Staffordshire University today announced participation in AWS Academy, a new Amazon Web Services (AWS) program to help prepare computing students for careers in cloud computing.
The University’s School of Computing and Digital Technologies is among the first to offer the AWS Academy curriculum to students on a range of degrees. As an AWS Academy member institution, the University has access to an authorised cloud computing curriculum developed and maintained by AWS.
Staffordshire University Award Leader for Cloud, Networks and Security, Dr Justin Champion, is an AWS accredited instructor. He said: “We are proud to be among the first institutions to make AWS Academy curriculum available to our undergraduate and postgraduate students.
"Cloud computing has become the new normal for organisations around the world and the technical skills that students develop through this programme will position them well for their careers today and in the future. They have real-world experience of using the technology.”
Callum Lindsay, 19, and Nelson Ross, 22, who are students on Staffordshire University’s BSc (Hons) Business Information Technology degree, are among the first to benefit from the new curriculum.
Callum said: “We’ve lots of practical experience and are hands-on with it. In the future, I’ll be looking to go into IT, probably cloud, because that’s the way forward.” Nelson said he was benefiting from the new teaching which mirrored work in a professional environment, adding: “I’m now looking at Amazon Web Services as a career path as well.”
AWS Academy Global Leader, Scott McKinley, said: “AWS Academy strives to bring higher education institutions, students and industry leaders together in order to address the skills gap and meet the need for thousands of new cloud computing professionals.
"IT professionals with the necessary cloud skills are in high demand and we’re proud to further advance the learning opportunities for students at Staffordshire University. With AWS Academy, students will be positioned as skilled professionals who can support IT initiatives with AWS technology and skills mastery.”