Riga Technical University, the University of Latvia (LU) and Riga Stradiņš University (RSU) brought together professionals from various fields to investigate future development and evaluation in the curation of new study and continuing education content for the acquisition of high-level digital skills. Starting next year, the first year of students and those employed in the industry will learn from these new study modules.
The new study content will cover a wide spectrum of industries, allowing RTU, LU, and RSU to prepare professionals who will use the most modern technologies in almost any field of the economy - from railway engineering, heat energy and business logistics to health care and climate modeling. To encourage a successful effort that will provide the knowledge and skills required in today's and future's labor market, RTU and LU, in cooperation with the Confederation of Latvian Employers (LDDK), have brought together around 20 leading professionals from IT, pharmaceuticals, logistics, transportation, construction, forestry, mechanical engineering, medical technology, energy, finance and other industries.
Together with RTU and LU teaching staff, the participants will analyze the relevance of the developed study content to determine the needs of the industry and provide recommendations for its improvement. In turn, RSU has attracted several national and international specialists who will participate in the development of study content.
«Without general digital competence and specific knowledge in the field of technology, the development of the future labor market is unthinkable. We are pleased that the training modules developed in the field of high-performance computing technologies were created with the support of LDDK Industry Expert Councils. This solution will be important for both the development of Latvia's human capital as a whole and for employers, promoting the development of the skills of their existing or potential employees,» stated LDDK planning expert Rihards Blese.
Industry experts also emphasized that technologies are changing the paradigm of modern engineers, since automation, and the modeling of various processes is a prerequisite for the sustainable development of any company. The fact is, available data resources are not always effectively used in data-based decision-making, which is related to the lack of specialists and tools. As a result, future professionals and those already working in the industry will be in demand not only in Latvia, but also in the European labor market, where there is a shortage of qualified specialists, after completing the new and improved study courses, the attracted industry experts.
The prediction is that the attractiveness of such specialists will also increase the competitiveness between companies for employees, once evaluating the study modules and respective courses.
«Experts who wanted to contribute to the improvement of RTU and LU study courses responded to the call for cooperation in record time, thus ensuring that students will be able to solve complex problems in the industry after graduation. The collaboration of teaching staff and business experts also led to opportunities for other cooperation opportunities, such as the development of specialized distance learning courses for the needs of companies, contract research using RTU's research infrastructure, attracting industry specialists as guest lecturers,» said «Learning High-Level Digital Skills in Latvia in the Field of High-Performance Computing Technologies» project manager, senior study process expert, and RTU Engineering Economics and Management assistant professor Inga Jēkabsone.
«Among the professionals recruited by RSU are, for example, e-health expert Jankeks Metsalliks from Tallinn Technical University, a certified IT architecture professional, and data analytics and data science management specialist Uģis Kārlis Sprūdžs who brings more than 20 years of work experience in both the private sector and academic work to the table».
In the «Learning of High-Level Digital Skills in Latvia in the Field of High-Performance Computing Technologies» project (No. 2.3.1.1.i.0/1/22/I/CFLA/003), scientific universities will develop and implement 12 study modules in high-performance in computing technology. It is planned that from 2024 onward, the approval of the courses forming the first study modules will begin in the study programs. They will also be offered to the industry in an adapted way. Approbation in the industry will take place free of charge by announcing calls for companies twice a year.
The project is financed by the European Union's Recovery and Resilience Mechanism investment. The aim of the project is to increase the number of specialists in Latvia with high-level digital skills (DigComp level 7-8) who can use technologies to develop knowledge- and technology-intensive new products and services in various sectors, as well as to create synergy between higher education, science and industry, which promotes innovation with maximum commercialization and export potential.
