Combined Universities in Cornwall (CUC) Scheme set to help hundreds of graduates

Due to a recent increase of European funding the CUC’s Unlocking Cornish Potential graduate placement scheme now aims to help 450 students find an internship within one of the county’s businesses by 2011. The scheme places graduates with companies for up to 12 months to work on a specific project that is aimed to help the future development of the business. Throughout the placement the graduate is supported by a minimum salary of £16,000 that is partially provided by the European Social Fund. 70% of the scheme’s graduates have been offered permanent positions within the company after their internship which has made the scheme a huge success. Unlocking Cornish Potential was initially supported by Objective One funding but in July 2008 it was able to secure £4.25m in additional funds through the Convergence Programme.

In other CUC news the proposed expansion of Penryn Campus, part of the Combined Universities in Cornwall, has been approved by Kerrier Council and will create more than 400 jobs and allow 5,000 students to attend the campus, doubling the current figure. Local residents have expressed concern that the expansion will only exacerbate the current problems in the area, such as lack of parking around the campus. Neil Barnes, director of estates at the university has responded to these concerns by promising to work with the community to help curtail the problem. The principal focus of the development is a £15m performance centre that will contain several performance studios aimed to accommodate music, drama and dance students.