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‘Human Resources Development’ University of Twente (UT) and Moscow State University of Economics, Statistics, and Informatics (MESI)
Introduction
Delivery Options The MSc Programme HRD has a total workload of 1720 hours. The regular one-year Programme is delivered face-to-face by Moscow State University of Economics, Statistics, and Informatics (MESI) International Centre for HRD. For participants attending courses at MESI, the nominal course duration is 45 weeks (including a two-weeks break around New Year); 16 hours per week will be devoted to class sessions; 24 hours per week are allocated for self-study. The Programme starts at the end of August with a one-week introductory module. Participants who need more time to conduct the Programme may extend the period up to 56 weeks. Apart from this delivery mode also a mixed-delivery option is offered. Here, the Core Courses are delivered in Moscow, but the Specialisation Courses and the main body of the Final Project may be carried out through a mix of face-to-face and distance education in the participant’s own home and professional setting. If this option is chosen, the participant should have access to Internet at his or her disposal in order to maintain regular contact with MESI and his or her mentors. This option includes the possibility of fulfilling the requirements for the Specialisation Phase on a part-time basis. In this case, the course duration may be extended for up to 17 months, which implies a study-load of 20 hours per week for the Specialisation Phase. In this model, the participant completes the Specialisation Courses during the January-June period, and the Final Project during the July-December period. The above mentioned electronic communication facilities (full access to Internet / World Wide Web) apply also in the distance-delivery option, in which the participant is enabled to complete the Programme totally through distance education. We expect participants in this option to devote at least 20 hours per week to the Programme, and subsequently graduate within 24 months according to the following schedule:
For groups of students in a certain region, delivery in local study centres, combined with distance education, will be considered. Organisations or companies that are interested in customised versions of the Programme are invited to contact the Programme Management. The Core Phase in more detail Core Course 1. HRD Theory This course aims at providing insight in the scope of theoretical perspectives from which HRD has been conceptualised. First, attention will be paid to HRD definitions, HRD theories, and HRD experts. Subsequently the concept of HRD will be approached form several perspectives. In doing so, among others the following subjects will be dealt with: lifelong learning, knowledge management, competitive benefits of HRD, employees' participation, system theories, strategic alignment, organisation of the learning function, knowledge-intensive organisations, HRD and the core competence of organisations, HRD as a facilitating service, outsourcing of HRD, vendor rating of HRD-companies, HRD and performance, competence management and HRD, HRD for the development of human capital, cost-benefit rates of HRD interventions, return-on-investment of HRD-interventions, the learning organisation, organisational learning, learning in networks, and HRD in changing organisations. Core Course 2. HRD Technology This course focuses on the instrumental aspects of HRD. Attention will be paid to strategies, procedures, and methods that HRD-professionals use in analysing performance problems and designing, developing, and implementing solutions to explicit HRD problems. Specific topics in this respect are: (a) transforming a traditional training department into an organisational unit which focuses at enhancing organisational performance in terms of process and staff, (b) diagnosing performance problems and analysing the possibilities to optimise individual and organisational performance, (c) assessing the discrepancy between present and desired performance, and in this context designing and producing interventions to neutralise these discrepancies, (d) selecting and implementing planned interventions; (e) evaluating the results of implemented changes. Core Course 3. Learning and Instruction in Organisations This course provides an overview of instructional design (ID) strategies and tactics for the development of training environments fostering the acquisition of skills and knowledge. Besides the course provides models and rules for the instructional systems development process. This process begins by analysing an underlying problem. The problem involves a performance deficiency. The primary purpose of this step is to help determine whether instruction and training is an appropriate solution or only a part of the solution. After analysing the underlying nature of the problem, the knowledge and skills are analysed to solve the problem by identifying component tasks for each, and develop a corresponding performance objective for each task. These objectives guide the design process and help with the selection and sequence content, instructional strategies, tactics and media. The front-end analysis, therefore, is the critical link between individual or organisational needs and instructional development efforts, Without properly analysing those gaps, even the most well-constructed instructional programme will not be cost-effective in meeting the needs. Core Course 4. ICT in Training This course provides a fundamental basis for the use of ICT and instructional media. After completing this course, participants are able to plan and conduct instruction in corporate settings that incorporates media and ICT components. Throughout the course an integration of theory and practice is maintained. First an introduction of instructional media and ICT is given, including an overview of traditional and new ICT media and their potential for training and instruction, with analyses leading to different models and instructional approaches. Next the modules will devoted to: (a) Functions of media, selection of media, media planning and utilisation, (b) Designing media for instruction, (c) Development of interactive learning and training environments, (d) Evaluation of performance and media implementation. Finally the participants will integrate the results of the earlier modules into a prototype for a WWW- based or CD-ROM-based training module. Core Course 5. HRD Design Methodology This course is an interdisciplinary synthesising course on design methodology for training settings. Basic concepts on design methodology and theoretical insights from the four aforementioned Core Courses are combined with opportunities for practical application through educational problem-solving exercises, and analyses of case studies from a corporate context. The modular approach integrates the elements that are found in various models for instructional systems design. Special emphasis is given to project organisation and project planning, as most training design assignments are worked out in projects. Core Course 6. HRD Research Methodology The course aims at developing skills in research methods for specific HRD topics. The research methods that will be dealt with are: quantitative and qualitative research methods, research methods for theory-building, and case-study methods. The content related topics for which methodological-technical problems will be analysed, and with which will be practised (in order to acquire HRD research methodological skills) can be divided into: individual learning and performance, team learning and performance, and organisational learning and performance. Subsequently participants will study a number of HRD research articles in order to analyse and reflect on the used HRD research techniques. Concrete research topics that will be dealt with are: the effects of alternative modelling strategies on the results of inter-personal skill training (at the individual level), knowledge production, i.e. collective team learning in organisations (at the team level), and comprehension of organisations as learning systems (at the organisational level). The focal questions in studying each of these research topics are: What consequences will this research have for HRD-professionals? What will the implications be for the research topic and research methodology? What will the implications be for future research? Specialisation Phase The Core Courses must be successfully completed before the Specialisation Phase may formally begin. This phase includes the following aspects: (a) theoretical focusing through Specialisation Courses relative to the specialisation area chosen by the participant for his or her Final Project; and (b) successful execution of a Final Project, including a significant amount of practical work with respect to a real-life problem, culminating in the Master of Science degree. Theoretical focusing regularly takes the form of course-work and/or directed studies, and an advanced literature study, which is closely linked to the Final Project. The Final Project must include some evaluative and reflective components, be grounded in a theoretical framework, and be related to a stated design problem. In the Specialisation Phase 3 specialisations are offered: Organisation & Management - Instruction & Curriculum - Media & Technology Support In the Organisation & Management specialisation the following Specialisation Courses will be offered:
Location MESI is situated in an ecologically clean district of Moscow. It is considered as a unique university in Russia: not only for its entrepreneurial policy, but also because of its excellent facilities: indoor and outdoor sporting facilities, a restaurant, a coffee shop, staff and student housing, a health centre, and specialised facilities for teaching and learning. The International Centre for HRD offers its own computer laboratories, Internet connection, audio-visual, multimedia and computer-based facilities, and library. Founded in 1932, MESI is one of the oldest higher educational institutes in economics in Russia. Currently more than 5,000 on-campus students (among them a substantial number of foreign students) participate in full-time and part-time courses and programmes. Educational Requirements Applicants should have at least a Bachelor’s degree or equivalent in an academic field, relevant professional experience, and competence in English (e.g. a minimum score of 450 on the TOEFL test). Apart from these formal requirements, applicants need skills in computer use and should in this respect at least have experience in working with Windows 98 or Windows NT. Costs The tuition fee for the Programme is USD 5,000. In accordance with Russian regulations on taxation and education, no taxes are applied to these fees. The tuition fee includes the use of course materials, full access to MESI's libraries, and use of the audio-visual and computer facilities in the International Centre for HRD. The costs do not include travel, insurance, accommodation, food, and other living and incidental expenses. The best student from each class will be awarded by a trip to The Netherlands for a period of three weeks. Programme Management Prof. Dr. Alexander Khoroshilov, programme director (MESI) Dr. Ivan Stanchev, educational manager (UT) Irina Shostak MSc MBA, programme manager (MESI) Jan Nelissen BA, programme manager (UT) Further Information For additional information, you are invited to contact: Moscow State University of Economics, Statistics, and Informatics International Centre for HRD Prof. Dr. Alexander Khoroshilov or Irina Shostak MSc MBA Nezhinskaya Street 7 119501 Moscow, Russia Telephone: 095-442-8533 or 095-442-7398 Telefax: 095-442-6558 E-mail: akhor@rector.mesi.ru, feis@mesi.ru Internet address: http://www.mesi.ru  | Training and training-methodical work. | New information technologies in education. | | Scientific research work in the field of education. | 
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