Art and Culture on the Schedule for Civil Engineering Students | 2023 |
From 2023, Mid Sweden University's engineering students will be able to encounter art and culture within the framework of their education. In a unique initiative together with Scenkonst Västernorrland, engineering is combined with dance, theatre, music, film and literature.
"We are convinced that this strengthens the engineering students' abilities to understand and handle complex global societal and sustainability challenges. It is a very exciting way to develop the engineering education to broaden the students' creative abilities and give them in-depth cultural competence," says Anders Fällström, Vice-Chancellor of Mid Sweden University.
The concept "Science & Scenes" is based on the fact that the engineering students encounter the four art forms that exist within Performing Arts Västernorrland (dance, theatre, music and film). The students get to take part in three different performances and a film screening. On each occasion, a lecture or workshop is given linked to the art form. The concept also includes a fifth art form, literature, where Mid Sweden University's vice-chancellor will have a literature seminar with the students once a year.
"The students get to take part in one form of culture per year during their five-year education, and the responsible teacher is also given the opportunity to follow along. Each effort and meeting is matched to the learning outcomes that are in the programme syllabus and the structure is tailored each year to Scenkonst Västernorrland's range of production and the content of the programme," says Lisa Sällvin, programme director for the Master of Science in Industrial Engineering and Management. Mid Sweden University.
The concept is part of the collaboration agreement that Mid Sweden University and Performing Arts Västernorrland have drawn up. The cultural element will be included in relevant courses that the students take and the structure is tailored each year to Scenkonst Västernorrland's production offering.
"Today, we are good at reaching children, who we meet at school, and we also have a large audience in older age groups. With this collaboration, we get a unique opportunity to deepen the conversation with a new audience group," says Mikael Flodström, CEO of Scenkonst Västernorrland.
First out are students in year 1 who on February 16 will watch a film and listen to a lecture by Ellen Tejle, head of the media house Fanzingo, about A-rated film, meaning Bechdel-test approved, which is about shedding light on representation issues in film. Later in the spring, students in year 4 will see Teater Västernorrland's performance "Avgörande Ögonblick", which is based on documentary stories from the county. This particular performance will be linked to the students' course in project management.
"A success factor for our regional development is that more creative and educated people choose to stay here or to move here. In that equation, I am convinced that both academia and culture play an important role," says Mikael Flodström, CEO of Scenkonst Västernorrland.