In collaboration with Erasmus University College (EUC) and the Bachelor Honours Class of Erasmus School of Economics, the Erasmus Trust Fund has set up the Erasmus Trust Fund Lecture Cycle. Alumni, EUC and economics students are working together on cases focusing on practical questions put forward by alumni. They are developing practice-oriented teaching materials for EUC in this project, which is being supervised by Rotterdam School of Management Case Development Centre. The parties concerned want to bridge the gap between students and alumni, and this will provide the EUC with a unique case database.
Giselle van Cann (NOS Nieuws), Marcella Breedeveld (NRC Handelsblad), Gijs van Lookeren Campagne (Greenwheels), Caroline Oosterbaan (NIBC) and Harald Swinkels (Nederlandse Energie Maatschappij/Dutch Energy Company) were the first ones to volunteer to work on this new type of case study development for education.
Platform
Four teams comprising three EUC and economics students each will be developing the business cases under the supervision of lecturers of Erasmus School of Economics, EUC and Rotterdam School of Management Case Development Centre, which is an international platform for education based on business cases. A team of students will be linked to each alumnus, and the Erasmus Trust Fund Lecture Cycle will conclude with guest lectures given by the relevant alumni. The cases will serve as a foundation for two educational sessions to be held between March and May 2015. The idea is to publish the case studies they have developed in the Rotterdam School of Management Case Development Centre database.
“This fits in perfectly with EUC’s own ambitions. We can use these real-life cases, which are actually developed by Rotterdam alumni themselves, to provide students with the challenges they’re looking for,” says Liesbeth Noordegraaf-Eelens of EUC.
Michiel Muller, president of the Erasmus Trust Fund, adds: “A lot of people at our organisation are really enthusiastic about this initiative because our alumni would very much like to give back to their alma mater. It strengthens ties between the Trust Fund and Erasmus University Rotterdam and contributes to the ‘learn, earn and return’ theme.