Category: Higher education

The leading vocational and professional education provider in Hong Kong, Hong Kong Institute of Vocational Education (IVE) Information Technology Discipline, and Amazon Web Services (AWS), through its AWS Educate initiative, announced the launch of a new cloud computing diploma to prepare students for entry-level cloud technology jobs. Starting in September 2020, the two-year program will be available to IVE students and will support approximately 100 cloud computing students annually.

The impact of COVID-19 has K12 and higher education institutions working hard to prepare for students to return to learning that will be anything but typical. The 2020-2021 academic year will include various teaching and learning modalities—virtual, hybrid, and face-to-face—and most expect a shift from one to another throughout the year. Globally, EdTechs are working with AWS to accelerate features and solutions to better support students and educators in teaching and learning, physical and mental wellness, and health and safety.

States are transforming their workforce and addressing immediate unemployment and re-skilling challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. One state—Utah—announced a plan to train and certify 5,000 students for cloud careers by June 2022. Yesterday, Utah Governor Gary R. Herbert announced the statewide initiative, enable training at Utah technical schools, community colleges, universities, and select K-12 career and technical education schools with access to AWS education and training programs.

Portland State University (PSU) is using machine learning (ML) to help students find the most effective pathways to graduation. By tracking the course history of successful graduates and presenting recommendations to current students, PSU can provide guardrails and best practices for a focused journey towards degree completion.

Each year, millions of students travel abroad to study and enrich their personal development and global perspective through international student exchange programs. Virtual exchange is becoming an important part of digital learning environments due to its student-centered, cost-effective, and equitable means of advancing international education. One example is
ImmerseU, a virtual exchange learning platform developed by Class2Class, an AWS EdStart Member.

Amazon Web Services (AWS) announced that seven higher education institutions in India will adopt cloud computing curricula from its AWS Educate initiative to help develop the next generation of cloud professionals. The cloud computing content will be offered as part of undergraduate degree and postgraduate diploma programs starting in September 2020.

Excellent Long-Established (ELECT) University Consortium of Taiwan and Amazon Web Services (AWS), through AWS Educate, launched a new cloud computing degree program to prepare students for cloud-enabled jobs. The new four-year program will help to prepare the next generation of cloud professionals with specific skills needed for in-demand entry-level cloud careers in Taiwan.

To address the cloud computing skills gap, global learning company Pearson is collaborating with AWS Educate to develop the Business and Technology Education Council (BTEC) Higher National qualifications at levels 4 and 5 in cloud computing. The BTEC Higher Nationals are internationally recognized higher education qualifications and are delivered at colleges and universities at more than 60 countries around the world. These are the first BTEC High Nationals available in cloud computing.

One year ago, the state of Louisiana announced a collaboration with AWS to launch statewide an AWS Educate cloud associate degree program. Built in collaboration with the Office of the Governor John Bel Edwards, Greater New Orleans, Inc., and the Louisiana Community and Technical College System (LCTCS), the program provides cloud computing opportunities across the 12 LCTCS colleges. After the first year of the program, LCTCS provided an update on how the program continues to grow and scale.

In January 2020 at the BETT show in London, Amazon Web Services (AWS) announced a new contest designed to find some of the best applications of voice technology in education. Our challenge to the EdTechs in Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA)? Tell us how you would use Alexa to transform education. Check out the six edtech finalists.