THE retail sector, Northern Ireland’s largest private sector employer, has been celebrating the success of employees who have just graduated with a foundation degree in retailing, led by Northern Regional College.
Eight retail staff from Henderson Group and Tesco are among the latest group to graduate from the programme.
The innovative qualification was pioneered by an industry-education partnership to build workforce skills in the retail sector which it believes is vital to the economic vibrancy of towns and cities across NI.
Congratulating the graduates Trevor Neilands NRC principal and chief executive commended the industry commitment to the programme.
He said: “The dedication of employees and commitment of employers to this foundation degree in retailing demonstrates the retail sector’s investment in the Northern Ireland workforce enabling it to be competitive and meet all the challenges of the ever changing retail environment.”
Guest speaker at the ceremony at Mossley Mill Newtownabbey was Glyn Roberts, chief executive of the Northern Ireland Independent Retail Trade Association.
The industry focused qualification is delivered through a successful collaboration among all six regional colleges. Validated by the University of Ulster, it is supported by the Department for Employment and Learning.
Aimed at building management and leadership skills, the two year part-time course is entirely work-based and combines on- line learning with intensive seminars and masterclasses delivered by progressive retailers.
For more details on the Foundation Degree in Retailing contact Anne Birt-Macartney at Northern Regional College, tel 028 9085 5000 or email anne.birt-macartney@nrc.ac.uk