Fellowship catches deputy president by surprise

14 November 2005

Fellowship catches deputy president by surprise

Unitec New Zealand’s Deputy President, Dr Andrew Codling, is the recipient of a prestigious Woolf Fisher Fellowship although the honour was completely unexpected, he says.

The Fellowship is for ten weeks of overseas study and travel including participation in a professional development programme at a leading university, but like all fellows, Dr Codling didn’t even know that he was being considered for the award.

“The letter informing me I was a recipient of the Fellowship came completely out of the blue, so it’s a totally unexpected opportunity and I am still overwhelmed to be offered it.”

The Woolf Fisher Trust was established by the late Sir Woolf Fisher, co-founder of Fisher and Paykel, and the Trust’s website says that the surprise element of the Fellowship is integral to its success. No applications can be made for the award, and the fellows never know they will receive one until they are informed.

Dr Codling says his plans are still in their early stages but he hopes to visit a wide range of new universities in the UK, spend time at either Oxford or Cambridge University and attend the biennial OECD Institute for Higher Education Management Conference in Paris in September 2006.

It was also Sir Woolf Fisher’s wish that fellows should absorb some of the special atmosphere and culture of the countries visited to complement their study programme.

“I think I will benefit hugely from the time out, but I can also see real benefits for Unitec in the material I bring back, in terms of the ways the institution might develop. The travel will also allow me to progress my research interests in higher education policy and management.”

ENDS

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