With 24 students enrolled this year in Massey University’s Diploma in Facilities Management (DipFM) and 12 in the Graduate Diploma in Facilities Management (GradDipFM), the first year of the new qualifications has been a success, says Dr James Rotimi, former Academic Dean – Construction at Massey University’s School of Built Environment. “We are happy with the way the year has gone, considering that Covid brought about challenges to the entire educational system in New Zealand.”
The university engaged two lecturers and three tutors in semester one, adding another full-time staff member to assist with semester two delivery in July. They also engaged six guest lecturers during the year, including three professional members from FMANZ – Bruce Kenning CFFMANZ, Anthony Van Meer CFFMANZ and Tracy Massam CFMANZ.
Massey University has made the decision to transfer the delivery of the courses online for 2022. “This reflects the oral feedback received from our working students and others based overseas,” says Dr Rotimi. “We are having ongoing discussions on the timing of contact sessions and guest lectures to suit our working students more accurately in 2022.”
He says the feedback from this year’s students was largely positive “and we are grateful for their insights”. Here is a snapshot of the feedback received.
- Clearly defined the role and expectations of an FM for today.
- Guest speakers were a great addition; it was very helpful hearing what they had to share and their experience. The lecturer was very helpful and knowledgeable when asked questions.
- Topics were easily relatable to the current environment.
- For my first paper as an adult distance learner, I was quite nervous about what was involved. I really appreciated the effort made by the course lecturer and the Massey team to ensure I had all I needed to achieve the best result.
- Lectures were instrumental, supporting materials were valuable, and written assessments greatly enhanced my skills.
- Course and workshop materials were incredibly easy to follow and packed full of the right information. I really enjoyed this paper and as much as possible I tried to make myself available for the live workshops.
- I enjoyed learning that AM and FM are two very different work aspects. This class has brought this to light for me so I am pleased to understand the difference between the two.
- To be able to watch the recorded sessions and guest lectures was a tremendous help. Also being able to contact the tutor through online support was a tremendous help throughout the course.
There has been positive interest in both programmes for next year, with 12 applications received for both qualifications as of 20 November.
“We would like to thank FMANZ for their support through their marketing of the programme,” says Dr Rotimi. “We also appreciate the contributions of our guest lecturers, who added value to the delivery in 2021. We hope that more FMANZ members and organisations will provide similar support in 2022.”
