Systems Thinking Practitioner Degree Apprenticeship

Course content

The public sphere is an increasingly complex and entangled space: departments and laboratories face challenges that transcend traditional organisational boundaries, and which can only be met by staff working across departments and intellectual disciplines. This programme offers a deep and broad immersion in interdisciplinarity and the challenges of contemporary public service.

Throughout the course apprentices will:

• Gain skills in cross-disciplinary problem-solving; delivering services under complexity, risk and uncertainty; and public sector leadership and ethics
• Receive instruction in the latest theory for systems approaches and methods across a variety of modules including ‘Interdisciplinarity in the Public Sphere’, ‘Systems Thinking in Theory and Practice’, ‘Leadership in Public Organisations’ and ‘Stakeholders in Systems Approaches’
• Complement their learning in taught modules with two work-based practice modules, which give the apprentice the opportunity to put their new taught skills and learning into practice in addressing a problem or challenge area that would benefit from a systems approach and matters to their home organisation
• Gain practical experiences of using key systems approaches in the public sphere, including the Soft Systems Methodology, Critical Systems Heuristics, Patterns of Strategy and others

Nationals of a majority English-speaking country may be accepted without an English qualification if during the application process it has been demonstrated that you are able to understand written and spoken English to the required level.

Careers

Addressing the needs of public sector employers

The Systems Thinking Practitioner Apprenticeship has been designed to focus on the needs of public employers for meeting complex systems challenges in the 21st Century.

Upskilled

By the end of the programme the apprentice will have developed their knowledge and skills in a variety of key areas, including: cross-disciplinary problem solving; evidence-based practice; stakeholder analysis methods; stakeholder engagement, interventions, and management; and applied soft systems theory. Equipped with the tools of systems thinking, apprentices will be better able to tackle complex contemporary challenges and add lasting value to their organisation.

The University’s Careers Service provides a range of support to help apprentices develop skills attractive to employers. Visit our careers service pages for more information.