite) and IST Plus (Ralph Allemano and James Rainbird)
12:30 Lunch
13:15-13:50 Plenary – Lisa Ward (University of Huddersfield) – ‘Work Placements - A Journey Around the World’
14:00–14:30 Plenary – Friedrich Heger (UK Erasmus Student Committee) – ‘Erasmus’
14:35 Parallel discussion sessions on International Themes
15:30 Break
16:00-16:45 Workshop 1 (see separate Workshop Timetable in Brochure)
17:00-17:45 Placement Services and Schemes Showcase (see separate Workshop Timetable in Brochure)
19:15 Stroll down to The Barbican
19:30 Dinner at Arribas, followed by quiz in upstairs bar
Day 2 – Wednesday 3 September – National Placements
7:30-9:00 Breakfast
9:30-10:15 Workshop 2 (see separate Workshop Timetable in Brochure)
10:30 Workshop 3 (see separate Workshop Timetable below)
11:15 Break
11:30 Research Forum - parallel sessions (see separate Workshop Timetable in Brochure)
12:30 Lunch
13:15 Plenary - HEA Projects:
- Professor Ursula Lucas and Dr Phaik Leng Tan (University of the West of England) – ‘Work-Based Placement Learning and the Development of a Reflective Capacity’
- Simon Dove (University of Gloucestershire) – ‘Integrating Employers in Effective Support for Student Work-Based Learning: An Evidence Base to Inform Innovative Policy and Practice (ongoing project evaluation)’
- ASET AGM and President’s Address (Dr Geoffrey Copland)
14:30 Stroll down to The Barbican
15:00-16:30 “Cream Tea at Sea” Boat Trip (departs and returns: Mayflower Steps, The Barbican)
16:30 Free Time in The Barbican/back at accommodation
18:20-20:00 Plymouth Gin Distillery tour and drinks reception in The Refectory
20:00 Dinner split between Blues Bar and Grill and The Quayside/Watering Hole
22:00 Post dinner live music at Blues Bar and Grill
Day 3 – Thursday 4 September – Local Focus
7:30-8:30 Breakfast
9:00-9:45 Workshop 4 (see separate Workshop Timetable in Brochure)
9:45-10.30 Workshop 5 (see separate Workshop Timetable in Brochure)
10:30 Break
10.40 Plenary – Innovative Assessment Methods:
- Katherine Duffy, Professor Denis Anthony and Francesca Vickers (De Montfort University) – ‘Are E-Portfolios an Asset to Learning and Placement?’
- Dr Stephen Gomez, Karen Croker and Holger Andersson (University of the West of England) – ‘Profile: A Web-Based, E-Portfolio Tool’
11.50 ASET Conference wrap-up
12:00 Lunch and depart
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Speakers
We are also delighted to be able to welcome a number of keynote and guest speakers who will be leading plenary sessions at the conference:
• Professor Wendy Purcell, Vice-Chancellor of University of Plymouth
• Tony Waite, Brunel University
• Ralph Allemano and James Rainbird, IST Plus
• Lisa Ward, University of Huddersfield
• Friedrich Heger, UK Erasmus Student Committee
• Professor Ursula Lucas and Dr Phaik Leng Tan, University of the West of England
• Simon Dove, University of Gloucestershire
• Dr Geoffrey Copland, ASET President
• Katherine Duffy, Professor Denis Anthony and Francesca Vickers, De Montfort University
• Dr Stephen Gomez, Karen Croker and Holger Andersson, University of the West of England
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Presentations/Papers
A timetable of the workshop sessions that are taking place, along with full abstracts for all sessions are provided in the full Conference Brochure.
A full Conference Announcement and Call for Papers can be viewed here.
The Conference is presented across three sessions each with a geographical theme:
• Working internationally; both with overseas students and placements overseas
• National placements; concentrating on good practice, preparing and supporting students
• Local focus; working with regional organisations, SMEs and the not for profit sector
In order to provide a framework for the conference, workshop presentations are invited under themes; international, national, local and research. ASET is keen to disseminate the findings and recommendations of employability and work-based learning research including the work of the Centres for Excellence in Teaching and Learning. A key feature of previous ASET conferences has been the opportunity to hear about work at a broad range of institutions, about new initiatives and projects, and of good practice systems – this conference will continue this strong tradition.
Contributions Welcome
Selection of presentations will be based on a written synopsis limited to 500 words. The synopsis must include: (a) Theme; (b) Presentation title; (c) Presenters & institutions; (d) Abstract outlining the aims and objectives of the presentation, experiences covered, and issues to be addressed.
Workshop sessions will be 45 minutes long and should be designed to be participatory in nature - it is envisaged that the presentation element of the workshop should be no longer than 20 minutes.
All contributions will be peer reviewed and those accepted will be published in the official proceedings with ISBN.
Deadlines
Your synopsis, as detailed above, should reach ASET by 25th April 2008
Notification of acceptance, following peer review, by 16th May 2008
Full presentation/paper should reach ASET by 25th July 2008
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Social Events
“Cream Tea at Sea” Boat Trip
Those delegates who wish to can take a boat trip of Plymouth Sound on the Tamar Belle. ASET has privately reserved the boat and the voyage is included in the delegate fee. Others may wish to spend this time exploring the Barbican, the nearby National Marine Aquarium or the Drakes Circus shopping centre.
Plymouth Gin Distillery Tour
As an aperitif to dinner delegates will be given a tour around the world famous Plymouth Gin distillery and also given a chance to sample cocktails made with the gin (soft drinks also provided) in the distillery bar - The Refectory. The tour and tasters have again already been included in your delegate fee.
 
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Travel Information
For directions and a map please go to: www.plymouth.ac.uk/pages/static.asp?page=mapP
Travelling by Rail
The rail station is just a few minutes' walk or short taxi ride from the main campus at Plymouth. There is a regular train service from Plymouth to London Paddington which takes between three and three-and-a-half hours. There are other direct services from Plymouth to South Wales, the Midlands, the North of England and Scotland. For rail enquiries, call 08457 484950 or visit www.nationalrail.co.uk. Alternatively you can book online by clicking on the following link - www.thetrainline.com
Travelling by Coach
There are regular coach services from most major cities to Plymouth. Bretonside Bus Station is situated approximately 5 minutes' walk from venue. Coach services from Bretonside Bus Station in Plymouth to London Victoria go via Exeter and takes just four-and-a-half hours. For coach enquiries, call 08705 808080 or visit www.nationalexpress.com
Travelling by Car
Plymouth is easily reached from the rest of the country by linking the A38 'Devon Expressway' with the M5 at Exeter. From London this journey takes approximately 4 hours. For finding your route from where you live, please visit the RAC website by clicking the following link - www.rac.co.uk, or the AA's alternative at www.theaa.com/travelwatch. Follow signs for the City Centre until you reach the roundabout with a roofless Church in the centre. At this round about take the exit up Hampton Street, with the Police station on your immediate left. At the top of Hampton Street, turn left then take an immediate right into Gibbon Street. The Robbins Conference Centre is 100 yards up on the left
Parking
There is a multistory car park on Regents Street – 100 yards from the venue (www.multimap.com/maps/?&hloc=GB|PL48BZ). Permits can be purchased from the student village reception on arrival at the University. These are charged at £5.95 per day (midnight to midnight).
Travelling by Air
Plymouth City Airport offers a wide range of low-cost flights to destinations in England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland and the Channel Islands.
Air Southwest flies to Plymouth from the following destinations:
London Gatwick (from £38)
Manchester (from £38)
Leeds Bradford (from £38)
Bristol (from £27)
For more information visit www.airsouthwest.com
Exeter in addition has scheduled flights from Aberdeen, Belfast, Dublin, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Newcastle and Norwich, as well as other international destinations.
Newquay in addition has flights from Cardiff, Cork and Durham Tees Valley.
Bristol is the region's largest airport with a large number of domestic and international destinations.
For those wishing to book cheap advance flights, the event will run from approximately 11:00 on Tuesday 2 September until approximately 13:30 on Thursday 4 September.
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Last Year’s Event
The 2007 Conference was held at UWIC Cyncoed Campus, Cardiff. 120 delegates saw plenary sessions led by Professor Freda Tallantyre (HE Academy), Hugh Tollyfield (HEFCE and DfES), Brenda Little (CHERI) and Dr Geoffrey Copland (former Vice-President of UUK and Vice-Chancellor of University of Westminster).
25 presentations were also given in smaller participatory workshop sessions.
For more details, please see:
- Interim Conference Report. This report was kindly sent to us by one delegate and we are sure many people will find a useful summary of the event, particularly whilst the full proceedings is still in production. The report represents one individual's interpretation and also only covers the workshop sessions that she attended. Many thanks to Georgina Norsworthy from Chichester College.
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Booking
The delegate rates for 2008 are:
£425 from ASET member institutions, £455 from non-member institutions, Presenter rate: £410 (including non-members)
These rates are inclusive of three-day access, two-nights accommodation, meals and refreshments and a full conference proceedings after the event.
Day rates: £150 per day, £50 per night.
Day rates only include lunch. Night rates only include evening meal and breakfast.
Extra bed and breakfast on the night of Monday 1 September (no evening meal): £40
Other rates including one without accommodation (for local delegates) or combining particular days and nights can also be negotiated.
To book on any ASET event, please use this generic booking form.
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