B&B changes status, adds content
Published:Sunday | November 28, 2010 | 12:00 AM
In 2004, the B&B Institute registered a new name with the Companies Office of Jamaica, the B&B University College, to indicate a new direction being taken in offering graduate and postgraduate training in association with foreign universities, including Heriot-Watt University (HWU) in Scotland.
Currently registered with the University Council of Jamaica (UCJ) as the B&B Institute of Business, it is awaiting regularisation of the name change by this organisation.
But while it waits, it is offering a raft of new programmes in association with Heriot-Watt, and has also spent J$5 million on developing the physical plant at Carlton Crescent in Kingston.
Commencing in January 2011, B&B will offer the two-year BSc in Construction Project Management, the MSc in Construction Project Management, and the MSc in Civil Engineering and Construction Management.
Local costs for the programmes range from a low of J$360,000 to a high of J$1.54 million.
"The courses focus on the requirements for managing construction projects from conception to occupancy while ensuring high levels of quality and cost efficiency in the final output," said executive director Dudley Barrett.
Heriot-Watt will, he said, develop the course content, provide the learning material, conduct all assessments, and issue all awards and certifications.
New policy
As to the change of status, Barret said, "The UCJ is currently developing a new policy to govern the operation of university colleges as a number of them have developed over the years such as Mico, Hydel, and the UCC."
He said the application to the UCJ for the renaming of the institute is on hold "pending finalisation of this policy".
A university college is a tertiary institution which offers qualifications which straddle post-secondary courses, such as certificates and diplomas, and university courses, but does not have full university status, Barrett said.
The change was made, he added, to reflect the focus on a wider range of courses up to the postgraduate level concomitant with the signing of agreements with various overseas institutions.
"The name 'B&B Institute of Business' did not fully reflect what we did, and so a change was necessary. The new name was registered with the Companies Office in 2004."
Under its arrangement with Heriot-Watt, fee-sharing involves the Scotland university determining a cost for each module registration, then, "the total module registration fees are invoiced to us on registration of a student", Barrett said.
"The HWU charge is treated as an input cost to us. We then estimate our other costs and charge students a total fee, including the HWU charge, for the services provided.
The Heriot-Watt programmes include practical assessment at an actual construction site. Construction-sector employees will be allowed to matriculate with "seven to 10 years' appropriate work" into the degree programmes, which Barrett calls the mature student entry route.
Established in 1984, B&B University College is focused on providing career and professional development training. The association with the Heriot-Watt Management Programme began in 2005.
According to Barrett, the UCJ only grants accreditation if a set of graduates who have passed through the programme are available for interview. They also require a visit to the awarding institution to assess standards.
"We have already sent in our accreditation application for the BA and MBA as we already have a set of graduates for those programmes," he said.
"The visit to Edinburgh should have occurred in October. Unfortunately, it has been postponed until April next year. If this is not postponed again, we then expect to get accreditation for the BA and MBA by June 2011."
The implementation of the construction programmes, he added, was also unlikely before next year December.