1 May 2006 Professional Masters programme sharpens industry management skills

Lincoln University programmes in transport studies and logistics and transport management are "truckin' along well", with 13 new graduates just capped at the University's 2006 Graduation Ceremony. (28 April).

Among the graduates were four who qualified with the Master of Professional Studies degree in Transport Management.

The Professional Masters programme at Lincoln University offers a high level postgraduate qualification designed for the professional development of managers in the workplace.

The programme has an industry-specific focus and enables managers who aspire to senior positions to build on their existing managerial skills and industry knowledge.

The degree can be undertaken on a part-time basis completely off campus and it involves six units of study plus a dissertation equivalent to two units.

Current areas of specialisation for the degree are Agribusiness Management, Environmental Management, Forest Industry Management, Hospitality and Tourism Management, Property Studies, Transport Management.

Two of the latest Professional Masters graduates in Transport Management, Conrad Petersen and James Upton, won awards at the last annual awards of New Zealand's Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport.

"Such success gives a strong signal of professional approval for the University's courses," says Lincoln's Professor of Transport Studies Chris Kissling.

Conrad Petersen, Manager, Capability and Funding Policy in the Policy Group of New Zealand Customs, Wellington, won the Ministry of Transport Award for the best piece of research up to masters level for his dissertation on The impact of aircraft noise on the Milford Sound environment.

James Upton, formerly Human Resources Manager with TNL Group, Nelson, won the prize for the best presentation to a meeting of the Chartered Institute. James' presentation was based on his dissertation Coal bridge 'roadbridge' best practice project and experiences. This topic was about the cartage of coal by road during a period when the Westport to Reefton rail line could not handle the traffic.

"The huge demand for qualified staff in the transport and logistics industries makes it a good time to think about Lincoln University and its courses in these fields," says Professor Kissling.

"For those already employed and occupying managerial or executive positions the Master of Professional Studies degree, which is undertaken on a part-time basis and extramurally, is to be recommended.

"With plenty of job opportunities in the marketplace and good career paths offered by leading companies – many of which operate internationally – now is the time to act on getting or adding to a qualification.

"With so much of the raw material of New Zealand's economic wealth produced in rural areas, but processed and given added value in urban areas, transport is a strategically important industry," he says.

"Getting the raw materials of wealth from A to B is the business of transport. Then, as an island nation, all of New Zealand's physical exports require either sea or air transport to move them to overseas buyers and markets, and that involves a vast infrastructure of seaports, airports, railyards, storage depots, warehouses, and the like.

"It's no exaggeration to say that transport plays a pivotal role in the generation of New Zealand's economic wealth and productivity."

Ian Collins, Journalist, Lincoln University, Canterbury, New Zealand