What was it all about?

This program established a Masterclass in Protected Cropping at Western Sydney University, with 285 students enrolled in at least one of four protected cropping courses since its inception in 2020.

Challenge

This program's objective was to fill an identified gap in training future leaders in the Australian protected cropping industry. It achieved this by developing and delivering a suite of subjects that would be offered as a one-year Masterclass in Protected Cropping, a unique and comprehensive program.

Response

The Masterclass included enrolment in, and articulation to, a range of graded qualifications, culminating in a six-month Graduate Certificate, a one-year Graduate Diploma, a two-year Master of Science (MSc) Greenhouse Horticulture major, and micro-credentials (1-3 subjects). Along with the associated course subjects such as Industry Project and MSc Research Project, four major core subjects were designed in collaboration with Hort Innovation and industry partners they are Greenhouse Crop Production, Plant-Climate Interactions in a Controlled Environment, Advanced Greenhouse Technology, and Greenhouse Control Systems.

The course, a result of industry collaboration, includes a combination of flexible online learning modules and intensive on-site workshops to align with the likely availability of time-pressured industry employees. Students are provided internship opportunities with some core industry partners to facilitate work-integrated learning. The industry's active role in the development of the course content ensures it meets market needs. Participants who complete this course could potentially help to meet the high demand for skills and leadership in the Australian protected cropping industry.

The course program is now self-sustaining through student enrolments and industry support through scholarships and internships. It fosters ongoing and/or new relationships with the industry and produces industry-related publications that warrant future R&D.

Benefit

Since the commencement of the program in the summer semester of 2020, a total of 285 students have enrolled in at least one of the four protected cropping core subjects and other related subjects, surpassing project targets of 100 participants. The project has so far educated 106 students who completed the core subjects and qualified for a Graduate Diploma in Protected Cropping, and 31 of these have completed the Master of Science (Greenhouse Horticulture major). Two students have successfully completed the graduate certificate and 140 students have successfully completed at least one Greenhouse Horticulture subject to qualify with micro-credentials in protected cropping. This success demonstrates the program's effectiveness in meeting and exceeding its targets.

The independent mid-term review organised by Hort Innovation highlighted that 'this project developed a targeted, technical course for the Australian context to upskill existing employees and promote careers in horticulture'.

The project team has received three teaching, education, and outreach awards for the excellent work done by this Hort Innovation, industry, and WSU co-funded project.

Given that the enrolments are significantly more than the targets (100), this is one of Australia's most successful horticultural courses in recent years and represents a significant opportunity for Australian horticulture in the future.